Development

15-25% of the exam

Teratogens

Harmful or toxic chemicals that can reach the embryo or fetus during pregnancy and can cause damaging side effects like physical or mental abnormalities

Habituation

Decreasing responsiveness to repeated stimulation — constant exposure to a stimulus makes you accustomed to it

Rooting

An involuntary, innate reflex present in newborn infants that helps them find food sources

Reflexes

Inborn automatic responses

Brain and Motor Development

• Babies exercise their motor skills because their nervous system is maturing

• The quick development of the cerebellum is the reason babies are ready to walk by the age of 1

Schema

Concepts or mental molds — categories of knowledge that lets us interpret and understand the world better

Assimilation

Where we try to fit new experiences into our existing schema, and if it doesn't fit, we accommodate

Accommodation

Where we adjust our schema to incorporate information we’ve learned from new experiences

Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage (2yo)

Object permanence: you know when an object exists even when it's out of sight or you can no longer hear them

Piaget’s Preoperational Stage (2/6-7yo)

Pretend Play: Roleplaying or assigning role/ meaning to objects

Egocentrism: Difficulty differentiating between self and others— difficulty in perceiving or understanding one’s perspective; disregarding others because you’re so hyper focused on yourself

Animism: Personifying inanimate objects

Theory of Mind: Ability to perceive or understand one's mental state or behavior

Piaget’s Concrete Operational (7-11yo)

Conservation: Properties remain the same even though it changes size or frame

Ex: mass, volume, number — quantities

Piaget’s Formal Operational (12+)

Abstract Logic

Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development

What a learner can do without assistance and what a learner can do with adult guidance or with peers

Vygotsky’s Scaffolding

Providing temporary support to a learner as they acquire a new skill or concept, with the goal of the learner eventually becoming independent

Vygotsky’s Social-Learning Theory

Individuals learn by observing, imitating, and modeling the behaviors of others, often without direct reinforcement

Language

Helps acquire knowledge by enabling mind to mind information transfer via spoken, written, or signed

Phonemes

The smallest distinctive sound units in a language

Ex: “Bat” — “bhh” sound (b), “aa” sound (a), “tuh” sound (t)

Morphemes

The smallest language that carries meaning

Ex: “Un-happy” —> not-happy (bound)

Ex: “Dog”, “happy” (free)

Semantics

Sounds

Grammar

A system of rules that help us communicate by guiding us in deriving meaning from sounds and ordering words into sentences

Syntax

Sentences

Language Acquisition

The process by which humans learn to understand and produce language, whether their first language or additional languages — involves developing the ability to comprehend and communicate using sounds, symbols, or gestures.

Stages of Language Development

4mos: Babbling

10mos: Babbling resembles household language

12mos: Productive language — ability to produce words

24mos: telegraphic speech — “two word” stage

24+: rapid development into complete sentences

Microsystem (first level)

What affects the child directly — influences the child’s experiences directly

Mesosystem (second level)

The people around the child — the element that surrounds the child

Ex: teachers, parents

Exosystem (third level)