Part of the Series : Beginning the Journey...

This video provides a roadmap for parents and caregivers to help them understand a baby’s first 12 months of life. Included in this presentation is the identification of key developmental issues, with specific regard to the physical, emotional, social, and intellectual growth an infant undergoes during his or her first year. Interviews with experts in the field of child development help to further educate the viewer on how to successfully navigate through this critical time in a child’s life. A Meridian Production. (21 minutes)

Closed Captioned

Physical Development (03:21)
Babies grow rapidly and develop many new skills in the first 12 months, developing from head to foot, and from near to far.

Brain Development (02:34)
Babies are born with all the brain cells they need but must work to develop the synapses in the brain. Environmental stimulation plays an important role in the development of the infant's brain.

Ideal Environments for Infant Development (01:43)
Safety and stimulation are two major considerations in creating a healthy environment for infant development. Infants also need to be kept warm, dry, well-fed, and well-rested.

Emotional/Social Development (02:32)
Emotional and social development refers to the process of learning to recognize and express feelings, establishing identity, and learning to interact with, associate with, and express oneself with others.

Building Trust and Expression of Emotions (02:13)
A baby's needs should be met on the baby's schedule rather than that of the adult, in order to build trust. Babies who grow normally--physically, emotionally and socially--learn to express a wide range of emotions.

Intellectual Development (03:45)
Brain development and trust-building contribute to intellectual development. In the first year baby learns to remember, make associations, understand cause and effect, and pay attention.

Interaction and Stimulation in the Environment (03:05)
To encourage intellectual development, the child's environment needs to be stimulating. Piaget identified object permanence as a developmental milestone. He also documented how children build on previous experiences.