The answer to last week’s question: At what age do infants typically say their first word?
Is 10-18 months!
This week’s trivia question is:
By what age can most children typically skip and hop on one foot?
Many parents are amazed by how early babies seem to understand the world around them. Research over the years has suggested that even very young infants can tell the difference between “good” and “bad” behavior. For example, in classic baby psychology experiments, infants often prefer a character that helps another over one that hinders. This has led some scientists to believe that babies might be born with a basic moral sense. But a newer study offers a different, simpler explanation.
Instead of babies making moral judgments, the researchers suggest that infants may just be responding to basic positive and negative experiences they see on screen. The researchers wondered: are babies really judging helpfulness, or are they just reacting to what looks and feels good or bad? To test this, they redesigned the experiments.
They found that babies are incredibly smart, but their preferences may come from simple cause-and-effect learning rather than built-in moral reasoning. Instead of thinking, “That character was nice,” they may be thinking, “That scene made me feel good.” This doesn’t mean babies won’t grow into moral thinkers. It just shows that what looks like morality in the first year of life might actually be the early building blocks of learning how the world works. Simple experiences like comfort, joy, surprise, and discomfort may be the foundation that later supports real moral understanding. Babies may not be born with a moral compass, but they are constantly learning from what feels good and what doesn’t, and that’s where their future sense of right and wrong begins.
If you want to read more, click here!
Angelina Stofka
UConn KIDS, Research Assistant
Toddlers have a different way of regulating emotions than adults do because they are still learning about their feelings and how to cope with them. A recent study contains helpful insight into how young children begin to manage those intense feelings and how their strategies shift as they grow.
Researchers followed a group of toddlers at 24 months and again at 30 months, observing how they reacted during two challenging situations: one designed to spark fear and another meant to create frustration and anger. What the researchers found is that toddlers don’t regulate all emotions the same way. In fact, they use very different tools depending on whether they’re scared or upset.
When toddlers felt afraid, they relied mainly on themselves. They pulled away from the scary object, avoided it, or used small soothing behaviors to calm down. Fear naturally pushes children to protect themselves, so these self-driven responses make sense. Toddlers seemed to understand, even at such a young age, that fear is about staying safe.
When they measured anger in toddlers, it looked very different. When something blocked their goal, like a toy being taken away, toddlers turned toward their caregivers. They sought attention, tried to get help, or looked to their parent for comfort or support. Anger’s purpose is to overcome obstacles, and young children often realize that turning to a trusted adult is the quickest route to getting things back on track.
From this study, they found that emotional development in toddlerhood isn’t a simple march from “immature” to “mature” behaviors. Instead, toddlers are learning which strategies work best in different situations. The ability to choose the right response for the moment is a key sign of healthy emotional growth.
Each moment of fear or frustration gives toddlers a chance to test out new ways of coping, whether that means calming themselves or seeking your help. And as they grow, they become increasingly skilled at picking the strategy that helps them feel balanced again. Understanding this can make it a little easier to support your toddler through those ups and downs.
If you want to read more, click here!
Angelina Stofka
UConn KIDS, Research Assistant
The answer to last week’s question: At what age can most infants sit unsupported?
Is 6 months old!
This week’s trivia question is:
At what age do infants typically say their first word?
There are no two children that are alike and from the moment they’re born, children show unique ways of reacting to the world. Some are more easygoing, and others are more intense or cautious. These early differences are what psychologists call temperamentand understanding it can make a world of difference in raising children.
Temperament refers to the natural tendencies in how a child feels and behaves, which are displayed during infancy. Some children are naturally adventurous and outgoing, while others prefer routine and take longer to warm up. Research shows that temperament is influenced by both genes and their environment. While certain traits may run in families, the way parents respond and support their child can greatly shape how these traits develop over time.
Temperament plays a key role in how children handle emotions, form friendships, and even face challenges in school. Studies have found that children who easily experience frustration or fear (high negative emotionality) may be more prone to anxiety or depression later in life. Those with low impulse control or difficulty focusing may be more likely to show signs of ADHD or other behavioral issues. Children who are naturally shy or inhibited can thrive when parents help them build confidence in social settings. Temperament can create certain risk factors or strengths depending on how it interacts with life experiences.
An important idea from this research is the concept of goodness of fit. This means that a child’s well-being often depends on how well their temperament matches their environment and their parents’ style. By understanding a child’s natural style, their home environment can be adjusted to better suit their growth into resilient adults. When parents meet children where they are, rather than where parents wish they were, both the children and parents will thrive.
If you want to read more, click here!
Angelina Stofka
UConn KIDS, Research Assistant
Parents are often encouraged to read to their children, but the conversation is usually centered around toddlers and preschool-aged children. However, research suggests that reading aloud to infants in the first year of life has a measurable and meaningful benefit long before language is outwardly visible.
Infants starting at 2 weeks old in this study were provided books and followed throughout their first year. Families who read at least seven books per week demonstrated significantly higher expressive and receptive language scores by 9 months of age, with even greater difference by 12 months.
Research from this study has shown that language development begins far earlier than expressive speech. Infants are actively building the neurological foundations for vocabulary, comprehension, and communication from birth. Reading aloud provides rich language exposure, prosody, rhythm, repetition, and shared joint attention which contribute to early neural wiring for future literacy and academic success.
Importantly, the study also showed that simply giving parents clear directions to read daily increased the number of books they read early in infancy. Establishing reading expectations and routine matters. Early reading does not require long sessions or perfect attention. Infants benefit from short, frequent, positive experiences with books, even if they are moving, feeding, or only tolerating a few pages at a time. Repetition is beneficial along with familiarity, presence, and interaction. One short book per day is a realistic and powerful target.
If you want to read more, click here!
Angelina Stofka
UConn KIDS, Research Assistant
A toddler’s relationship with a stuffed animal or blanket is actually a part of early development: attachment to inanimate objects. While it might look like simple affection, new research suggests this behavior may be a deeper coping strategy tied to early childcare experiences and even genetics.
Researchers have explored this phenomenon using data from over 1,100 pairs of three-year-old twins. The researchers found that these “security objects” often serve as a way for kids to cope with separation and daily stress, especially when they spend time away from parents during the day.
As more children spend their days in childcare, early separation from caregivers has become part of modern family life. The study suggests that some kids cope with this separation by forming attachments to “security objects”. Examples are soft toys, blankets, or other items that provide comfort and continuity.
The study also found that both genes and environment play an equal role in whether a child develops an attachment to an object. Some kids may simply be more likely to seek comfort in familiar, cozy items.
Researchers found that comfort objects are a normal and healthy part of child development. They help children handle big emotions, sleep more easily, and feel secure when parents aren’t around. Over time, most kids naturally grow out of needing them as they become more independent, but when they’re in their young childhood, it’s something that provides needed comfort for them.
If you want to read more, click here!
Angelina Stofka
UConn KIDS, Research Assistant
The answer to last week’s question: About how many hours do newborns sleep per day?
Is 16-17 hours!
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This week’s trivia question is:
At what age do autobiographical memories become reliably accurate?
Tune in next week to find out the answer to this week’s question!
The answer to last week’s question: Which sense is not fully developed at birth?
Is vision!
This week’s trivia question is:
About how many hours do newborns sleep per day?
Tune in next week to find out the answer to this week’s question!
The answer to last week’s question: At what age do most children begin to use two-word sentences?
Is 2 years old!
This week’s trivia question is:
Which sense is not fully developed at birth?
Tune in next week to find out the answer to this week’s question!