Both nature and nurture affect every child’s development. While nature is important in determining your baby’s capabilities and temperament, early experiences also have an impact on the expression of gene and brain development, as well as a child’s learning and social emotional development. Thus, the role of nurturing care is of equal importance as genetics, and both interact with each other to shape your baby’s development.
Child development is a continuous process which follows a certain sequence that every child would go through. However, each child is unique and vary in his or her pace of development and abilities. For instance, even within a group of age-matched, normally developing children, differences exist in the progress and timing in achieving certain motor milestones. Some of them may be more advanced in their language ability, yet weaker in their motor development, and vice versa. Therefore, instead of constantly comparing your baby with other children, parents can understand and facilitate her development based on her temperament, relative strengths and weaknesses to foster healthy development. You may seek professional advice if you are concerned about your child’s development.
