Video transcript

Narrator: Children start learning from birth. Their learning happens through the interactions and relationships they have with the important people in their lives, like parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents, friends, early childhood educators, and teachers. When you tune in and respond to your child, you're creating experiences that help her learn, and all the experiences and interactions your child has stimulate her brain, forming millions of connections that build the skills she needs for life, like thinking, communicating, managing emotions, and moving.

Play is how children discover and learn about the world around them. Through play, children make friends, build confidence, regulate emotions, and learn and develop many skills and, when children pick up these new skills, they're building on everything they've learned already. The way children play changes as they get older.  Babies love interacting with people and exploring their surroundings. For babies, the best toy is you.

Toddlers and pre-schoolers use their imagination to play in creative and dramatic ways, which help them understand their world and, for school-age children, play is a chance to have fun and unwind from the routines and rules of school. Exploring through play is natural for children. Whether your child plays with you, with others, or on her own, your support and encouragement of play is important for her learning.

The skills your child develops in these early years build a foundation for all the future learning and development he will do throughout life. Your child's development and individual differences are shaped by lots of things: his surroundings, like his family, school, neighbourhood, and the wider community, and the characteristics he inherits from his parents, such as what he looks like, and some aspects of his physical and mental health. All these things combine to build up children's wellbeing and skills during their early years.

Supporting your child to develop warn, nurturing relationships during her early years is important. This helps her interact with others, build and use her skills and growing independence, as well as manage and bounce back from day-to-day challenges in these early years of life. Understanding who your child is, how he plays, knowing what he can do on his own, and what she needs support with, is important to promote their independence and learning.

Your child is an amazing learner. The everyday experiences you share with each other all help your child to feel valued and loved, and support their learning and development.