Why is this important?
Did you know?
- By the age of three, children have doubled their height and grown to be five times heavier than at birth
- Starting in Week 13 of a pregnancy, the fetus can already taste food and begins to develop a preference for certain foods
- Between 20 and 40% of young children apparently suffer from sleep problems
- One in three children in Canada are believed not to get enough sleep
- Insufficient sleep has negative effects on the health of children and their ability to learn
- According to the United Nations, children have the right to play. This right is stated in Section 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
- A healthy diet plays a key role in young children’s development. Well-nourished children enjoy better health and growth, are more alert and dispose of the energy needed to explore and learn. A balanced diet is equally important: babies begin to develop their taste for certain foods when they are still inside their mother’s belly. The more exposure children get to handling and tasting different types of foods, the better they can develop their taste for healthy foods. Food preferences develop during the first years of life
- Sleep is of fundamental importance for toddlers’ development. In addition to replenishing the child’s strength, sleep is a highly active period in relation to the brain’s development. In fact, children consolidate their learning while asleep! It is almost as if they review everything they have learned in the course of the day so that they are better able to commit their learning to memory. Well-rested children are also in a better mood, making it easier to interact with them
- Physical activity allows children not only to expend their energy but also to discover their body and their surroundings. Children that engage in intensive to moderate movement on a daily basis tone their muscles, learn to coordinate their movements, and are better able to concentrate and therefore in a better position to learn. These children also enjoy better health, as physical activity strengthens the immune system. Furthermore, playing outdoors is an important factor in vision development and even contributes to a child’s psychological health
- Before they can manage to hold a pencil, children need to crawl, walk up and down stairs, play with a ball, and climb up ladders!
Healthy diet
What is it?
- Three meals per day
- Between one and three snacks per day
- Fresh and varied foods to enable the development of taste
- Take pleasure in the preparation and eating of food
Breastfeeding
- Exclusive breastfeeding period up to the age of six months
- Continued breastfeeding up to the age of two, or beyond, in combination with a regular diet
What can we do?
- Workshops to help promote and discover varied and healthy foods
- Offer training to parents and childcare practitioners on the subject of nutrition, health, and healthy lifestyle habits
- Initiatives and promotional activities with a focus on breastfeeding protection, promotion and support (Baby-Friendly Initiative, World Breastfeeding Week, breastfeeding-friendly environments, support for healthcare professionals, etc.)
Sleep
What is it?
- Adoption of good sleep habits from birth
- Establishing a regular bedtime routine that involves activities that facilitate sleep and are repeated at the same time every night
- Waking up, for the most part, at the same time every day
- Peaceful, comfortable, dark environment, without any noise or pets
- Respecting the child’s need for sleep: children feel rested when they wake up
- Average number of hours of sleep required in a 24-hour period:
- 16 to 20 hours (0–2 months);
- 9 to 12 hours at night and 2 to 4.5 hours of naps (2–12 months);
- 12 to 13 hours (1–3 years);
- 11 to 12 hours (3–5 years). - Number of naps required in a 24-hour period:
3 to 10 (0–2 months);
- 1 to 4 (2–12 months);
- 1 to 2 (1–3 years);
- 0 to 1 (3–5 years).
What can we do?
- Offer parents and childcare practitioners training on the subject of sleep
- Workshop on bedtime routines
- Information materials about sleep
Physical activity
What is it?
- Free play, structured games, sports, active transportation (walking, cycling), recreational activities, physical education
- Preferably high-intensity activities involving substantial energy expenditure (running, climbing, jumping, etc.)
- Taking or catching increasingly smaller objects
- Coordination of movements
- Talking
- Plenty of movement
- Keeping one’s balance
What can we do?
- Workshops for stimulating psychomotor skills development through play
- Parent-child stimulation and play activities
- Active transportation
- Adapted and accessible recreational equipment
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en petite enfance
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