Birth to three years: A review of the literature around the care and education of young children and babies

Abstract

Birth to three years is a critically important time for children's learning, health and wellbeing. From birth (and before birth) children are active learners, capable of interacting, as competent persons, with their world. Evidence from a range of disciplines and theoretical perspectives demonstrates the importance of the first years of life for children's present and future lives.

This brief, plain language review is designed as a resource for practitioners who work with children - to provide quick-glance evidence of policy, research and practice in support of the best possible start for our youngest citizens. It follows a comprehensive review of birth to three conducted by David, Goouch, Powell and Abbott (2003) as part of the United Kingdom's Birth to Three Matters Project and Framework for Effective Practice. While the current review is more annotative than that of David and colleagues (2003), the two reviews concur that very young children should be respected as people in their own right in a society that recognizes and caters for their capabilities; and with warm, responsible people who provide opportunities for their holistic learning, health and wellbeing.

The review shows that: children live in the present and what happens in the present impacts on their future; children's lives are diverse and the contexts of their lives are changing; children are active and competent learners; children are citizens and the care and education of children and those around them should be a shared responsibility.