Swim ppt ch04

Chapter 4

The Three As: The Master Tools for Quality Care and Education

©2014 Cengage Learning.All Rights Reserved.

The 3 As: Attention, Approval, and Attunement as Tools

• Master tools for promoting a positive environment and maintaining a positive emotional connection– Attention– Approval– Attunement


The Attachment Debate and the Roles of Caregivers

• Infants and toddlers require secure attachments to their caregivers for normal, healthy development

• A controversy:– Old view: Only the mother could sufficiently bond

with the infant– New view: Non-familial persons (caregivers) can

meet the needs of the infants equally well– Question: What quality of attachment to

consistent caregiver(s) does an infant require?©2014 Cengage Learning.

All Rights Reserved.


• Attachment Patterns– Secure attachment– Avoidant attachment– Resistant attachment– Disoriented attachment

• Separation Anxiety is part of normal developmental experience



• Infants are normally capable of attaching securely to more than one adult

• Caregiving that is supportive and sensitive using the 3 As promotes secure attachment

• Reciprocal relationships or partnerships with families will assist in secure attachment

• Primary caregiving, family grouping, and continuity of care promote secure attachment in child care settings


Understanding the Three As

• Attention– Focused attention to observe the behavior, skills

and needs of children in your care– Observing closely = attention– Identification of the Zone of Proximal

Development– Teachers must be culturally sensitive and

responsive to the ways families raise children– In general, what we attend to matters



• Approval– The best type of attention is approval– Show respect for the child by allowing children

time to complete tasks and help them make choices

– Reggio Emilia concept of rights of children reflects a child who is rich in resources, strong and confident

– Genuine approval serves as encouragement



• Attunement–Being aware and responsive, “in tune”–Being attuned is not instinctual for all

persons– Includes observing and recording child

behavior–Reading and responding to children’s cues

creates an “interactional dance”©2014 Cengage Learning.

All Rights Reserved.

Using the Three As Successfully with Infants and Toddlers

• Get down to a child’s level• Act calmly, move slowly, make eye contact,

engage with soft speech• Reflect upon how you use the 3 As• Positive energy and smiles are shared


Spotlight on Research

• Infant Persistence– Persistence was associated with greater levels of

cognitive development (BanerJee and Tami-LeMonda, 2007)

– Mother’s early teaching helps persistence– Extending periods of interactions also influences

persistence (Wheeler and Stultz, 2008)


Checkpoint Discussion Questions

• Why are early relationships important to later development?

• How does knowing about and understanding the attachment relationships that the children in your care have with their family members help you as an early childhood educator?


Checkpoint Discussion Questions

• List, define, describe, and provide a specific example for each of the three As of child care.

• How are the three As grounded in the theoretical perspectives described in Chapters 1 and 2 and 3?

• Why is using all of the three As together a powerful tool for motivating children?


Health & Medicine

Swim ppt ch04