0 6 unicef Macedónia

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EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

EARLY LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENTSTANDARDSFOR CHILDREN FROM 0-6 YEARS


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EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

EARLY LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENTSTANDARDSFOR CHILDREN FROM 0-6 YEARS


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Publisher:

Ministry of Labour and Social Policy

Authors:

Lena Damovska, Florina Shehu, Nadica Janeva,

Simona Palcevska, Liljana Samardziska Panova

Design and printing:

KOMA

Circulacion: 50

The Early Learning and Development Standards have been developed

with techincial and financial support from UNICEF.

CIP - Katalogizacija vo publikacija

Nacionalna i univerzitetska bibliotekaSv. Kliment Ohridski , Skopje

159.922.736.3373.2

EARLY learninganddevelopmentstandardsforchildrenfrom 0 - 6years /[Lena Damovska ... [i dr.] ; prevod na angliski Radica [enk].Ministerstvo za trud i socijala, 2009. - 88 str. ; 30 sm

Prevod na deloto: Standardi za rano u~ewe i razvoj kaj deca od0-6 godini/Lena Damovska... [i dr.]

ISBN 978-9989-2263-7-3

1. Damovska, Lena [avtor]a) Razvojna psihologija - Predu~ili{ni decab) Predu~ili{no vospitanie i obrazovanieCOBISS.MK - ID 76479498


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CONTENT

FOREWORD .................................................................................. .................................................................................... .......... 5

INTRODUCTION ....................................................................... .................................................................................... .......... 7

THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THE EARLY LEARNINGAND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS IN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA. ........................................... 8

THE GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND VALUES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT

OF THE EARLY LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDSIN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA......... ..... ...... . .............................................................................. ...................... 9

DOMAINS OF DEVELOPMENT AND DISTRIBUTION OF AGE GROUPSCOVERED BY THE EARLY LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS.......... ..... ..... ...... ..... . . 10

DEFINITION OF TERMS................................................ .......................................... ....................................... ...11

HEALTH AND MOTOR DEVELOPMENT.................................... .......................................... .......................... 13

SOCIO-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT. .......................................... ............................................................................ 27

APPROACHES TO LEARNING ..................................................................................... ................................................ 42

LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND LITERACY DEVELOPMENT ......................................................... 48

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT AND GENERAL KNOWLEDGE ACQUISITION .................................... 60

REFERENCES .............................................................................. .................................................................................... ....... 82


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FOREWORDFOREWORD


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FOR

EWORD

Respected,

The Early Learning and Development Standards are a re-sult of the overall efforts of the Government of the Repub-lic of Macedonia, namely the Ministry of Labour and Social

Policy for improving the quality of early learning for children

from 0 6 years in the Republic of Macedonia.

The Early Learning and Development Standards have beendeveloped with UNICEF support in response to the frequently

asked question by many parents, educators, and other profes-

sionals working with the youngest population and supporting

their development:

What should children at a certain age during the period between 0 6 years know and

be able to do?

I sincerely hope that this document will help all of you to better understand and develop

realistic expectations of your children with regard to what they are able to achieve and

how you can best support their development and early learning.

These standards are based on the fact that learning in early childhood is the basis forsuccess in ones entire life. Education is a very important component in the life of an

individual and therefore every single child should be given an opportunity for a success-

ful start. The document will help the creation of an adequate social environment and

mobilize all who have a role in the learning and the development of young children. Thiswill ensure timely learning while taking into consideration the individual needs of each

child and their different backgrounds.

The standards, therefore should be used flexibly, i.e. they should support the individual

development of each child regardless of his/her abilities, ethnic and cultural background

and socio-economic status. They should be used in different settings: in the family, in

kindergartens, in health centres, nonformal ECD centres, day care centres, etc.

Hence, it is expected that in the course of their implementation the collaboration be-

tween different sectors will improve and be more effective, with the purpose of strength-ening the capacities of all institutions that have a role in early learning and develop-

ment, but also the collaboration with the civil society as well.

I hope that this document will be of great use to all parents and professionals with a

mandate to improve and stimulate early learning and development of the youngest chil-

dren. At the same time I ask you to share this information with all caregivers, teachers,

and parents that you know. All of us together can help our children to be successful in

the process of education and throughout their life.

Minister

Xhelal Bajrami


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INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION


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sensitize the local authorities to use the present capacities (infrastructure and human

resources) to a maximum, thus the local community will be a pillar in the implementation

of education processes for preschool children.

The National Programme for the Development of Education of the Republic of Macedo-

nia 2005-2015 also focuses on providing control of quality of the education processes

through the Ministry of Education and Science which is taking measures to provide per-manent control of the quality of the education system in the Republic of Macedonia.

The preschool education quality assessment in the Republic of Macedonia is directly

conditioned by the development of Early Learning and Development Standards for chil-

dren and their consistent implementation.

The Early Learning and Development Standards demonstrate the expectations which

preschool aged children should have fulfilled in various domains of development (motor

development, socio-emotional development, cognitive development, etc.).

These standards may be applied in all contexts where children aged 0-6 years receive

care, upbringing and education services (in the family, in kindergartens, in children rec-

reation centres and also in various non-formal forms of child care).

The standards in the paper are ordered in various sets of domains of development, how-ever, it is important to stress that young childrens learning and developing does not

occur in isolation, but in continuity, across all domains.

The domains of develop-

ment are interlinked, and

the children are learning by

elaborating their already

acquired knowledge across

all domains.

INTRO

DUCTION

The overall political and social context to promote early childhood development inthe Republic of Macedonia is based on the international framework provided bythe Convention on the Rights of the Child and the present national legal and political

framework.

Within the framework of the improved education for all, the Republic of Macedonia

integrated the early childhood development into the National Plan for Development2008-2013 aimed at the preschool children. To enable the monitoring of the preschool

childrens development, provisions have also been made for the development and imple-mentation of the Early Learning and Development Standards. Within the Framework of

the Strategy for Demographic Development of the Republic of Macedonia 2008-2015,

the Government of the Republic of Macedonia set out to take appropriate measures and

activities especially in the area of expanding the kindergarten network so as to ensure

equal access for all children, especially the children from the rural or less developed

municipalities, and to take measures to increase the overall coverage of preschool chil-

dren.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Policy and the Ministry of Education assume the insti-tutional support to early childhood development in the Republic of Macedonia.

The national legislation (Law on Child Protection) in the Republic of Macedonia defines

early childhood development as preschool education in which it measures care givento the children, activities to promote their health and intellectual, emotional, physical

and social development. The provision of care and upbringing services to preschool age

children takes place in the kindergartens, whereas for the children who are not included

in these institutions other extra-institutional organised opportunities are foreseen (Of-

ficial Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia 98/2000).

In future, beside the forms of all-day day care in the present kindergartens, short forms

of coverage should be promoted depending on the needs, the capacities and the inter-

ests in the local community.

In the National programme for the development of education in the Republic ofMacedo-

nia 2005-2015, it is emphasised that: Early childhood development shall be a priority of

the Government of the Republic of Macedonia and the help from the citizens sector in the

implementation of this goal will be appreciated.

The present state of preschool education shows a limited network and insufficient cov-

erage of children (only around 15% of children aged zero to 6 years are covered by

some form of preschool education).

It is expected that with the decentralisation process in the coming period the competen-

cies in the area of early childhood development will be assumed by the units of local

self-government. The transfer of competencies from a central to a local level should


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THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THE EARLY LEARNINGAND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS IN THE REPUBLICOF MACEDONIA

In the Republic of Macedonia, the process of developing the Early Learning and De-velopment Standards began in 2006 following the initiative by the UNICEF Office inSkopje within the cooperation framework with the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy.

The primary aim of this initiative has been to develop a set of nationally acceptableearly learning and development standards focusing on positive outcomes in the holistic

development of children aged 0 to 6 years.

