By Julie Leduc

At daycare, toddlers have to learn to coexist in a group environment with other children and one or more educators.

Unsurprisingly, a child’s home is the environment with the greatest impact on their development. However, given that most young children spend a lot of time at daycare, it, too, shapes their growth.

In many ways, a daycare is its own little society. “At a good daycare centre, the educator will help the children get to know one another, play together, share, and resolve conflicts,” says psychologist Caroline Bouchard, a professor in the Faculty of Education at Université Laval and director of the Unité mixte de recherche Petite enfance, grandeur nature, a research unit focusing on nature-based early childhood education in Quebec.

Fourteen-month-old Louis hasn’t been going to daycare for very long, but his parents, Jean-François Lefebvre and Anne-Marie Lavoie-Pilote, can tell that he’s already learning to connect with other people. “He’s started waving goodbye and blowing kisses,” says AnneMarie. “We didn’t teach him those things—we didn’t think he was old enough.”

Spending every day in a group also teaches children to become aware of other people’s feelings. This is particularly true for kids who don’t have siblings. “If an 18-month-old hits another child at daycare, they immediately see the consequences of their actions: The educators make sure they understand how they made the other child feel,” says Nathalie Bigras, a professor in the teaching department at UQAM and director of the university’s early childhood services research team. “It doesn’t take long for them to realize that other people exist and have feelings.”

Julie Boucher, mother of 4-year-old Élisabeth and 8-year-old Michaël, has noticed that daycare is also teaching her daughter how to take care of others. “She doesn’t have any younger siblings, but she’ll sometimes help the infant-group educators at snack time. She loves taking care of younger kids,” she says. “There’s also a boy who uses a wheelchair in her group. Élisabeth’s really fond of him; she’ll change the rules of a game just so he can play. She’s learning to accept differences, which is something I could never have taught her at home.”

Better behaviour

At daycare, children have to follow group rules and instructions as well as routines. This provides a sense of stability that can positively influence their behaviour. “When the expectations at daycare are clear, specific, and consistent, children feel more secure because they know how they’re expected to behave,” says Karine Busilacchi, a remedial teacher and head of instructional content at CASIOPE, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving early childhood training.

When daycare educators help children manage their emotions, they are also helping to improve certain behaviours. Julie saw this first-hand when her son was 3: “Michaël used to get really upset if another child took one of his toys. His teacher taught him to explain why he was mad and then come up with solutions. I didn’t think he knew how to express his emotions at his age. We started doing the same thing at home, and it made a big difference! As he got better at talking about his feelings, he lost his temper less often.”

Children learn a lot at daycare by listening to the people around them. Stories, nursery rhymes, and songs also teach them new words and help them understand their environment.

“At an educational daycare, children progress in all areas of their development through exploration, observation, and interactions with others,” says remedial educator Karine Busilacchi. Playing vet, for example, is a chance to develop their language and social skills while practising sharing toys, handling objects, and verbalizing their thoughts.

Playtime happens to be how Julie’s son, Michaël, became an “expert” on dinosaurs. “Playing with figurines and flipping through books at daycare got him interested in dinosaurs,” says Julie. “We also started reading books with him at home, and now he can name almost every kind!” Meanwhile, Julie’s 4-year-old daughter, Élisabeth, has been picking up English at daycare. “She knows how to say certain numbers and colours in English,” Julie says. “She learned just by playing with some of the English-speaking kids in her group.”

Even with children who aren’t talking yet, daycare educators can describe what they’re doing as they play. “For example, if a child is playing with blocks, an educator might say, ‘You’re picking up the blue block.’ The child gradually learns new words while expanding their knowledge,” says psychologist Caroline Bouchard.

Language-related benefits

“It’s easier for a parent to understand what their child is trying to say,” says Julie. “I find that daycare helps kids form more-complete sentences, because they have to use more words to get their educator to understand.”

Daycare educators can help kids enhance their word knowledge by using a rich vocabulary, choosing descriptive words, and occasionally adding a word or two to children’s sentences. For example, if a child says “I want the truck” while pointing at a red toy firetruck, their educator could respond, “Sure, you can take the red firetruck.” These strategies help children improve their speech and expand their vocabulary.

Kids also listen to stories, sing songs, and recite nursery rhymes at daycare. All of these activities contribute to their language development. “Given that written texts tend to use a more refined vocabulary, stories help children learn new words,” says Bouchard.

Educators can also use books to engage children’s cognitive skills. In fact, story time should be a daily activity at daycare. “The educator can ask questions about the plot or get the kids to predict what happens next,” explains Bouchard. “This gets them talking as well as using their brains.”

Crawling, walking, running, jumping ... Kids move in every which way when playing at daycare. In addition to improving their body awareness and agility, these activities enable young children to be better prepared for starting school.

For Anne-Marie Lavoie-Pilote, there’s no doubt her 14-month-old son, Louis, is becoming more coordinated since starting daycare. “He took his first steps at daycare, at 13 months,” she says. “I think seeing other kids in his group walking gave him the nudge he needed. He was already standing up at home, but he was too scared to go any further.”

Unfortunately, studies have shown that children aren’t active enough at daycare; they spend much of their time doing quiet activities that don’t get them moving. But things appear to be changing. “Educators are being encouraged to do more physical activities with their groups,” says Nathalie Bigras, a professor at UQAM. “If we want kids to be active, we have to encourage them to move and get to know their bodies.” That’s why at daycare, it’s important for kids to have room to do physical activities indoors, as well as regular opportunities to run around and play outside.

At Louis’s daycare, the educators often set up mini obstacle courses for the kids. “They get them to walk around cushions and other objects,” says Anne-Marie. “I’ve noticed that this has helped Louis develop other skills, like climbing! He can get on the couch by himself now, and he’s learned to crawl up the stairs.”

Developing motor skills

When kids play tag, tackle an obstacle course, play ball games, or ride a scooter or tricycle, they’re developing their balance, coordination, and endurance. They’re also building muscle strength, burning off energy, and relieving stress.

What about fine motor skills? We all know that puzzles, drawing, and arts and crafts are great for a child’s fine motor development, but we tend to forget that physical activities can be too.

“When a child collects rocks or draws in the sand with their fingers, they’re using their fine motor skills,” says remedial teacher Karine Busilacchi. “The same is true when they pull out a mat at naptime, wash their hands, or do up their jacket.” All of this fine motor skills practice gives the child a solid foundation for learning to read and write once they start school.

Source: Naître et grandir magazine, March 2019 Research and copywriting: Julie Leduc Scientific review: Christa Japel, professor, Department of Special Education and Training, UQAM Updated: September 2024

Photos: Nicolas St-Germain