Cognitive Domain
While many of the behaviors of very young infants are driven by instinctive survival needs, they react, respond, and begin to acquire mental concepts (schema) as a result of interaction with their environment from birth. Infancy and the toddler periods are incredibly important for cognitive development, as all later intellectual functioning is based on earlier learning; therefore infants and toddlers need stimulation and exposure to new experiences, objects, and language (Deiner, 2009). Long before children can speak, they recognize voices, tone and inflection, and are fascinated by words and language.