Middle Childhood Study Notes
Chapters 9 & 10: Middle Childhood
Dr. Kathleen O'Dell
Physical Development in Middle Childhood
During middle childhood, children's physical, cognitive, and social skills ascend to new heights.
Body Growth
Growth occurs at a slow, regular pace.
Girls are shorter and lighter than boys until about age 9, when this trend reverses.
The lower portion of the body grows the fastest during this period.
Bones lengthen and broaden.
Muscles become very flexible.
All permanent teeth appear.
Height Changes
Variations of 6 inches in height between children of the same age are common and well within normal ranges.
Average increase of 5 to 7 pounds per year for both boys and girls, characterized as slow but steady growth.
Influence of Nutrition and Health on Growth
Inadequate nutrition and diseases significantly affect growth:
Children in poorer areas, such as Calcutta, Hong Kong, and Rio de Janeiro, are generally smaller than their counterparts in affluent areas of the same cities.
Nutritional Benefits
Children receiving higher levels of nutrients have more energy and greater self-confidence than those with lower nutritional intake.
Childhood Obesity
More prevalent among children from low-income families, resulting from a mix of genetic and social factors as well as diet.
Defined as having a Body Mass Index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex.
Effects can last a lifetime.
BMI formula:
Obesity Statistics
The percentage of obesity in children aged 2 to 19:
Data represents a notable increase over decades, with statistics classified by age groups:
Ages 2-5
Ages 6-11
Ages 12-19
Keeping Children Fit
Importance of making exercise enjoyable.
Recommendations for increasing physical activity among children include:
Demonstrating active living as role models.
Focusing activity by physical level and motor skills.
Encouraging children to find activity partners.
Starting at an appropriate level to avoid overwhelming children.
Positive reinforcement over punishment: “Encourage - don’t force.”
Development of Play
Games with rules, including organized sports and invented games, aid in emotional and social development.
Rough-and-tumble play helps establish dominance hierarchy.
Notably, physical education programs within schools have been found insufficient.
Gross Motor Skills Development
Skill acquisition varies by age:
6-12 Years:
Girls excel in accuracy; boys in more forceful, less complex actions.
Specific skills include:
Throwing with weight shift and step.
Balancing on one foot with eyes closed.
Walking on a narrow beam.
Gripping objects with 12 pounds of pressure.
Engaging in rhythmic hopping patterns.
Jumping and running speed comparisons between genders.
Fine Motor Skills Development
Mastery of skills requiring fine motor coordination, such as:
Typing at a keyboard.
Drawing detailed picture during early and middle childhood.
Fastening buttons (around ages 6-7).
Writing in cursive (early and mid-childhood).
Tying shoes (around ages 6-7).
Using each hand independently by age 8.
Manipulating objects proficiently by ages 11-12.
Children with Special Needs
Sensory Difficulties
Types of Sensory Difficulties:
Visual: Difficulty seeing, blindness, partial sightedness.
Auditory: Hearing impairment affects both academic and social skills, potentially leading to speech difficulties.
Speech: Delays, selective mutism, etc.
Psychological Disorders
Disorders such as bipolar and depression can severely impair thinking and behaviors in children.
Rising Diagnosis of ADHD
Increase in diagnoses of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) over the past 20 years among boys and girls.
Cognitive Development in Middle Childhood
Cognitive development sees significant advancement, characterized by a transition into Piaget’s stages of development:
Concrete Operational Thought:
Attainments include:
Conservation: understanding that quantity does not change when its shape does (decentration and reversibility).
Classification and seriation (e.g., transitive inference).
Spatial reasoning through cognitive maps.
Limitations of Concrete Operational Thought
Operations are concrete, working poorly with abstract concepts.
Skills are acquired gradually; limited in the abstract and dependent on direct experiences.
Information Processing Model
The information processing theory includes:
Sensory Memory: Unattended information is lost.
Short-term Memory: Unrehearsed information is lost.
Long-term Memory: Retrieval of information, with some loss over time.
Self-Regulation and Working Memory
Attention becomes:
Selective, and more adaptable.
