his session will explore how emotionally secure relationships provide the springboard for early learning. It will first address the foundational nature of early relationship experiences. Then, we will consider what infants and toddlers learn in caring relationships, including expectations for how they are treated and ways in which they learn to regulate their emotions with help from adults. Of particular concern will be the emergence of expectations from experiences with others that, in turn, lead to perceptions about self. In addition, the development of self-regulation—from being completely dependent on the nurturing adult to cooperating with the adult and engaging in guided self-regulation—will be discussed. The session will then turn to ways in which infants and toddlers use relationships as a base for learning in other developmental domains. Examples will be highlighted from the language development, cognitive development, and perceptual and motor development domains. The session will close with an overview of research on the long-range effects of early social and emotional development and the impact of early relationship experiences on young children’s school readiness.

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