How We Teach and How They Learn
A few weeks ago
someone asked me what I did for work, and I answered by saying that I was a teacher at
a children's center. Then she asked what age group I taught, and I replied, "I
work with babies." This person then said, "You're an infant teacher--what
do you teach babies?" I admit the smile on this person's face did not surprise me.
She seemed like she just did not understand how an infant can be taught. So here I am writing about being a teacher, a
person who does not need to be an instructor, but a mentor, a guide who pays
attention and supports a child’s need and curiosity by providing them with the
necessary tools to further their natural learning. It's not about sitting in front of a baby and showing them what to do and expect them to just learn it. It's about observing, researching, and learning together.
“According to
psychologist Jean Piaget, infants construct their knowledge of the world by
exploring with their bodies and senses.
Your baby is born with all her senses intact, although her sense of
touch, taste, and smell, and hearing are initially more developed than her
vision. As infants mature, they use all their senses to absorb everything that’s going on around them. Your infant is learning all the time, whether
she is mouthing a rattle, batting at an activity board, playing peek-a-boo,
pulling books off the shelves, watching trees sway in the breeze, or simply
gazing into your face. Much of your
baby’s brain development happens after she is born. The experiences that your baby has in the
first years of her life lay the foundation for later learning.” From ‘How
a Baby Learns,’ Infant South’s Welcome Packet.
As a Reggio inspired
center we believe that you, the parent, are your child's first teacher, we are
the second teacher, and the environment is the third teacher. We teachers
are responsible for providing a stimulating, supportive, enriching, and
developmentally appropriate environment for babies to learn while they work
through play. We provide them with interesting and real life objects so that they utilize all of their senses to learn about these materials. We flood them with language and give them space to socially interact with adults and peers. We give them opportunities to learn to problem solve on their own when safe to do so as well as opportunities to test their limits. Babies build knowledge through these explorations; interacting with others; and life experiences. How we guide and support them shows what kind of a teacher we are.
What might your Babies be learning in these pictures?
Babies need stimulation with the experience of moving, listening, touching, and observing to learn about their world.
-Dilcia
