Human Growth and Development

Areas of Human Development

Physical- the growth and development of the body’s muscles, bones, energy systems, and the nervous system.

Cognitive- development of a persons ability to interpret and process information, and the development of a persons self-concept or awareness of oneself.

Emotional development- our ability to manage and regulate emotions such as fear, pleasure, anxiety, anger, and empathy.

Social development- the development of relationships with peers, friends, relatives, adults, and others

Age and physical development

Chronological age- age measured in years, months, and days

Skeletal age- age indicated by the physical maturity of the skeleton (degree of ossification). Nutrition, diet, disease, and major bone injuries can cause the skeletal age to lag behind the chronological age.

Developmental age- age as expressed in one’s ability to perform certain tasks

The relative age effect

a statistical trend whereby success appears to be slightly higher among those born in the early part of the year.

Human Morphology

using body types to classify appearance and physical structure

Somatotyping and three categories

somatotyping is a system of classifying body types in terms of three categories

endomorph- wide hips, shoulders, more fatty tissue, thicker body parts

mesomorph- matures early, stocky/heavily muscled, broader bodies

Ectomorph- late to reach maturity, thinner body, less body muscle and fat, narrow hips/chest, longer arms/legs

Different rates of growth

Cephalocaudal sequence- growth progresses fastest in the head, followed by the trunk, lastly the extremities

Promimodistal sequence- body movements that originate closer to the centre of the body seem to develop earlier than those that originate further from the centre.

Factors affecting physical growth

heredity-definite link, but difficult to predict the affect due to environmental influences

nutrition/diet- inadequate/balanced diet can lead to physical development issue.

physical activity- lack of activity or more than 120 mins of screen time can be harmful. at least 60 minutes of activity can optimize growth.

Sociocultural- can be negative (ex discrimination or prejudice) or positive. depends on opportunities, facilities, role models, values, and traditions

Motor skills

Motor skills- refer to the body’s ability to manage the process of movement. To execute motor skills, a persons brain, muscles, and nervous system must all work together.

Fine motor skills- generally referred to as to the small muscle movements such a movements of the hands, wrists, fingers, feet, and toes.

Gross motor skills- are the abilities required in order to control the large muscles of the body for walking, running, sitting, crawling, etc.

Physical Literacy

physical literacy is the knowledge and physical competence necessary to perform the movement skills necessary for sport and physical activity.

stages of human growth and development

Infancy/Toddler (0-3 yrs) - most marked growth in humans. double birth weight in 6 months, triple in a year. by end of 2nd year brain is 75% of adult weight. development of basic motor skills

Childhood (4-10 yrs)- rapid stage of growth from 4-6 years. from 6-10 years the body stabilizes. Introduction to organized sports. Unstructured, imaginative play is important

Puberty/Adolescence (11-18)- growth speeds up. sexual maturity. pituitary glad releases hormones and triggers growth. changes in appearance and body structures. social connections have large influence on sense of self, values, and activities.

Adulthood (18 +)- other physical changes such as weight gain, reduced oxygen capacity, ride in blood pressure, and joint deterioration.

sometimes a fifth stage of “pre-natal” is added

Cognitive Development

ability to interpret and process information

Piagets four stages of cognitive development

1. Sensorimotor (0-2)- characterized by infant demonstrating intelligence by means of motor activity without use of symbols. knowledge based on immediate experience. Ability to use memory to recall objects and events (object permanence). Language developed at end of stage.

2. Pre-operational (2-7)- demonstrates intelligence through use of symbols like letters and numbers. Significant language development, growth in memory and imagination. very egocentric and has difficulty understanding others pov

3. Concrete operational (7-11)- able to solve concrete problems logically.beginning to understand conservation and manipulation of length, mass, volume, and area. classifies and orders based on criteria. operational thinking and empathy develops.

4. Formal operational (11-15)- demonstrate intelligence through ability to solve increasingly complicated abstract robles using logic. return to egocentric thinking in early age. begin to think about social issues and one’s own identity.

Neuroplasticity

the ability of the brain to reword, reshape, and change

Affects of exercise on the brain

-increase growth of brain cells

-birth of new neurons

-increase the ability to change its neural pathways

-prevents brain tissue loss in older adults

-improved thinking, focus, problem solving, and memory

Social Development (socialization)

ways in which, from a young age, humans form attachments with others

Benefits of friendships

sense of belonging, security, express emotions appropriately, problem solving, learn empathy, cooperation/sharing skills, conflict resolution, relationship skills

Phases of movement development

Reflexive movement (birth to 4 months)- humans show controlled motor development

Rudimentary movement (birth to two years)- basic manipulation (picking up and releasing), and stability movements (control of head, sitting up), locomotor activity.

Fundamental Movement (2-7)- basic movement skills like running, throwing, kicking. three phases initial, elementary, mature

Sport-related movement (7-adulthood)- three phases; general, specific, specialized

ways to adapt to ability levels

leave out some of the skill parts ie ball on tee instead of pitching it. practice skills without external complications ie practice serving closer to net. break the skill down and build one part of the skill at a time.

Long term Athlete Development Model (LTAD) Stage 1

Stage 1: Active Start (0-6)- children need to be introduced to unstructured active play that incorporates a variety of body movement. children this age need to develop the ABCS of movement (agility, balance, coordination, speed). this helps build confidence, social skills, emotional control, and imagination while reducing stress and improving sleep. see as exercise exciting part of everyday life.

LTAD Stage 2

FUNdamental stage (F 6-8 M6-9)

children continue ABCS. Participate in a fun and challenging multi sport environment. activities focus on fun and formal competition is minimally introduced.

LTAD Stage 3

Learn to Train (F8-11 M 9-12)

children should be converting their fundamental movement skills into fundamental sport skills. Begin training accordingly to formalized methods but emphasis still on general sports skills. more time spent training and practising than competing. specialization should be avoided in most sports.

