Responding to the Environment With Pleasure, Reaction Paper Example

Stage One: Summary and Application

Stage one is the developmental phase analogous to Erikson’s 1^st stage of psychosocial development – Infancy. At this stage of development, people cannot use language nor get around on their own. Thus, they must rely on others for basic needs. Their primary drive is to receive, achieve, and maintain comfort. This stage is the foundation upon which all other stages are built. As such, its importance can hardly be overestimated in developmental therapy and education.

It is incumbent upon caregivers that they help people in stage one (of whatever age) to build a sense of trust in the world. To do this, they must help them develop particular internal responses to daily living. People in stage one need to learn how take pleasure in life. There are certain techniques that are directly applicable to this aim.

Stage one programs should be aimed at helping individuals address certain psychosocial needs such as behavioral, communication, socialization, and pre-academic milestones. The primary behavioral milestone is to learn to trust one’s own physical skill. The primary emotional milestone is to learn to learn that certain words produce certain results. The primary social milestone is to learn that adults are trustworthy. The primary pre-academic milestone is to learn to implement the previously mentioned milestones to produce desirable outcomes.

One effective method of helping stage one individuals achieve these outcomes is a stage one picnic program unit. The program includes elements of stimulating, easily manipulated materials, repetition, group activity, and opportunities for communication. It starts with a playtime picnic theme including colorful napkins and table settings. It includes a work time designated for physical interaction with the environment. It includes wiggle time to help students engage in some exercise, and it goes on to story time, art time, bathroom time, outside time, snack time, surprise time, table time and music time.

Each activity is geared toward fulfilling the psychosocial needs of the person executing the task. During these processes, it is important for the caregiver to interpolate tasks with positive feedback so that the students associate such activities with feelings of pleasure, because for them, the inability to complete stage one psychosocial objectives means a life doomed to depression, despair and fear.