Working memory functions improve, leading to capable thinking and decreased processing times, although poverty can hinder task performance.
Language Development
Vocabulary typically increases by fourfold (averaging 20 new words per day).
Significant contributions from reading to precise word usage, double meanings, and metaphoric appreciation.
Mastery of complex grammatical constructions improves:
Passive voice, infinitive phrases.
Development of Reading Skills
Stages of reading development:
Stage 0: Birth to beginning of first grades (learning prerequisites).
Stage 1: First and second grades (phonological recoding).
Stage 2: Second to third grades (fluent reading but low comprehension).
Stage 3: Fourth to eighth grades (using reading for learning).
Stage 4: Eighth grade and beyond (understanding multiple perspectives in reading).
Reading and Brain Activation
Reading activates significant brain areas, observable via brain scans during reading tasks.
Bilingual Development
Over 20% of the U.S. population speaks a language other than English at home.
Bilingualism during childhood has a sensitive period, enhancing cognitive and language skills.
Bilingual education promotes learning engagement and easier second language acquisition.
Psychosocial Development in Middle Childhood
The “school years” bring noteworthy changes:
Increased industriousness and expanded social understanding.
Dependence on peers for emotional support, contrasting with shifts in parental relationships.
Erikson’s Theory: Industry vs. Inferiority
Industry: Positive self-concept, moral responsibility, pride in accomplishments, cooperative participation with peers.
Inferiority: Lack of confidence, pessimism towards abilities; negative feedback from others can exacerbate feelings of inferiority.
Self-Concept and Self-Esteem
Developmentally, children seek independence and begin to understand aspects of their identity, leading to increased self-awareness and, at times, self-criticism.
Role of peer influence becomes crucial, with children measuring their abilities against peers, leading to social acceptance shaping self-esteem.
Parenting Styles and Self-Esteem
Authoritative parenting is linked to the healthiest self-esteem.
Poor self-esteem can arise from controlling, disapproving or overly indulgent parenting practices.
Encouraging children to strive for meaningful goals fosters a beneficial self-esteem cycle.
Factors Affecting Resilience
Resilience is the ability to adapt to significant adversity and stress.
Resilience features: dynamic nature, positive adaptation to stress even in the face of significant adversity.
Cumulative Stress
Frequent minor stresses can accumulate over time, proving more harmful than isolated major stressors (e.g., repeated changes in caregivers).
Coping Strategies
Effective coping mechanisms can mitigate stress impacts, involving positive interpretation of family situations, development of friendships, and community involvement.
Types of Families Matter
The type of family structure presents unique influences:
Two-parent vs. single-parent, grandparents raising grandchildren, same-sex parents, foster care, or multi-generational households.
Impact of Risk and Protective Factors
Negative Risk Factors: Poverty and high conflict.
Positive Factors: A consistent, loving caregiver alongside stability in the child’s environment.
Peer Acceptance Categories
Types of Peer Acceptance:
Popular (prosocial and antisocial).
Rejected (aggressive and withdrawn).
Controversial (mixed votes).
Neglected (seldom mentioned).
Average (typical classroom votes).
Bullying and Victims
Bullying: Defined as a repetitive and systematic effort to harm another person through physical, verbal, or social attacks.
Bully-Victims: Individuals who both bully others and are victimized, often engaging in provocative behavior; they might elicit bullying through their actions.
Types of Bullying
Physical: Hitting, pinching, kicking.
Verbal: Teasing, taunting, name-calling.
Relational: Destroying peer relationships and acceptance.
Cyberbullying: Using electronic means to inflict harm.
Children's Moral Values
Middle childhood is a critical phase for moral development; children develop various moral skills including:
Making moral judgments.
Differentiating between universal principles and conventional norms.
Influences on Moral Development
Factors impacting moral development include peer culture, personal experiences, and empathy.
Advances in Moral Judgments
During this age, moral reasoning becomes more comprehensive, addressing psychological and physical harm, intentions over consequences.
Discussions regarding moral topics can enhance children's moral reflection and values.