This process went through several stages:

Initial decision is made to develop the Early Learning and Development Standards

At this stage a five-day orientation workshop was held with the inter-sectoral participa-tion of representatives from several key sectors and early childhood development ex-perts. The workshop was delivered by an international expert. The participants had theopportunity to define the key values and guiding principles for the paper in the contextof the national early childhood learning and development system as well as the develop-

mental stages and age groups to be covered.

Development of the working version of the Early Learning and Development

Standards

The elaboration of the Early Learning and Development Standards working version wasrendered by a national expert group appointed by the Ministry of Labour and Social

Policy.

Setting the definitions and developing the standards is an inclusive process which re-

quires team work and a consensus within the entire community in the area of early

childhood care, including the parents.

Following the recommendations of the international expert, the working group set out

this process examining the i nternational reference literature on early childhood devel-opment standards and the literature reporting on the contemporary scientific concepts

of child development. In the process of the paper development, individual members of

the working group were, depending on their professional expertise, working on the do-

mains the specific areas.

The first working version was prepared over a six months period.

1.

2.

International expertise on the working version of this paper

At this stage, the working version was examined by international experts whose initial

opinion was that the paper provides a sound foundation for the development of the final

version. At the same time, certain recommendations have been made to facilitate the

revision of the initial paper by the national expert group.

The revision of the initial paper was focused on the following segments:

Elimination of similar or identical standards occurring throughout several do-

mains of development

Merging of similar standards in the individual domains of development, espe-

cially in the domain cognitive development

Re-phrasing of some indicators in order to ensure consistency and chronological

continuity within the standard for the complete age range

Language interventions in the area of learning activities and their concretization

in order to ensure complementarity with the specific indicator from the standard

frame

The international expertise and the revision of the initial paper were then followed by a

4-6 months period allocated for development of the final pre-validation version of the

Paper.

Validation of the Early Learning and Development Standards

The validation process of the Early Learning and Development Standards is part of a

comprehensive and recommended methodology of design and implementation of the

Early Learning and Development Standards.

Although the design of the paper was based on the scientific concept of child develop-

ment as well as the expertise of national and international experts, the validation isa process which assesses the accuracy and the actual reflection of what the children

know and can do in a specific local context in the country. The validation leads towards

further improvement and clarification of the overall paper within the previously deter-

mined standard frame.

The methodology of the validation process has been carried out in two stages:

content validation by applying scientific methodology, it assesses to which ex-tent the Early Learning and Development Standards are reflecting the nationalvalues and principles of early childhood development and their compliance with

the national concept of child development.

3.

a.

b.

c.

d.

4.

a.


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age validation it provides quantitative evidence on the indicators compliancewith the respective age at which the child should acquire the respective skills or

competences.

Both methodologies are based on surveys and observation of the children carried outin the field. The parents also participated in the validation process. The activities of the

validation process were carried out over a 12 months period.

Development of the final post-validation version of the Early Learning and Develop-

ment Standards for children aged 0 to 6 years

The last revision of the Early Learning and Development Standards was carried out atthe end of 2008, based on the conclusions of the age validation and it is an integral part

of this paper.

b.

5.

THE GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND VALUESFOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE EARLY LEARNINGAND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDSIN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

The social, the cultural, the physical and intellectual wellbeing of the citizens of the

Republic of Macedonia represent a general value on which the National Programmefor Development of Education is based.

In the area of early childhood development, the provision of a stimulating and safe en-

vironment for quality early learning is the prerequisite to achieve further success in the

education process of every child.

The process of developing the Early Learning and Development Standards for the chil-

dren between 0 to 6 years is guided by the following principles:

All children, regardless of sex, ethnic origin, religion, socio-economic and cultural

differences, different health and special needs, should have the opportunity to ac-

cess the education system;

All children can learn. They deserve high performance expectations from their learn-ing process in accordance with their age and socio-cultural context;

Children learn best through play. In the learning process, play is accepted as a learn-

ing instrument;

The childrens learning environment encourages curiosity and corresponds with

their physical and emotional needs, and thus they feel safe;

Childrens learning development fully depends on quality caregivers who are inter-

ested in their own continued professional training, development and collaboration

with children and their parents;

Respect for the personality and individual characteristics, needs, interests and abili-

ties of every child, including children with special needs and children of all socio-

economic and ethnic groups;

The content of the standards cover all domains of development of the childrens per-sonality, without favouring certain domains. The holistic approach in the standard

development is the basis for their design, considering that the child perceives the

world as a whole;

Joint action in the family and community to encourage the development of childrens

early learning;

All children have the potential to achieve the expected standards to a great extentat a specific age, if given the adequate support, instruction and stimulation for their

early learning development;

1.

2.3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.


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The values expected to be achieved by the children with the accomplishment of the Early

Learning and Development Standards in the Republic of Macedonia are: independence,

creativity, initiative, responsibility toward oneself and toward the own surroundings, to

accept and respect diversity, tolerant behaviour and solidarity and respect toward the

community and the state as a whole.

DOMAINS OF DEVELOPMENT AND DISTRIBUTIONOF AGE GROUPS COVERED BY THE EARLY LEARNINGAND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS

Children develop holistically. There are no higher priority domains in child develop-ment. Applying the holistic approach to the education and care giving process andavoiding the tendency to favour individual domains of development of the childs per-

sonality, attention has been paid to the following domains in the design of the early

childhood development standards in the Republic of Macedonia:

physical health and motor development;

socio-emotional development;

development of approaches to learning;

language development, literacy and communication;

cognitive development and general knowledge acquisition.

To a great extent, the early childhood development occurs through complementary, in-

terlinked domains of development, so that the childs progress in one domain greatly

influences the childs progress in another domain of development.

The complementary interlinking and the mutual conditioning of all domains entail the

holistic approach as the only approach for the development of the Early Learning and

Development Standards in the Republic of Macedonia.

The standards are expectations of what the children should know and be able to do at a

given age. Each expectation is indivisibly related to a respective age. The Early Learning

and Development Standards in the Republic of Macedonia refer to the age range of 0-6

years (or 0-72 months), divided in age groups as follows:

0-2 years (0-6 months, 6-18 months and 18-24 months);

2-3 years (24-36 months);

3-4 years (36-48 months);

4-6 years (48-60 months, 60-72 months)..

The age ranges are determined by the legal provisions which are the basis for the organ-

isation of the work of kindergartens and the division of children into respective groups.


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DEFINITION OF TERMS

Domains of development

The domains of development are defined as different aspects of a childs personalitydevelopment, although the youngest children develop holistically and their respective

domains of development are interlinked.

Based on a large number of research studies, the dimension of child development andlearning is divided in five basic domains, namely:

physical health and motor development;

socio-emotional development;

development of approaches to learning;

language development, literacy and communication;

cognitive development and general knowledge acquisition.

With the definition of a domain we refer to what we want to assess and what we want our

children and community to be like.

Furthermore, within each separate domain we can look at subdomains which refer tosome specific area of development within a domain (e.g. gross motor development, asa subdomain within the domain physical health and motor development).

Standard

Statement about our expectations of what the children should know and be able to do in

their development at a given age.

These are the general skills, behaviours and concepts which the children develop within

each domain of development.

The Early Learning and Development Standards refer to what the children should be

able to do and can do at a given age.

Indicator

A visible and measurable demonstration of what the child is doing. The indicator is

always related to the standard. It is a constituent component of each standard which

shows what a child should learn doing in order to achieve that standard. One standard

may include a number of indicators.

1.2.3.4.5.

Learning activities

Strategies in the form of various activities which the adults carry out with the child at

home or in the kindergarten in order to speed up and stimulate the achievement of the

indicator. These activities are directed at achieving the indicator, and for the most part

are an interaction of adults with children with the aim to stimulate their development in

the learning process


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HEALTH AND MOTOR DEVELOPMENT

The health and the well being of children are key factors in the growing up and learn-ing process which occur during the early period. Childrens growth and develop-ment is a parallel and complementary process. However, growth refers to the increase

of weight and height and size of the body. Development, on the other hand, refers to the

changes in the degree of complexity when performing certain functions and acquiring

certain skills, with gradual move from simpler to more complex changes in learning andacquisition of new skills of body movement, equilibrioception and strengthening of the

sensomotoric coordination.