LTAD stage 4

Train to Train (F11-15 M12-16)

young athletes need to build on aerobic based and consolidate their sport specific skills. toward end of stage they need to focus on strength and anaerobic alactic energy system. Increased training hours to develop long term potential. high level skill development, tactics, and major fitness development are focus.

LTAD stage 5

Train to compete (F15-21 M16-23)

athletes should choose one or two sports to train in which they excel. success becomes focus. athletes need to commit to high volume high intensity training.

LTAD stage 6

Train to win (F 18+ M 19+)

further development of technical, tactical, and playing skills. modelling all possible aspects of competition in training 9-15 times per week.

LTAD stage 7

Active for life (any age)

athletes and participants enjoy lifelong participation of a variety of competitive and recreational opportunities. this stage can be entered at the age of 12+. some athletes are still envied in very high performance competition while others are pursuing sport and activity for health and fitness.

10 key factors in development

1. start with FUNdamentals

2. developmental age

3. physical mental cognitive and emotional development

4. specialization

5. teainability

6. periodization

7. competition planning

8. system alignment and integration

9. continuous improvement

10. excellence taker time

Motor learning

The process by which a person develops through a combination of physical and psychological factors, the ability to perform a task.

Root of any motor activity lies in the sensory and nervous systems. after gathering sensory info on what is happening the brain then draws on past experiences to decide why and how an action needs to be done. practice allows this to occur faster and with more efficiency.

two basic concepts:

automatic motor activity- reflexive in nature

controlled motor activity- based on circumstances and experience

principle of individual differences

individuals vary widely in terms of how quickly and easily they learn new skills

Stages of motor learning (Fitts and Posners stages of learning model)

Cognitive stage- basic understanding of task, learner commits relatively large errors and may need specific instruction on how to improve

Associative stage- learners begin to refine skill, develop awareness of mistakes, effort becomes more consistent

Autonomous stage- skill becomes automatic, can do highly refined aspects of the skill

Factors affecting skill development

-incorrect understanding of the movement

-poor physical abilities

-poor coordination

-incorrect application of power

-lack of concentration/movement

-inappropriate equipment, clothing, or footwear

-external factors like weather of noise

-fatigue

Three main components of movement

Preparation phase (preliminary movement/ backswing)- the position necessary to maximize the performance. includes backswing just before execution phase.

Execution phase (force production/ critical instant)- movement of body to generate momentum and force. focuses on good technique. includes critical instant of contact.

Follow-through phase- body continues through decelerates and re-establishes balance. key to accuracy, force, and being ready for play to continue.

Fundamental movements

stability- ie balance, stopping, bending

locomotion- ie running, jumping, skipping

Manipulation- ie throwing, catching, striking

The role of evaluation

Feedback: provides the learning with information on progress when learning to perform a skill

2 types:

KR- knowledge of results of an action. eg: seeing how far ball travels after each swing in golf

KP- knowledge of performance. eg: concerned with actual motion of the swing not the result

Effective feedback is positive, constructive, and specific.

Skill transferability

refers to the fact that skills learned and improved on in one sport or activity, can be applied or transferred to skills used in a different sport. ex: hand eye coordination used for serving in volleyball and catching in football

sport psychology

is the study of how people think, feel, and behave in sporting situations and the mental process that govern how athletes behave in training and competition.

In the zone

the ideal performance state is another term for being in the zone. a mental state that is conductive to top performance.

performance enhancing mental skills

self talk- thoughts that go through ur mind urging u to achieve success and staying a belief that you will succeed or convincing yourself that you will fail.

Imagery/visualization- the idea behind this in sport is that if an athlete can see themself succeed , this will be a powerful impetus for further success on game day itself. a calming scene or script that will help the athlete relax.

Relaxation/Arousal regulation- these techniques include breathing control, progressive relaxation( relax muscle groups) exercises, meditation, imagery, neurofeedback in which athletes learn to produce desirable brainwave patterns

Motivation- is required for anyone competing at any level of sport. Psychologists speak of “extrinsic” and “intrinsic” motivational factors. Extrinsic factors are material rewards like medals and money for which people can strive for. Intrinsic factors are self oriented goals such as the desire to master a skill or the love of competition.

Key to success is not just getting players motivated as a team and individually, but keeping them motivated throughout the season

Explain 3-4 characteristics that you think are essential for being a good coach

-motivating

-supportive

-on task and well planned

-friendly

5 main styles of coaching

1. Authoritarian- emphasis on discipline, in full control, spirit when winning but brings down team when losing, is feared or disliked

2. Business-like- logical approach and well planned, current on new technologies, expects top effort at all times, may set goals too high for some

3. Relational- focuses on relationships, gets along with athletes, well liked and sometimes taken advantage of, works well with athletes if similar temperament, may alienate intense athletes

4. Intense (emotional)- emphasizes winning above all, motivation is key, usually loud addressing players and refs, high anxiety often translated to players, may alienate easygoing athletes

5. Easy-goimg- casual approach, focus on fun, impression of not taking sport seriously, may not be prepared to push students, usually well liked

What is the difference between open and closed skills?

open skills are performed in an unpredictable environment and requires participants to adapt their movements to changing factors. Environmental conditions are in motion

Whereas closed skills are done in predictable environments. this allows players to plan movement in advance and environmental conditions are stationary

what is the difference between shaping and chaining

shaping is developing the shape of a skill gradually. skill demonstration includes only the most important actions. missing pieces are added gradually until whole skill is learned. Chaining can be forward where it starts at the beginning of the action and learn the first phase then the second and then chain them together, then add another phase and so on. Or it can be backwards where you start at the end of the skill and work backwards.