Chapter 4 - Birth and Physical Development During the First Three Years

Cephalocaudal principle

The principle that development proceeds in a head to tail direction

Proximodistal principle

The principle that development proceeds from center to outward. This is true for growth and motor development

Physical growth

Children will grow faster during their first 3 years than they ever will again

Central nervous system

Brain and the spinal cord

Brain stem

Helps with basic bodily functions such as breathing, heart rate, body temp, and the sleep-wake cycle

Cerebellum

Responsible for maintaining balance and muscle coordination. This grows the fastest during the first year of life

Cerebrum

The largest part of the brain. It is split into 2 halves, or hemispheres. Each hemisphere has specialized functions

Corpus callosum

The thick band of tissues that connects the hemispheres in the cerebrum. This band of tissues acts like a giant switchboard connecting the two hemispheres and allowing them to share information and coordinate commands

Occipital lobe

Visual processing

Parietal lobe

Sensory integration

Temporal lobe

Interprets smells and sounds and is involved in memory

Frontal lobe

Higher-order processes like inhibition and planning

Brain cells

Neurons and glial

Neurons

Send and receive information

Glial cells

Nourish and protect neurons

Integration

The neurons that control various groups of muscles coordinate their activities

Differentiation

Each neuron takes on a specific, specialized structure and function

Myelination

The process of coating neural pathways with a fatty substance called myelin, which enables faster communication between cells

Reflex behavior

An automatic, innate response to a stimulation

Plasticity

The malleability of the brain. Our brains are living, changeable organs that respond to environmental influences

The four senses that begin to develop in the womb

Touch, smell, taste, hearing

Gross motor skills

Involve the large muscle groups

Fine motor skills

Involve the small muscles

Visual guidance

The use of the eyes to guide the movements of the hands

Depth perception

The ability to perceive objects and surfaces’ three-dimensionality

Haptic perception

Around 6 months of age, babies begin to have the ability to acquire information about objects from touch

Ecological theory of perception

Locomotor development depends on infants’ increasing sensitivity to the interaction between their changing physical characteristics and various features of their environment

Dynamic systems theory

Motor development, rather than being genetically determined and largely automatic, is seen as a continuous process of interaction between the baby and the environment