Although the models of developmental change in the growing process are the same in all

children, the extent of the change indicates significant individual variability.12

The key values expected from children aged 0-6 years served as the founda-tion for defining the Early Learning and Development Standards in the domainPhysical health and motor development and are as follows:

physical competence and good physical condition which ensures high level of

school preparedness and active participation in the learning process;

active participation of children in the surrounding;

ability to apply healthy and safe practices in their daily activities

The good physical condition provides children with energy and persistence to actively

participate in the learning process. The balanced motor development is related to and

influences directly the remaining domains of development, such as speech development,

cognitive development, social competence and emotional development.13 (E.g. the ba-

bies, by learning to crawl or toddle, increase their chances to explore spaces and thus

stimulate their cognitive development).

The way in which children develop their ability to sit, walk or use their senses influences

the way they experience the space where they are moving, how they experience their

environment or how to manipulate the pencil or the paint brush.

The motor development of children occurs on the basis of three principles:

cefal-caudal principle the control of muscles begins in the upper body parts

moving toward lower parts (the baby first starts to control the muscles which

keep the balance of the head, whereas the control of muscles used for walking is

established as the latest);

proximal-distal principle the control of muscles begins with the muscles nearer

to the central body portions (the control of muscles which turn the neck and the

head is established earlier compared to the muscles which the child activates to

grasp and collect certain objects);

principle of progressive improvement of the fine and gross motor development,

from simpler toward more complex movements.

The developmental process in the domain Physical health and motor development oc-

curs through the following subdomains:

SUBDOMAIN Gross motor development whereby the children are movingabout and establish balance and coordination control of their body parts whenwalking, running, jumping, walking up the stairs. This subdomain looks at the

following standards:

Standard 1: Child is able to balance their body;

Standard 2: Child is able to control parts of their body;

Standard 3: Child is able to move co-ordinately, with purpose;

Standard 4: Child is aware of their body in terms of the existence of other mov-

able and immovable objects.

SUBDOMAIN Fine motor development whereby children gradually acquireskills to use their hands and fingers to perform more precise motor activities

(grasping, writing, buttoning, opening, closing, cutting). This subdomain looks atthe following standards:

Standard 1: Child is able to establish control of hand and finger movement;

Standard 2: Child is able to manipulate toys and various objects for general use.

SUBDOMAIN Healthy and safe behaviour whereby children begin to un-derstand how the daily activities and safe practices influence their overall health.

This subdomain looks at the following standards:

Standard 1: Child undertakes activities related to personal care and hygiene;

Standard 2: Child is able to recognise damaging and dangerous situations.

SUBDOMAIN Sensomotoric development whereby the children experi-ence the world around them, the key aspect of this subdomain being the estab-

lishment of eye-hand coordination, through the following standard:

Standard 1: Child is able to use their senses (vision, hearing, touch, smell, and

taste) to regulate their movement.

I.

II.

III.

IV.


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I. SUBDOMAIN Gross motor development

Standard 1: Child is able to balance their body

0-2 years 2-3 years(24-36 months)

3-4 years(36-48 months)

4-6 years0-6 months 6-18 months 18-24 months

1. Child holds their head

upright.

Hold the baby under theirarms in upright position.

1. Child sits upright in the

chair, independently.

Place the child on a chairand talk to them with yourface turned toward them.

1. Child climbs into and out

of bed independently.

Encourage the child to takean object or a toy whileclimbing into or out of thebed.

1. Child can walk short

distances on tiptoes.

Encourage the child tomake a few steps on tiptoeswithout losing balance.

1. Child is able to balance

when running.

Involve the child in runningcompetition games.

1. Child runs fast and

steadily, rarely falling down.

Provide opportunities fora complex physical activityincluding running, walking,jumping, climbing.

2. Child lifts up head andchest while lying on thestomach.

Position the baby withtheir stomach down andencourage them to lift up

their chest and head fromthe floor.

2. Child crawls on all fourstoward a desirable object.

Encourage the child to crawlnearer to their favourite toy;

Provide sufficient space for

the child to crawl fast.

2. Child stands in straightposition and is throwing aball overhead without fall-ing down.

Encourage the child tothrow the ball overhead

toward you.

2. Child jumps forwards onone foot.

Encourage the child to jumpover a low obstacle on onefoot (draw a line and havethe child jump on one foot

or to jump over a smallerobstacle a puddle, astone...)

2. Child moves forwardsand backwards with ease.

Provide safe space for thechild to be able to practisethese movements.

2. Child jumps backwards onone foot.

Organise different kinds ofjumping and running compe-titions outdoors.


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3. Child rolls over from backto the stomach and viceversa.

Encourage the baby to rollover from back to stomachto catch a favourite objector toy.

3. Child walks upright inde-pendently.

Encourage the child to walkindependently from oneobject to another;

Provide opportunities foreveryday movement ofthe child in the garden orin a room under constantsupervision.

3. Child climbs and de-scends the stairs, placingboth feet on each step andsupporting self.

Provide opportunities for aphysical activity related toclimbing and descendingthe stairs or improvisedobstacles.

Hold childs hand while theyare climbing or descendingthe stairs.

3. Child walks on the edgeof the pavement withoutstumbling or falling down.

Encourage the child to walkon the edge of the pave-ment, if needed, supportthem in the beginning.

3. Child shoots received ballforwards.

Involve the child in a gameconsisting of shooting balltoward an obstacle (a wall)or another child.

3. Child shows high level ofbalance control when per-forming complex locomotormovements (running, climb-ing, hopping, jumping).

Offer your child a longer stayoutdoors (in nature or on thesport playground) and en-courage them to train certainindividual or group sports.

4. Child is placed on stom-ach and pulling self alongwith their arms.

Place the child on theirstomach with their armsstretched forward, showthem a toy and encouragethem to move pulling self.

4. Child bends under thetable to take a toy andstraightens up again with-out the help of an adult.

Encourage the child to takethe toy placed under thetable.

4. Child makes a few stepsbackwards independently.

Stand behind childs back

and encourage them tocome closer to you by walk-ing backwards.

4. Child walks across a thinbeam with stretched armswithout swaying.

Supply a beam or improviseit from small chairs (orderthem in a row) and encour-age the child to walk acrossthem forward or sideways.


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Standard 2: Child is able to control parts of their body




1. Child moves handstoward their mouth.

Give the child a toy in theirhand and observe howthey bring it closer to theirmouth.

1. Child uses both arms andlegs to change their bodyposition.

Throw a ball to the child ina seated position, encourag-ing them to catch it.

1. Child walks and standsupright, with narrowed basebetween the feet.

Give the child instructionsto fetch an object fromanother room.

1. Child walks and runschanging pace and direc-tion of movement.

Encourage the child to walkand run consecutively.

1. Child jumps forwards,with two feet joined to-gether.

Encourage the child to jumpoff the first step with bothfeet joined together duringthe jump.

Organise jumping competi-tion with joined feet (tiedfeet) in a garden or anotherlarger indoor room.

1. Child climbs easily upand down various exercisedevices in the garden or in

the room.

Provide opportunities andencourage the child to usevarious exercise equipment.

2. Child stretches out andtucks up legs and armswhen lying on back.

When the baby is lying downon their back, grasp gentlyfirst one leg and then theother one, so that they willneed to stretch or push theirleg to free it.

2. Child rises from a seatedor a lying position using allfours.

Encourage the child to liftfrom seated or lying positionon their own.

2. Child holds the adultshand and with one legshoots a ball forward.

Hold the childs hand andencourage them to shootthe ball forward with oneleg.

