New Mexico Early Learning Guidelines - Center For Education ...

Language is the shared code or symbol system that is used to communicate.Language can be verbal or non-verbal.Language and speech skills develop as children participate in acts ofcommunication, over and over again. This broadconcept of communication is especially important to keep in mind while workingwith infants and toddlers. Young childrenare great communicators well before they speak. Imagine a baby who reacheswith her arms toward an adult, using a nonverbalgesture that communicates a desire to be picked up. When the adultinterprets that gesture correctly says, ìUp? Doyou want me to get you up?î and then picks the baby up for a cuddle, language(a shared code) has been used effectivelyto meet the needs of the baby. As the baby responds positively to being pickedup and cuddled, the adult also experiencesfeelings of pleasure and success from this exchange.Learning the language of oneís family is a primary task for infants andtoddlers. The indicators in the early learningguidelines can be used to assess the mode of communication most familiar orappropriate for the child. We are calling thishis ìhome languageî, which may be Spanish, English, an indigenous language,sign, etc. They can also be used to assess achildís second language, any language to which the child is exposed inaddition to his home language. Depending on thechildís situation, this may also be Spanish, English, an indigenous language,sign, etc. In New Mexico, many of our infantsand toddlers are growing up as members of families and within households wheremore than one language is spoken. Someyoung children may live in communities that are working to revitalize heritagelanguages that are at risk of being lost.Some children may also be learning a second language while in our care.Research tells us that babies are well equipped tolearn more than one language right from birth. Bilingual children generallyreach communication milestones at about thesame time as their monolingual peers.Early childhood educators should communicate with children in the childís homelanguage as much as possible, modelinglanguage usage for infants and toddlers. The childís home language is what isfamiliar and comforting to them as they aregetting used to a new environment or feeling stressed by the separation from