THE FIRST YEAR OF INFANTS’ LIVES

What Research Says

Abstract

o The central focus of this research is the pedagogical work with infants in nursery settings, emphasizing the period of the first year of life. Based on the Cultural-Historical Theory, the general objective was to investigate the contribution of academic studies concerning pedagogical practices with infants in early childhood education institutions, in light of the theoretical framework of the Cultural-Historical Theory. The central research question was: how are infants and their processes of development and learning revealed through academic studies? The investigation was carried out through a systematic literature review using the EBSCOhost, Scopus, and BDTD databases, covering the period from 2021 to 2025, with descriptors related to direct emotional communication and child development, grounded in the theoretical basis of the Cultural-Historical Theory. Out of 236 initially identified works, only 5 were selected for in-depth analysis. The results show that, although the theme is highly relevant, scientific production focused on infants remains scarce, especially from the perspective of the leading activity of the period—direct emotional communication. Commonly, the studies emphasize the importance of intentionality in teaching practice, the organization of the educational environment, and theoretical grounding as essential elements for the psychic development of infants. It is concluded that the teacher’s pedagogical work is decisive in ensuring meaningful and humanizing pedagogical practices in nursery settings.