2. Child turns bicycle pedalsusing both feet simultane-ously.

Place the child on a bicycleand encourage them torotate the pedals.

2. Child shoots ball for-wards and catches a passedball.

Organise games in thegarden with shooting andcatching ball or other ob-jects that can be passed.

2. Child performs locomotoractivities and coordinatesmovements combined withvarious sport equipment(rope climbing, shootingball with hands and feet,using seesaws, monkey bars,slides...).

Provide opportunities forthe child to be in a room orplayground abundant withequipment or in the naturewhere they can use elementsof nature for this activity(trees, mountains, climbingsteep cliffs...).


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3. Child transfers an objectfrom one hand to another.

Give the baby an objectto hold in one hand and

encourage them to transferit in the other hand.

3. Child climbs from floor tobed or another lower partof the furniture, indepen-dently.

Encourage the child to takean object or a toy whenclimbing in or out of bed.

3. Child walks up and downthe stairs with alternatefootsteps.

Encourage the child to walk

up and down the stairs.

3. Child plays tennis, tabletennis, and other types ofcollective and individualsports (football, basketball).

Provide a room or bring thechild to a playground wherethey can play specific sportsfor recreation;

Play sports together withthe child, as partners, or aspart of the sport team.

4. Child lifts one leg whenlying on back and puts feetin mouth.

Place the child on back, liftone of their legs and en-courage them to encompassit with hands and to move ittoward mouth.


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Standard 3: Child is able to move co-ordinately, with purpose




1. Child turn head towardsource of light or sound.

Move closer toward thebaby with a low soundsource (sound toy or rus-tling paper).

1. Child lifts up from seatedinto standing position.

Encourage the child to liftup and to grasp an object ora toy placed higher above(on the table).

1. Child changes direc-tion of movement with apurpose.

Ask the child to bring anobject which is not in theirdirection of movement.

1. Child moves indoors andoutdoors and overcomesbarriers in order to explore

(runs or jumps over smallerobstacles).

Encourage the child to movein rooms by overcomingcertain obstacles (climbing,hopping, crawling).

1. Child walks at faster orslower pace when neces-sary.

When walking outdoors,give the child instructions tofollow your walking pace.

1. Child places body andlimbs in position to imitatesomeone or something.

Ask the child to imitate gaitor dance of a celebrity or toimitate an animal.

2. Child moves body andarms toward an indicatedobject.

Give the baby their favouritetoy or object and observehow they move body and

arms toward the object.

2. Child lifts up on tiptoesto grasp an object placedhigher above.

Encourage the child to takethe toy placed on the table.

2. Child pushes or pullsobjects when walking.

Allow the child to pull orpush a favourite toy.

2. Child places feet on ped-als and rotates the bicyclepedals simultaneously, withboth feet.

Provide opportunities forthe child to rotate bicycle

pedals or another pull toy.

2. Child moves body andlimbs in the rhythm of themusic.

Play some music andencourage the child to movetheir body in the rhythm of

the music.

2. Child combines sequencesof several motor movementsin an organised manner(spinning around their ownbody axis, hopping on one orboth feet, making creativemovements in the rhythm of

the music).

Encourage the child to getinvolved in dancing activities.

3. Child reaches with theirbody toward a thrownobject when seated.

Throw the toy on the floorand encourage the baby toreach for it with their body.

3. Child mounts a chair andsits on it independently.

Ask the child to sit on thechair next to the diningtable.

3. Child kneels to see whatis under the table and liftup again.

Encourage the child to kneeland lift up in a game with ahidden object.

3. Child moves big boxes orobjects from one place toanother.

Organise a competitiongame including carryingboxes in hands.


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Standard 4: Child is aware of their own body in terms of the existence of other movable and immovable objects



4-6 years0-6 months 6-18 months 18-24

1. Child bounces with feetfrom hard base when inupright position.

Hold the baby in uprightposition under their armsand support them againstthe hard floor.

1. Child stops movement infront of a set obstacle.

Give the child an opportu-nity to move in spaces withobstacles.

1. Child walks upright andcrawls under the table.

Give the child instructionsto leave or take a specificobject or toy under the table.

1. Child moves about thespace without hittingagainst pieces of furniture.

Ensure free movement of thechild in closed spaces withpieces of furniture which thechild will successfully avoid.

1. Child goes round mov-able objects when walking.

Follow the child when walk-ing outdoors and encour-age them to walk by otherpassers- by.

1. Child goes round mov-able and immovable objectswhen running.

Encourage the child to runaround a tree or some otherobject without touching it.2. Child takes part in gameswith obstacles (under andover the obstacle).

Set obstacles such as ladderor circles and give the childinstructions to overcomethem by jumping over themor by bending down.

2. Child is placed in seated

position and spontaneouslyleans backward.

Place the child in a seatedposition on a bed or arm-chair and gradually loosenyour hold and encouragethem to lean on their back.

2. Child goes around a set

obstacle when walking.

Set an obstacle in the roomor the garden and encour-age the child to walk fasttoward the obstacle and togo around it without collid-ing with it.

2. Child goes around set

obstacles.

Line up chairs in a row (orsome other objects) somedistance apart and encour-age the child to reach theend of the row by goingaround the chairs, in zigzagline.

2. Child slows down or

speeds up walk (stopsor slows down walking ifcomes across an obstacle a tree, piece of furniture,another child...).

Give the child an opportu-nity to stay in open spacesadequate for physical activi-ties (running, fast walking...).

2. Child goes aside to avoid

dancing into a collision witha peer.

Organize dancing activitiesand encourage the child tomove in the rhythm of themusic;

Organize dance games withpairs and encourage thechild to dance without step-ping their peer or collidingwith them.

3. Child jumps over higher

obstacles when running.

Encourage the child to over-come the obstacles whenrunning.


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II. SUBDOMAIN Fine motor development

Standard 1: Child is able to establish control of hand and finger movements




1. Child reaches out a hand

to obtain an offered object.

While the baby is seated onthe bed and leaning givethem their favourite toy orobject.

1. Child throws with both

hands a given ball.

Throw a soft ball to the childand encourage them tothrow it back at you.

1. Child disassembles and

assembles simpler toys.

Show the child how toassemble and disassemblesimple toys or objects forgeneral use (separates thelid from the pot).

1. Child puts smaller objects

into a basket and takesthem out.

Give the child a basket withsmaller objects and encour-age them to take them outof the basket and put themback inside.

1. Child holds ball overhead

with both hands and throwsit forwards.

Child holds ball overheadwith both hands andreceives instruction to throwit over their head towarda specific target (standingbasket, bin, etc.).

1. Child uses dominant hand

in everyday activities (hold-ing a spoon, or a pencil).

Always hand the object tothe midline so that the childwill decide which hand to usewhen they take it.

2. Child firmly grasps rattlein hand.

Give the baby a they will

grasp it with the wholehand.

2. Child holds cup with bothhands and drinks indepen-dently.

Give the child a plastic cupwith water and give theminstructions on how to drinkform it.

2. Child twists their wristsin all directions (opens thedoor handle, turns door-knob...).

Give the child access tovarious objects and toys soas to perform this activityoften.

2. Child builds a tower con-sisting of 5-7 blocks.

Give the child instructions

on how to place the blockson top of each other to builda tower.

2. Child is able to handleeight-piece jigsaw puzzles.

Give the child smaller

objects to order next to eachother using their thumb andindex finger.

2. Child catches a ballthrown at them using one orboth hands.

Throw a small ball to thechild and instruct them tocatch it with one hand.


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3. Child grasps an offeredobject with their hand,holds it and releases it aftera certain time.

Give the child access toobjects and toys which theycan grasp and hold in theirhands.

Hand them objects and toys.

3. Child turns over pagesfrom a book (usually 2-3pages at the same time).

Sit down next to the child

and show them how to turnthe pages from a childrensbook, let them repeat thisactivity independently.

