Nursery World - Opinion: In my view

It's time to celebrate the role of home care in language development, says Liz Bayram.

Nothing a child learns is more important than understanding how to use language. As well as plenty of conversation, nothing helps children's language more than enjoying book reading with adults. That is why this week, registered childminders and nannies will be celebrating the role they play in supporting children's literacy and language during National Childminding Week.

Childminders and nannies are uniquely placed to support children's language for a number of reasons. There is a greater degree than in group care of one-to-one interaction between childminder and child; this is also true of nannies, who usually care for two or three children at most. This is particularly important in language development, as the child is able to see every detail of the pictures and words, to control the timing of the page being turned and to echo what is being read.

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