Infants And Toddlers in Group Care: Feeding Practices That Foster Emotional Health

• Published in: YC young children 2008-11, Vol.63 (6), p.28-33
• Main Authors: Branscomb, Kathryn R., Goble, Carla B.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Behavior; Bottles; Caregivers; Child Behavior; Child Development; Children; Children & youth; Cues; Cultural identity; Eating Habits; Emotional Development; Emotional Problems; Families & family life; Food; Food preparation; Guidelines; Hunger; Infants; Interpersonal Communication; Mealtimes; Mental Health; Obesity; Preschool children; Psychological Patterns; RESEARCH TO PRACTICE; Teacher Role; Teacher Student Relationship; Toddlers; Trust (Psychology); Young Children
• ISSN: 1538-6619; 1941-2002

The quality of child-teacher interactions during daily child care routines plays a significant role in young children's development. The nature of mealtimes--the pace, the caregiver's responsiveness, how food is offered--affects infants' and toddlers' emotional health. Maintaining consistency between how children are fed at home and at the center respects the family's culture and traditions and nurtures positive attachment at an early age. Infants learn about themselves and others. They begin to develop expectations of how they will be treated in relationships and to develop feelings of trust and security. In this article, the authors focus on research-based best practices for feeding babies and toddlers in group care and how these daily routines are opportunities for caregivers to promote healthy emotional development. Although much of the research in this area has been conducted with mothers, the findings are applicable to early care and education teachers who serve as surrogate parents for young children.