3. Child takes hold of anoffered cup with the fingersof one hand or takes holdof the cup handle by closingfingers.

Offer the child a cup with orwithout handle and encour-age them to grasp it withone hand.

3. Child uses thumb andindex finger when holding apencil, felt tip pen, marker.

Let the child access different

pencils and encourage themto hold them between theirthumb and index finger.

3. Child turns the pages of abook one after another.

Allow the child access topicture books (books, news-

papers) with thin pages andencourage the child to turnthe pages one after another.

3. Child holds scissors withone hand and cuts paperfollowing a given line (in acircle).

Encourage the child to cutthe paper following the givenline.

4. Child claps hands.

Encourage the child to claphands.

4. Child wrings out asoaked sponge squeezingthe sponge with all fingersof one hand.

Encourage the child to playwith the sponge while bath-

ing and encourage them towring it out by pressing withtheir fingers.

4. Child unbuttons or but-tons up a wallet or a bagwith snap buttons.

Encourage the child tounbutton and button up thesnap buttons of different

objects (wallet, bag, shoes,clothes...).

4. Child unbuttons and but-tons up clothes.

Allow the child to participateactively in the dressing pro-cess, to button up or to zipup clothes, when applicable.

4. Child presses thickcontent of a glue tube,toothpaste tube, plasticine,painting colours).

Allow the child to use inde-pendently different tubes andto press the content of thetube using one hand.5. Child transfers one

object from one hand toanother.

Encourage the child totransfer the toy in the otherhand.

5. Child holds a pencil usingthumb and index finger anddraws a line in a predeter-mined shape.

Draw a circle or anothershape and encourage thechild to draw it indepen-dently.


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Standard 2: Child is able to manipulate toys and various objects for general use




1. Child holds small objectswith both hands and hitsthem against each other.

Give the baby toys to holdthem with both hands andencourage them to hit thetoys against each other.

1. Child holds an object/atoy with one hand and withthe other hand plays with it.

When holding the doll withone hand, encourage thechild to comb the dolls hairor to put a hat on its headwith the other hand.

1. Child holds smaller ob-jects with the fingers of onehand and puts it in a bigger

container.

Encourage the child to pickup scattered apples in abowl (or a pot).

1. Child picks up toys fromthe floor with their ownhands and fingers.

Give the child instructions topick up the toys and to putthem in the box of toys.

1. Child opens and closestap.

Encourage the child to openthe tap, to fill a containerwith water and to close thetap.

1. Child uses eating utensilscorrectly and independently.

During the meals, encour-age the child to use eatingutensils.

Encourage the child to par-ticipate in food preparation,such as smearing butter orjam on a slice of bread, pour-ing milk, juice or water.

2. Child picks up smallobjects from the table usingthumb and index finger.

Sit the child at the table with

smaller toys and encouragethem to grasp them usingfingers.

Encourage the child togather on one place scat-tered bread crumbs fromthe table.

2. Child winds and unwindsa toy with one hand usingall their fingers from thehand.

Ensure access to differenttoys or objects with rotatinggrip and encourage themto manipulate them morefrequently.

2. Child disassembles andreassembles parts of toysor objects (removes the capof a felt tip pen, opens andcloses a box).

Provide sufficient number ofobjects and toys which canbe disassembled and reas-sembled in the environmentwhere the child is playingand moving about.

2. Child opens and closes abottle cap.

Allow the child to turn bottlecaps.

2. Child is tying shoes.

Allow the child to put onshoes alone, tying or button-ing their shoes


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3. Child grips a felt tip pen(or marker) in a fist andtries to scribble on a pieceof paper.

Give the child a felt tip penor a marker (appropriatefor their age) and encour-age them to grip it with allfingers and to make a fewmoves on a piece paper.

3. Child holds a box withone hand and fills the otherone with smaller objects.

Let the child access such

objects and encourage thechild to use their fingersand hands separately.

3. Child turns bottle capto open bottle, pours juicein a cup and holds the cuphandle with one hand.

Let the child manipulateobjects for every day use(opening, closing, using eat-ing utensils).

3. Child pours water fromone cup into another,without spilling, or poursfrom cup into a bottle with alarger bottleneck.

Encourage the child to pourliquids from one containerinto another.

4. Child uses hands and fin-gers to manipulate scissors.

Hand the child scissors andencourage them to openand close it with both hands.

4. Child pours soup or an-other liquid with a ladle fromthe pot into a plate or a cup.

Encourage the child toactively participate in mealpreparation or in activities

related to handling everydayobjects or containers.


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Standard 2: Child is able to recognise damaging and dangerous situations




1. Child cries (gets upset)due to sudden increase ofnoise in the room.

Come closer to the child andtry to calm them down.

1. Child removes a partof their clothes if they arewarm.

Help the child to remove theexcessive clothes if they feelwarm or to put on additionalclothes if they feel cold.

1. Child holds adults handwhen walking in publicplaces (e.g. street).

When walking in the streetwith the child, hold them bytheir hand and explain thesafety rules.

1. Child warns an adult ifthey feel pain or anotherdiscomfort.

Talk to the child about thebasic signs of a disease(pain, coughing) and explainto the why it is importantto warn you in time shouldsuch a thing exist.

1. Child understands thecolour meaning of the traf-fic lights.

Explain to the child thecolour meaning of the traf-fic lights and practice thatevery time you cross thestreet.

1. The child looks both waysbefore crossing the streetattentively in the company of

an adult.

When the child crosses thestreet give them the instruc-tion to look both ways and tosafely cross it.

2. Child responds to a prohi-bition by an adult but theyneed additional help.

Demonstrate precise limita-tions against touching dan-gerous objects (e.g.. explainto the child that some thingsare too hot to touch them).

2. Child recognises somesigns of disease (pain, feel-ing cold, feeling warm).

Respond positively when thechild shows some signs ofpain or discomfort.

2. Child looks for new eat-ing utensils if they fall onthe floor.

Respond appropriately tothe childs demand and talkto them about the advan-tages of using clean eatingutensils.

2. Child recognises signs ofdanger (fire alarm, policealarm, or ambulance)

Talk to the child about therole of alarms used by thesecars.

2. Child recognises danger-ous and harmful habits tothe health.

Use pictures and illustratedbooks where the risk behav-iours are shown (smoking,alcohol drinking, driving abicycle without a helmet) andtalk about these practices.


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IV. SUBDOMAIN Sensomotoric development

Standard 1: Child is able to use their senses (vision, hearing, touch, smell, taste) to regulate their movement




1. Child turns head toward

source of sound.

Rattle with a sound toybehind the baby.

1. Child withdraws hand

when they touch a warmobject.

Give them a cup with awarm drink and give theminstructions to touch it care-fully because it is warm.

1. Child makes a face when

trying a certain food.

Offer the child their favou-rite food.

1. Child imitates move-

ments of a familiar personor a pet.

Play with the child imitatingthe gait or some specificmovements of a familiarperson or a pet.

1. Child imitates the sound

of a musical instrumentplayed by someone else.

Encourage the child toimitate the sound of somemusical instrument.

1. Child watches their own

hands when doing creativemovements.

Allow the child access to dif-ferent materials and toys tobuild towers, puzzles, dough,plasticine, drawing paper andpencils, colouring books.

2. Child reaches for ahanded toy and puts it intheir mouth.

Hand the baby a rubber toy.

2. Child puts hollow toysone into another.

Provide hollow toys andobject of various size andencourage the child to put

them one into another.

2. Child pushes a smallerobject through a biggerhole in the appropriateshape.

Allow the child access to

various toys or objectswhich have different shapesand encourage the child toput them one into another.

2. Child follows somethingwith their eyes and withoutturning their neck

Tell the child to follow anactivity to their left or to

their right.

2. Child draws given shapeswith great precision.

Allow the child access topencils, crayons, and chalksand give them instructions to

draw on a given subject.

3. Child tries to catch amoving object.

Encourage the child tocatch a toy or object of in-terest when moving (variousmoving toys or objects.

