Early intervention and parent–child interaction in Down syndrome

Abstract

This paper aims to explore early intervention for infants with Down syndrome, emphasizing the role of parents as mediators or facilitators in modifying and enriching their interaction with the child. The child’s future intellectual development is not determined solely by the surrounding stimuli, but also by the mediating role of adults, namely, the activities in which parents and children engage together around or with respect to an object. This article does not seek to provide a list of progressive exercises; rather, it aims to encourage reflection on the role of early intervention from the first days of the infant’s life and the interaction that develops between parents and the child affected by this condition.