The quality of child-teacher interactions during daily child care routines plays a significant role in young children's development. The nature of mealtimes--the pace, the caregiver's responsiveness, how food is offered--affects infants' and toddlers' emotional health. Maintaining consistency between how children are fed at home and at the center…

Discusses the major theorists of infant/toddler emotional development. Lists behavioral warning signs of infant/toddler emotional distress or mental health problems. Describes methods for fostering babies' mental health and reducing their stress, and caregiver behaviors that promote infant mental health. (BB)