3. Child stacks blocks oneon top of another and thentakes them down.

Allow the child access toblocks of different size andencourage them to stackthem.

3. Child pours water froma smaller into a biggercontainer.

Give the child two contain-ers of different size filledwith water and encouragethem to pour the water witha smaller cup from one

container into another.

3. Child strings beads(makes a rosary...).

Let the child access objectsand toys which they cansequence, make strings withsmaller items, disassemblethem and reassemble them...

3. Child builds creativeconstructions from variousmaterials (construction, art,manipulative).

Allow the child access to vari-ous construction, manipula-tive and art materials.


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SOCIO-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

The childs social and emotional development plays an important role in an individu-als social functioning in the present and in the future.In the early childhood development it is more difficult to identify the stages of socio-

emotional development than the stages of physical and motor development. It is more

difficult to recognise the benchmarks and to define them as clearly as in the domainphysical health and motor development.

This domain is related to acquiring and learning new skills which raise self-awareness

and self-control. Research shows that the gained social skills and the emotional develop-

ment are an important part of the childs school preparedness.

A large number of authors publishing in the area of early childhood development em-

phasise the importance of establishing socio-emotional competence in the earliest years

of life as the basis of an individuals overall development in the future.14

Important role in the promotion of a healthy socio-emotional development has the safe

surroundings and the positive interaction with adults during the first years of an infants

and toddlers life.

The characteristics of this domain of development indicate close connection between

the social and emotional component. Both subdomains are complementary. The suc-

cessful social contacts ensure development of the childs positive self-image, but at thesame time development of the emotional skills of self-control.

The positive developmental components of this domain are the childs ability to control

their own behaviour, to learn and practice interpersonal skills including peer interaction

and establishment of positive relationships with the surroundings.

The emotional component within this domain encourages the child to self-confidence

and confidence toward the others.

By their nature, people are social beings. Through all stages of life they establish in-teractions with other people. To learn how to be and live with others is essential for ev-

ery human being. Children build their knowledge about the world around them through

social interactions. Healthy children in all cultures establish relationships with adults

from their early years. For many families and cultural communities, the concept well

educated also includes the social and emotional development as a key to all learning

that will take place later in life. (9, page 41)

Every childs adequate socio-emotional development is significantly related to their fur-

ther success in life and i n school. Children in their early years establish social contacts

with their parents, caregivers, peers and other adult individuals. The quality of these

social relationships encourages the childrens proper socio-emotional development. In

the process of socio-emotional development children gain competences related to the

values and the attitudes acceptable in the community where they grow and develop.

The positive social relationshipsare mainly formed when the children develop adaptive

social behaviour, when they understand the meaning of the different types of behaviour,when they are able to adapt in different social surroundings and when they actively

participate in group activities. Children demonstrate their social competence when they

express empathy with understanding, thoughtfulness and respect for the differences

and similarities.

The key values expected from the children aged 0-6 years represent the foundation for

defining the Early Learning and Development Standards in the domain socio-emotional

development and are as follows:

Building a positive self-image;

Self-confidence and competence in interactions with the surroundings and the

peers;

Ability to understand their own emotions;

Control of their own feelings;

Positive emotional state;

Respect and responsibility toward similarities and differences in the commu-

nity.

The domain Socio-emotional development is subdivided in two subdomains cover-

ing the following standards:

I. SUBDOMAIN Social development whereby the child establishes interactionwith the social environment and with the individuals surrounding them.

Standard 1: Child is able to make a difference between familiar and unfamiliaradults;

Standard 2: Child is able to develop social skills in interaction with otherchildren;

Standard 3: Child is able to develop social skills in interaction with adults;

Standard 4: Child is able to recognise and respect the similarities anddifferences between people.


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II. SUBDOMAIN Emotional development whereby the child developsperception of the self and their own emotions:

Standard 1: Child develops the concept of self;

Standard 2: Child is able to recognise and appropriately express their ownemotions;

Standard 3: Child is proud with their own achievements and has confidence intheir own abilities;

Standard 4: Child is able to control their own feelings.


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I. SUBDOMAIN Social development

Standard 1: Child is able to make a difference between familiar and unfamiliar adults

0- 2 years 2-3 years(24-36 months)



1. Child stops crying when

taken in arms by a familiarperson.

Ensure the child feels safeand content, when they cryor respond in a differentway be by their side andtake them in your arms.

1. Child responds with a

smile to a familiar person,stretches arms toward thefamiliar person.

Talk to the child, establishinteractions of mutual re-spect and trust with them.

1. Child imitates activities of

a close person (pretends tobe cooking or reading likethe adult person).

Observe the child attentivelyand note the message theyare sending you.

1. Child commences inter-

action with a familiar per-son during the play (asksfrom a familiar person tobe given an object or a toywhich they cannot reach).

Come closer to the childwhen they play with toys onthe floor and play togetherwith them.

1. Child asks for help from

and offers help to a closeadult person.

Support the childs positivebehaviour toward the adults.

Ask them to hand you abook or some object.

Help them to carry outsome everyday activities(wash hands, climb, puttingclothes on).

1. Child names familiar

persons on a photo.

Look together at photos andencourage the child to namethe persons they recognise.

2. Child contacts easily withfamiliar persons from thesurroundings (the neigh-bours, the family doctor,friends of the family andrelatives).

Talk to the child and explain

to them why it is so impor-tant to have respect for theelderly.

2. Child responds with cry-ing or body movements toan unfamiliar person.

Embrace the child in thepresence of unfamiliar per-sons and let them feel safe.

2. Child looks around inorder to find the familiarperson.

Observe the child. Staynearby prepared to helpthem.

2. Child responds appropri-ately to a greeting when ad-dressed by a close person.

Encourage the child torespond to the greeting fromthe familiar person and tellthem how to act when theymeet a close family member.

2. Childs shakes hand withthe familiar person whenthey are in an unfamiliarenvironment.

Respond to the childs needsand ensure they feel safein an unfamiliar and newenvironment.

2. Child raises hand to talkto the teacher/caregiver.

Respond appropriately tothe childs requirement andpay them attention.

3. Childs asks for help froma familiar and close personwhen facing a problem.

Recognise the childs needand encourage them toalways ask for help whenneeded.


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3. Childs comes closer toa familiar adult person inan unfamiliar environment(holds them by the hand,asks to be lifted...)

Respond appropriately tothe childs needs ( embracethem, hold the child by thehand to assure them theyare safe in the unfamiliarand new environment).

3. Child comes nearer to afamiliar person (parent...) ina unfamiliar environmentto ask for help (to go to thebathroom).

Respond appropriately tothe childs requirement andpay them attention.

4. Child asks questions abouta person they dont knowor a person they see for thefirst time (who is that, whatstheir name...)

Answer the childs questionsand talk about that personor introduce that person tothe child.

4. Child imitates voices ofpeople they know (whatdoes your grandpas cough-ing sound like...).

Respond appropriately to

the childs initiatives andmovements.

5. Child confides in a closeperson.

Listen carefully and alwaysshow interest for what thechild is telling you.

5. Deteto se doveruva nablisko lice.

Vnimatelno slu{ajte ipoka`ete sekoga{ interes konona {to deteto vi go zboruva.


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Standard 2: Child is able to develop social skills in interaction with other children




1. Child touches the hair orparts of the face of anotherchild nearby.

Let other children (brother,sister) come nearer to thebaby.

1. Child spontaneouslysmiles at another child.

Allow the presence ofanother child which is joyfuland smiling.

Respond positively to everychilds voice, cry and moodeither verbally or with afacial expression.

1. Child is interested inpeers, comes closer to themand touches them.

Let the child play games andinteractive activities withtheir peers.

1. Child leaves the adultperson without difficultywith the aim to join otherplaying children.

Encourage the child to joina group of children playingnearby and let them stayin the group for a longerperiod of time.

1. Child starts playing withanother child; initiates anactivity with another child.

Let the child play with otherchildren more often.

