This book has provided an overview of some of the factors that may be associated with young children developing mental ill-health. It has outlined risk factors that may increase the likelihood of children developing mental ill-health and the protective factors that can mitigate against this. In addition, it has addressed common mental health needs that children may present with and explored themes such as attachment, resilience and self-regulation.
The importance of early positive attachments between children and their primary carer has been emphasised. Weak, unstable or non-existent attachments can lead to the development of social and emotional problems and the effects can extend into adult life. The importance of establishing warm, positive and trusting relationships with children has been emphasised throughout this book. In addition, the importance of treating children with respect, kindness and demonstrating empathy towards them has also been highlighted. The necessity to ensure that children feel included and experience a sense of belonging has also been discussed. Young children may experience stress and anxiety in relation to triggers that adults perceive as being relatively minor. However, this book has emphasised the importance of taking seriously children’s concerns by acknowledging and affirming their feelings.
The book has argued that the ‘schoolification’ of early childhood is inappropriate. Introducing children to structured, adult-directed formal learning experiences too early is counterproductive to children’s development and could have a detrimental impact on their mental health and well-being. Early years organisations, practitioners and academics are rightly concerned about the recommendations in the Bold Beginnings report, which appear not to have been informed by academic research, on how children learn and develop in the early years. There is a danger that an overemphasis on academic attainment in reading, writing and mathematics in the early years will result in the underdevelopment of children’s personal, social and emotional skills. If these skills are not prioritised in the early years, this is likely to have a detrimental impact on their subsequent academic attainment and if children’s exposure to language and communication is restricted in the early years this is likely to have a significant negative impact on their literacy development. Watering down the principles of the Early Years Foundation Stage, by introducing more structured learning, is likely to result in increases to mental ill-health in early childhood and a decline in academic attainment in the long-term.