Quality Care Maximizes Potential
By Deborah Shichtman, CSW, Ed.D
“Peek-a-boo. Where are you?” -- a caregiver interaction with all the right stuff. What does it indicate? What does it foster?
To be ready to respond in this game, baby Jane has to have
incorporated language comprehension, developed a trusting
relationship, and learned rudimentary mastery in communication.
Where did all these skills come from? They came from caregiving
interactions during everyday activities--feeding, changing of
diapers, bathing, playing, etc. Here are a few examples of positive
caregiving interactions: establishing trust by responding to a 
baby’s needs so that she
feels safe and secure stimulating engagement and establishing a
rapport by looking into the baby’s eyes while talking to him
encouraging communication by using back and forth reciprocal
gestures to engage the baby to participate
What does playing peek-a-boo foster? It promotes a longer flow of interaction, higher levels of conceptualization, and a trusting relationship. Psychiatrist Erik Erikson in his seminal work “The Eight Stages of Development” says that a trusting or distrusting relationship is the groundwork for a child’s perception of the world. Dr. Barbara Clark professor at UCLA in their Division of Special Education and director of the Center for Educational Excellence for Gifted and Highly Able Learners, adds that a sense of trust has been found to be the basis for the perception of control over one’s own life, which is the single most important condition for success, achievement, and a sense of well being.
Caregiving should establish contexts that provide for learning opportunities—new experiences and stimulation that promote positive development and support higher developmental levels than the child has had before. Take the simple act of a child playing with a truck. A caregiver playing with that child can make a fence or roadblock with her hands or take another car and announce “Here I come.” These simple interventions make the play more interesting and complex and encourage problem solving at the same time.
Caregiving should respond to the individual personality of the child, encouraging and furthering his interests and strengths. Quality caregiving maximizes potential . . .good beginnings promote future success.