1. Child shows loyalty towardtheir friend (helps the friendto put the coat on, to zip thezipper...).

Support the child in theirplay with peers, and you staynearby

2. Child chooses to play witha new friend.

Encourage the child to ac-cept children newly arrived inthe group and support theirjoint play.

2. Child offers their toy toanother child, but responds

by crying or protesting ifthe child takes their toysaway.

Encourage the child toshare their toys with otherchildren.

2. Child play with a friendfor a short time.

Create every day opportuni-ties for the child to play witha friend, the age irrelevant.

2. Child becomes closerwith the friend when play-

ing (gives their own toy toanother child).

Provide the opportunity forthe child to play more oftenwith peers. Stay nearby, of-fer help, support, toy, etc.

2. Child shares toys andother objects with another

child.

Encourage the child sharetoys with other children dur-ing the play.

3. Child cooperates whenplaying collective games

with other children in groupactivities (lets do this likethat, this will not do...).

Talk to the children howgood it is to cooperate whenplaying.

Provide activities in which thechildren will help each other.

4. Child has friends in sev-eral places (in the kinder-garten, at school, at their

grandmothers, immediateneighbourhood.)

Let the child be part of agroup activity with peers.


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Standard 3: Child is able to develop social skills in interaction with adults




1. Child watches motheror another known memberwhen talking to them.

Always when you can bewith the child, hold them inyour arms, embrace them,smile at them and talk tothem.

1. Child accepts and asksfor help from a familiar per-son (looks at and asks to behelped by a known personwhen there is some kind ofdanger e.g. if they fall whenwalking).

Help the child when theyneed help and offer thechild greater comfort.

1. Child is interested in par-ticipating in joint activitieswith adults.

Let the child participate ineveryday activities (puttingon clothes, meals, washing).

Support childs indepen-dence;

Join in joint activities withthe child.

1. Child asks the adultperson to join the play.

Respond always positively tothis initiative and accept theplay the child offers.

1. Child plays joint gameswith adults.

Support the child in theirefforts to play some collec-tive game with you (cards,domino, ludo....)

1. Child greets a familiar per-son when entering a roomor when meeting in a placewhere the child is.

Encourage the child to greetyou, either verbally or witha handshake, and to alwaysgreet when meeting a famil-iar person.

2. Child attracts the atten-tion of a familiar personby vocalisation, attempt totouch or smile.

Recognise this response ofthe child and act according-ly, take them in your arms,talk to them.

2. Child asks questions andstarts a conversation.

Show patience in listeningto and answering the childsquestions.

2. Child likes to help adults

(e.g. dusting).

Let the child participatethrough play in certainactivities such as wateringplants, dusting, etc.

2. Child asks for help fromadults in the community orthe neighbourhood.

Encourage the child andteach them to ask otheradults when they need someinformation or help.


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Standard 4: Child is able to recognise and respect the similarities and diff erences between people;




1. Child watches self in themirror and smiles.

Let the baby watch oneselfin the mirror, together withyou, and encourage themto smile.

1. Child shows differencesbetween specific charactersin childrens books.

Provide access to illustratedbooks and encourage thechild to show some dif-ferences between specificcharacters in the books(difference between humansand animals).

1. Child calls a youngerchild in their surroundingsbaby.

Encourage the child to tellyou something about theyounger child from theirsurroundings and supporttheir statement that theother child is younger.

1. Child identifies the sexand the basic differencesbetween oneself and theother (I am a boy, Sonja isa girl).

Provide the opportunityfor contact between thechildren and the opportunityto play with children withspecial needs and childrenfrom other cultural andethnical background.

Provide an environment forthe children with multicul-tural objects, books, songs

and language.

1. Child asks simple ques-tions related to the otherchildren.

Through songs, stories, toysand direct contact with per-sons familiarise the childrenabout the differences andsimilarities which they willface in life.

1. Child is able to describetheir own appearance and tocompare it with others.

Let the child describe selfthrough play and make acomparison with others(brother, sister, friend).

2. Child recognises differentsocial roles of the personssurrounding them.

Let the children realise thattheir parents have differentroles (as mother-father, asrelatives, as neighbours, etc.)

2. Child beholds a familiarperson wearing new glassesor a new hat.

Put on glasses when playingwith the child and observetheir reaction.

2. Child calls a persongranny if she has grey hairor wears glasses.

Encourage the child torecognise the differencesbetween people and have aconversation about it.

2. Child is interested aboutan unfamiliar person intheir surroundings (askswho is that?)

Encourage the child todescribe some characteris-tics of the persons in theirvicinity.

2. Child tries to imitatesome words from anotherlanguage.

If you are from a bilingualfamily, you may familiarisethe child with the secondlanguage.

2. Child changes their ownappearance (dresses otherpersons clothes, or changesfacial expression in order tolook like some other personin their surroundings).

Help the child to participatein games such as costumeparties or other theatreplays with pretence.

3. Child asks questions aboutother children, their physicalcharacteristics, their fami-lies, ethnic characteristics,cultural differences.

Celebrate all holidays andevents of the children in thegroup. Let them learn moreand new things about theirsocial, cultural and ethnicidentity.


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II. SUBDOMAIN: Emotional development

Standard 1: Child develops the concept of self




1. Child explores their

own body (observes thehands and puts them in themouth).

Find some time to be aloneand be completely dedicatedto the child.

1. Child responds with ges-

tures and sounds when theyhear their name.

Use childs name in yourinteraction with the child.

1. Child likes to do some

activity independently.

Encourage the child for ashorter time to be engagedin some activity, withoutyour interaction (10 min-utes) and praise their ability.

Approve an activity whichthe child can perform suc-cessfully.

1. Child mentions their own

name when talking to an-other person (Im Marko).

Encourage the child tointroduce themselves whenstarting the communicationwith another person.

1. Child introduces them-

selves in different roles inthe symbolic play.

Organise role plays andgive the child a specific role(doctor, teacher, mother,grandmother).

1. Child shares informa-

tion about themselves withother children (home phonenumber, address, place ofresidence).

Let the child play a game oractivity where they will havethe opportunity to tell some-thing about themselves (in astory, theatre play, drawing...).

Talk to the child about allthose things which are re-lated only to them, ask wherethey live, ask the address, thetown...

2. Child adjusts their cryingaccording to their needs(hunger, fatigue, asking forattention).

Try to differentiate the cry-ing and to respond appro-priately to the childs needs.

2. Child touches the mirrorwhen an adult asks themwhere the child is.

Let the child play differentgames and activities in frontof the mirror and encouragethem to smile and to showtheir face in the mirror.

2. Child recognises theirown body parts when anadult is naming them.

Organise a game in whichyou will ask the child toname or to show their bodyparts (nose, mouth, hair,teeth, ears).

2. Child knows their ownsex (I am a boy / a girl).

Encourage the child to an-swer the question whetherthey are a boy or a girl.

2. Child recognises theirjacket and puts it on whengoing out for a walk.

Encourage the child to getready for the walk alone.

2. Child becomes aware oftheir cultural identity; sayswhich language they speak,what kind of dresses theywear...

Let the child express theircultural values through playand conversation. Have aconversation about the lan-guage, the way they dress...


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3. Child responds whencalled by their name.

Always call the child by theirname.

3. Child recognises theirobjects and toys.

Have the child name objectsthat belong to them (a piece

of clothes, their favouritetoy...).

3. Child insists on gettingwhat they want (I want anapple, not milk... I want thishat... not a different one).

Answer appropriately to thechilds individual demandsand encourage them topresent their own needs andwishes.

3. Child decides to do a cer-tain activity independently(e.g. To make a tower out ofbuilding blocks...)

Encourage the childs inde-pendence in the everydayactivities.

4. Child protests and re-fuses to eat food they dontlike (e.g. refuses to drinkwater, because they preferjuice instead...).

Let the child express theirwishes and give them sup-port for their demands.

