1 Responsive Teaching Techniques for Infants & ToddlersO’Brien-Chapter 6

2 Responsive Teaching Techniques for Infants & ToddlersSome points to remember… Even the oldest of toddlers do not understand much language, which means they do not follow verbal directions well Teachers cannot simply announce the lesson & expect infants & toddlers to sit [quietly] and listen Infants & toddlers are learning about the world around them teachers must strive to see the world through the children’s eyes Teaching infants & toddlers requires: energy alertness & awareness of what the child is doing at all times being ready to intervene and/or redirect participate in play with enthusiasm & pleasure enhancing the children’s play & capitalizing on their experiences their full attention on the children planning carefully in advance to create opportunities for teaching

3 Teaching as Enhancing Learning & Development‘Enhancing children’s desire to learn’ is the teacher’s most important job Emotional involvement teachers must have a willingly to become emotionally involved & show affection & caring children more readily respond to those teachers who are emotionally involved teachers need to work at developing strong emotional relationships with all children in their care relationships require effort & attention; they do not “just happen” repeated successful interactions are the basis for secure relationships The child’s agenda teachers should…allow children to choose activities & set a direction for learning teachers should…follow the child’s lead teachers should…talk with the child about their shared experiences and identify opportunities to expand on the child’s actions teachers should…be nondirective do not confused nondirectiveness with passivity—the nondirective teacher waits to allow the child to show the way, but once the child begins to play with a toy, the teacher is attentive & involved, looking for opportunities to introduce new concepts or elaborate on the play

4 Teaching as Enhancing Learning & Development…cont’d(Enhancing children’s desire to learn…cont’d) Enhancing communication skills the beginning of language lies in nonverbal communication—gestures, facial expressions, & body language effective teachers must try to be responsive to all communicative attempts by children teachers need to spend a lot of time talking about everything that they & the children are doing…why??? Video: CSEFEL Module 2 Video 2.8 Mom Playing with Toddler (1:17 min) In this video, a parent asks questions and listens to the responses of her toddler as they play together be especially aware of the communication techniques & social interaction that mom uses with toddler How is this an example of ways parents and caregivers can support social emotional skills? • follows the child’s interests • follows the child’s lead in the play • responds to the child’s words and questions • listens to child’s responses (is attentive) • asks questions • is on the floor with the child • stays with the pretending • models polite words (e.g., “please” and “thank you”) • demonstrates interest

5 Teaching as Enhancing Learning & Development…cont’d(Enhancing communication skills…cont’d) Communication terms: simple, short sentences spoken with melodic tones that vary in pitch (a nearly universal way that mothers talk to their infants) Motherese incorporating some sign language into everyday verbal language & interactions with children sign language can help all children bridge the time period from being nonverbal to the time they can express themselves with words Total communication describing what you are doing, seeing, hearing, smelling, & feeling simple & slow-paced language: “I’m lifting Jason up now. Up we go!” does not make any demands on the child Self-talk focused on labeling objects & actions, providing descriptive words, & narrating an ongoing scene (like a sports announcer) pace should be slow with lots of pauses: “Danny has a red beanbag. The red beanbag hit the blue circle.” Parallel talk adds information to the child’s statement, provide more elaborate sentence structure child=“Tuck” then adult says “You have a red truck.” Expansion responding to the child’s statement with new information that may be of interest to the child child=“Big bug” then adult says “That big bug is a June bug.” Continuation

6 Teaching as Enhancing Learning & Development…cont’dEnhancing motor skills Babies & toddlers are constantly practicing their large motor skills—they seem to be in constant motion! Young children need to learn how their bodies move & how to gain control over these movements Developmental sequence involves: ability to balance, shift weight, & keep body aligned while changing positions Teachers need to provide lots of opportunities as well as support & assistance Certain disabilities may affect a child’s muscle tone or bone structure (cerebral palsy, spina bifida, delays in learning)

