Learning a lot in the first year.. 10 tips to give your child a stronger start in life

SadaNews - In her recently published article on "The Conversation" website, Dr. Elim Altuntas, a researcher in speech and language development at Western Sydney University, states that infants are like "little investigators", constantly gathering evidence about the world around them; "If you've ever noticed your child gazing at you while you're talking, it's because they're not just picking up sounds, but learning how to produce them".

Dr. Altuntas explains that "anyone who has spent time with an infant knows how difficult it is to predict what happens in the first year"; a child may seem to grasp something new one week, only to lose that grasp the next week. This can cause parents to worry and question: Did my child forget? Did something go wrong? Assuming that the child's progress is not following its natural course. Hence, parents' awareness of the details of this phase, which gives the child a stronger start in life, becomes essential.

Why focus on the first year?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, understanding the emotional and social growth stages of children from birth to one year old gives "your children a good start in life". In the first year, children learn to focus their sight, reach out, explore their surroundings, and recognize things around them; their growth includes cognitive development or brain growth, as well as learning memory, language, thinking, and reasoning.

Language learning is not limited to making sounds (babbling) or saying "Mama" and "Dada"; it includes "listening, understanding, and learning the names of people and things" as a fundamental part of language development. This is confirmed by Dr. Samantha Durant, a lecturer in speech and language therapy for the BBC; she explains: "In the first year, a child acquires many essential skills which they will later use to develop other skills"; for example, a child learns the sounds that make up words before mastering pronunciation and writing.

Teaching infants speech: An amazing process

In efforts to uncover how infants' brains create an ideal environment for language learning, a study led by Dr. Elim Altuntas, published in early 2025, found that "infants as young as 4 months are capable of learning patterns of speech sounds by linking what they heard with what they saw".

The researchers concluded that in this amazing process beginning at 4 months, infants were not just remembering individual sounds; "they were understanding how to produce sounds, whether with their lips or the tip of their tongue".

By their first birthday, infants start tuning their ears precisely to the sounds of their mother tongue in a process called "auditory tuning", as if their brains are filtering a wide array of sounds to focus on the most important ones. Between 6 and 12 months, they begin concentrating on the sounds they hear most frequently. However, the study found that 4-month-old infants were actually learning how to articulate sounds "long before this precise focus begins".

In March of last year, another study led by Dr. Altuntas indicated that children between approximately 7 and 10 months "become more sensitive to the language sounds they hear daily, and they also begin to recognize common words and associate sounds with meaning".

Each child's growth differs from another

There is a thin line between being interested in children’s growth stages in their first year and comparing them to other children’s growth stages. Dr. Samantha Durant says that parents should not focus too much on developmental milestones because every child's growth can vary; "some children may master a skill early, while others may master it later".

So there is no need to worry if your child has not demonstrated a specific skill after reaching a certain age; your pediatrician will help you understand your child's growth nature.

Kerry Bennett, a health visitor at an organization affiliated with the British Health Services, also mentions that child development stages should not be compared as they differ from child to child. She adds: "I think we live in a culture that overly monitors children, and we always assume that at this age we should do this, and at that age we should do that". Through her work, Kerry states she sees parents focusing heavily on their child not crawling, but "when you visit the child, you find they are growing beautifully".

Samantha reiterates that not growing at the same rate as other children "does not necessarily mean there is cause for concern; they might simply be achieving another milestone faster". She adds: "what is important is not to compare and not to judge the child based on achieving a particular goal, but to look at the bigger picture".

Dr. Altuntas's research also found that "children do not learn in a linear fashion, and if a child does not show a clear response at a certain age, it does not mean they have stopped learning or missed an important step; the results show that these changes may hide a continuous learning process rather than empty moments or a loss of knowledge".

10 tips for your infant's growth and safety

Here are the essential tips for keeping your child safe and supporting their growth during their first year according to experts:

Talk to your child; Dr. Samantha says that talking to infants, reading, and singing to them calms them and increases their chances of learning language. She recommends using "a slower speech style with a high tone and melodic rhythm"; narrating the details of your day to them, such as saying: What will we do now? I will get a cup of tea, I will put water in the kettle; this is very beneficial and helps them distinguish language features and sounds.

Spend time cuddling and holding them to help them feel cared for and secure. In this stage, children form bonds of love and trust with others, and cuddling, holding, and playing with them forms "the foundation for their future interactions with parents and others".

Play with them and watch closely for signs of fatigue, and let them take a break from play.

Watch out for the pincer grasp; according to Kerry Bennett, children may start developing the pincer grip (a fine motor skill in which the child uses their thumb and forefinger to pick up objects) around 9 months, which requires us to pay attention to small pieces they might find and put in their mouths.

Protect them from choking by cutting their food into small bites, and do not let them play with small objects that can easily be swallowed; do not allow them to play with anything that could cover their faces.

Never shake them, as infants have very weak neck muscles and cannot hold up their heads yet; shaking them can cause brain damage or lead to death. Try not to keep them in swings, strollers, or rockers for long periods.

Keep them away from secondhand smoke, and do not let anyone smoke in your home.

Do not carry hot liquids or foods near them or while holding them.

Always place them on their back when sleeping to prevent sudden infant death syndrome.

Make sure they receive all necessary vaccinations to protect them from serious diseases.