ABSTRACT
This chapter talks about beliefs and perspectives on the topic of emotional, sensory and social learning in the early years. Love is constructed as important, and education is seen as valuable for its own sake, rather than as an investment for future economic success. Babies and young children learn from their earliest sensory and emotional experiences, through everything and everyone around them. Babies learn from expressions of love by those close to them. There is an increased understanding of how brains are built from pre-birth to around age 8. Adults play a crucial role in building children's brain architecture. Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years (PACEY) identified three components as necessary to achieve the best care and education possible for children and their families: professionals committed to continuous improvement, access to high quality professional development and better recognition in terms of pay and opportunities for the highly skilled work carried out by early years practitioners.