4. Child insists on playingthe role of the doctor dur-ing a role play.

When organising activitieswith role play, respect thechildrens wishes for thedivision of roles (who wantsto be the doctor, the teacher,the policewoman/police-man...).


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Standard 2: Child is able to recognise and appropriately express their own emotions




1. Child smiles at a familiarand bright face.

Try to be as often as pos-sible near the baby.

1. Child responds to anemotional expression of thehuman face (smiles, tries togive a hug).

Provide activities wherebythe child will have theopportunity to respond todifferent emotional expres-sions of the human face.

1. Child recognises theirown and other peoplesdifferent emotions (mom issad, dad is happy).

Provide a pleasant atmo-sphere at home and avoidsituations which evoke sademotions.

1. Child correctly termsother peoples emotions(mom is happy, because sheis smiling).

Have a conversation withthe child about the differentfeelings that come up (sad-ness, happiness) and howthey are manifested.

1. Child is trying to givecomfort to another cryingor sad child.

Encourage the child to givesupport to another crying orsad child.

1. Child talks about the rea-sons for their own emotionsand talks about them (Imhappy because we are goingto be visiting, Im cryingbecause I am sad...)

Help the child understandand talk about their ownemotions. Initiate a play inwhich the child tells theirown experiences interwovenwith emotions.

2. Child is crying when afamiliar person leaves fromtheir vicinity.

Recognise this reaction andtry to calm down the child.

2. Child is having fun andlaughs when someone ismaking faces or unusualmovements.

Provide activities throughwhich the child will have theopportunity to recognise inan interesting way differentemotions and movements.

2. Child interrupts activ-ity or play if another childstarts crying.

Try to calm down the cryingchild and divert the child tothe play.

2. Child notices and dif-ferentiates the reasons forthe occurrence of otherpeoples and their own

various emotions (mom ishappy because Im good...)

Show pictures of humanfaces with various facial ex-pressions. Ask the childrento recognise and to namethem; let the children duringthe activity to be compas-sionate with the otherchildrens emotions; Have aconversation on how theyfeel when they are happy,sad, angry, etc.

2. Child sees a picture ofanother child crying (in abook, on TV...) and asks whythat child is crying.

Answer the childs questionand have a conversationabout the specific situation.

2. Child expresses emotionsthrough their play (tries tofind a friends lost toy, helpsa friend build a tower...)

Give the child the opportunityto freely share and expressthe emotions through every-day play.

3. Child tries to calm downa child crying in their vicin-ity (caresses the cryingchild...)

Encourage the child to dothis activity and praise themfor it.

3. Child is happy when theyreceive a present

Let the child be happy andhave a conversation withthem on what makes themhappy and satisfied.


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Standard 3: Child is proud with their achievements and believes their own abilities




1. Child smiles and is happywhen they are successful insome activity (when wavingwith a rattle).

Encourage the child andsmile at them when theymanage to clap hands orwave a rattle.

1. Child repeats certainsounds or movements whenthey notice that makessome impact.

Provide activities for thechild in which you can playeveryday individually withthe child.

1. Child smiles with satis-faction when they achievesome success.

Provide a safe environmentfor the child where theycan perform all sorts ofactivities;

Praise the child for work oractivity successfully done.

1. Child likes to show theeffects from the work suc-cessfully done (finishedpainting, built blocks).

Provide activities for thechildren where they will beengaged in new, until thenunknown, things.

Help them if necessary.

1. Child presents the taskthey have done alone andshow it to an adult to pridethemselves on it.

Encourage the child aboutthe finished task andencourage them to alsodo other activities to livethrough new experiences.

1. Child presents their ownideas and opinions duringthe play or activity.

(Shows another child howthey have done the paintingor how to hand the ball in thegame...)

Allow the child sufficient timeand opportunities to play,experiment and achieve newthings.

Encourage the childs self-confidence.

2. Child smiles at your

encouragement when theystart to toddle.

Encourage the child to makethe first steps and say bravo.

2. Child claps hands and

says bravo when they suc-cessfully finish an activity.

Include the child in an activ-ity (building with blocks), en-courage them and say welldone together with them.

2. Child like to take care of

self (insists on putting onclothes alone or doing somework alone - to fetch anobject...).

Encourage childs wish forindependence in the every-day activities.

2. Child confirms with great

assurance and confidenceif asked can you ride a bike,can you swim, can you fixa toy, do you know how toturn on the TV...

Include the child in the ev-eryday activities and cheerthem constantly and praisetheir achievements.

2. Child makes a presenta-

tion to an adult (teacher,parent) of a finished task.

Encourage the child to com-plete the set tasks and praisetheir success.


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3. Child is persistent intrying to reach an objectout of their reach (e.g. totake an object from a shelfhigher above).

During the play stay close tothe child in order to increasetheir self-confidence.

3. Child is completely dedi-cated to the set activities.

Write down the childs nameon their work (drawing);

Approach with attentionevery childs achievement inthe play;

Support the children whenthey want to try out some-thing new.


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Standard 4: Child is able to control their own feelings




1. Child calms down whenupset when suckling orwhen given a toy.

Breastfeed the baby or handthem a desired toy (object)when they are upset;

Change something in theenvironment if the baby istoo upset (e.g. reduce thenoise, the light...).

1. Child stops crying whenthey are satisfied.

Respond appropriately toevery childs sign of seekingattention.

1. Child stops being angryafter their toy has beentaken by another child.

Explain to the child that itis good to give their owntoy to another child andoffer them an alternativeentertainment (It seemsthat you prefer to play withthe blocks, and you can givethe doll to Jana).

1. Child calms down quicklyafter a separation from afamiliar and dear person.

Give the crying child a hugand offer them to play todistract their attention.

Do not leave the crying childunattended after their par-ent left them in the kinder-garten.

Praise the child and encour-age them to stop crying.

1. Child responds with a fa-cial expression when angryor withdraws from the play.

Recognise this reaction ofthe child and have a conver-sation about the reason fortheir anger.

1. Child expresses anger andsadness appropriately, witha high level of control (whenanother child would notgive them a toy or an object,they offer another object inexchange).

Provide an opportunity forthe child to play whereby youwould point out to the impor-tance of control and differentmanifestation of emotions inspecific places.

2. Child stops crying whenthey notice a familiar per-

son nearby.

Provide enough love,warmth, nice words for thechild.

2. Child stops being aggres-sive toward other persons

or objects when their atten-tion is redirected.

When the child behaves ag-gressively, suggest anotheractivity (let them leave thescene of the conflict).

2. Child starts to controltheir impulses (says no

when touching a forbiddenobject).

Intervene with a particularattention when the childhas a problem related to theimpulse control.

2. Child waits patiently totake their turn and do some

activity they like to (to see-saw or to get some juice).

Help the child through playto realise the meaning ofemotional control and gain-ing patience in the commu-nication with the others.

2. Child calms down theirnegative emotions and mo-

mentary impulses (stops ina short time being cross, orcrying, or grumping).

Let the children independent-ly solve conflict situationswith their peers.


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3. Accepts going to school(kindergarten) without beingupset and angry

Encourage the child to go

regularly to the kindergar-ten and tell them that therethey can have fun with otherchildren.


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APPROACHES TO LEARNING

Early Childhood is a period in which the children learn how to learn and approach thispart of learning in different ways. The approach to learning is the foundation for theremaining domains in the process of early learning and childhood development. This

domain is related to the way in which children learn, and not what they should learn.

Young children are curious by their nature and they like to explore. A well conceived

environment that encourages initiative, curiosity and interest to learning are the keyfactors that promote the approach to learning of young children. The key role in this is

played by the professionals involved in the educational processes during the early child-

hood. The creation of a positive learning environment stimulates the children to explore,

solve problems, to demonstrate a high level of initiative, to encourage their curiosity

and to encourage them to ask questions. In such an environment the children develop

a positive attitude toward the learning which is necessary for the furthe

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