7 Teaching as Enhancing Learning & Development…cont’d(Enhancing motor skills…cont’d) Balance children who have difficulty with balance are at risk for continued difficulties with movement & eventual limitations in their ability to participate in recreational activities some children may appear clumsy a balance reaction is the tendency of the body to keep itself in alignment w/gravity teachers can promote balance reactions by having the child sit on your lap and bending one leg so the child slides to one side, creating that sense of unbalance have a variety of surfaces available-foam mats, grass, sand, uneven earth, hills Postural control children need to be able to bend & reach while maintaining control over the rest of their body teachers can help children practice by holding a toy just out of reach so that they must stretch & bend to obtain the toy children work on postural control when they are sitting & kneeling on the floor, sitting on foam blocks, riding tricycles, sitting on chairs, climbing in & out of things, and walking up & down stairs

8 Teaching as Enhancing Learning & Development…cont’dEnhancing social development When babies & toddlers play together, their social exchanges are very brief because neither partner is competent in assisting the other w/communicating Young children learn from watching & imitating other children’s behavior Teachers need to work to provide an overall environment that encourages & supports positive, affectionate, and rewarding social interactions between adults & children and among the children themselves The social climate must be one in which the child is accepted and cared for as an individual and so that they can gain confidence in their skills Video: CSEFEL Module 2 Video 2.6 Adult Supporting Children (managing conflict) (:22 sec) -This clip illustrates emotional literacy strategies in action. -What did this caregiver do to promote emotional literacy? -What else could she do to develop these children’s emotional literacy skills?

9 Teaching as Enhancing Learning & Development…cont’d(Enhancing social development…cont’d) Investing in relationships with children one of the most important ways teachers can promote children’s social development is by building their own emotional relationships with children adult-child relationships form the basis for children’s later peer relationships infants & toddlers need the security & predictability that comes from consistent & sensitive interactions w/adults teacher must be willingly to become emotionally involved with the children in their care; it contributes to the child’s sense of own worth Creating opportunities for shared experience use familiar activities to build a foundation for shared experiences plan for children to repeatedly play together for brief periods of time; children should be allowed to select their own companions teacher should encourage friendly interactions between children plan activities that involve turn-taking (& help to facilitate that b/c toddlers will not know how to do it) Showing affection teachers should be affectionate with children play affectionate games with dolls/stuffed animals practice turn-taking, sharing toys with dolls (rather than other children) teach children to make requests for turns it is fruitless to expect infants & toddlers to share or insist they give up their toys…it is not developmentally appropriate at this age

11 Teaching as intervention…cont’dChildren with special needs can participate as equals b/c social interaction among infants & toddlers is fairly basic Encouraging peer play “Susie likes to drink hot chocolate. Tell Susie what you like to drink.” 1. encouraging children to share information “Gary has a cool necktie. Would you like to see how it looks on you? Let’s see how your fancy hat looks on Gary.” 2. encouraging children to give & receive toys “Elaine has a big black dog at home. I know you have a dog, too. What’s your dog’s name?” 3. providing information about one child to another child, thus pointing out areas of shared knowledge and experience children enjoy the feeling of competence by helping another child “David & I will hold the paper while you color. Then you can hold our paper for us.” 4. encouraging children to help each other focus on abilities than disabilities “Wow! Look at Maxine crawl!” 5. making statements that point out the activities the child with special needs is capable of doing Describing disabilities in simple language “Tracey’s legs don’t work like yours. The wheelchair lets Tracey go fast!” 6. answering children’s questions about the child with special needs

12 Teaching as intervention…cont’dIncorporating IFSP outcomes into play and daily living activities The most important goal in working with children w/special needs is for teachers to incorporate the intervention practices appropriate for each child and their outcomes into everyday care & play routines each child who qualifies for services under Part C of the IDEA Amendments of 1997 will have an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) outcomes=incorporated into the teaching approaches & goals used in the classroom (if teachers are using responsive teaching techniques, they are probably already addressing many of these outcomes) a play activity schedule can be adapted to include activities that are focused towards a specific outcome for a particular child communication between teacher, family, and special service provider can be facilitated by using a log or notebook, describing a therapy or education session a family-friendly “Home Report” can be used