Untitled Flashcard Set

Chapter 5: Physical
and Cognitive
Development in
Early Childhood

Physical Growth Patterns
Height and weight:
o 2-3 inches and 4-5 pounds per year
o By age 6: average 45 inches tall, 45 pounds
Body proportions:
More adult-like proportions
Head-to-body ratio decreases
Legs grow proportionally longer
Waist-to-hip definition increases
Sex differences:
Minor differences in height, weight, muscle mass
Example: At 3 years old, Elijah had a cylindrical body shape with less
definition between waist and hips. By 6, his body has a more hourglass-like
shape and his legs have grown proportionally longer compared to his torso.

Brain Development
Brain size: Reaches 90% of adult size by age 6
Neural development:
o Continued myelination
o Overproduction of dendrites and synapses
o Synaptic pruning based on experiences
Environmental influences:
o Stimulation enhances brain structure
o Socioeconomic factors affect development
o Caregiver warmth promotes advanced brain networks
Example: Five-year-old Maya has shown rapid improvements in memory
and problem-solving after starting preschool, demonstrating how
enriching experiences strengthen neural connections during this critical
period of brain development.

Lateralization and Handedness
Lateralization: Processing of functions in specific hemispheres
o Left hemisphere: Language, logic, reading
o Right hemisphere: Emotional expression, visual-spatial skills
Handedness:
o Preference established during early childhood
o 10% of population is left-handed
o Genetic and environmental influences
o Products often designed for right-handed users
Example: Though Alex's parents are both right-handed, he shows a strong
preference for using his left hand when drawing and eating. This
preference for left-handedness likely reflects genetic factors, as
handedness is hereditary but not completely predictable.

Nutrition and Eating Habits
Macronutrients needed:
o Carbohydrates: Energy for activity and brain
o Proteins: Growth, tissue repair, immune function
o Fats: Brain development, vitamin absorption
Healthy eating habits:
o Offer variety of nutritious foods
o Allow self-regulation of portions
o Model positive eating behaviors
o Avoid food battles and bribes
Challenges: Food deserts, limited access to fresh food
Example: Four-year-old Zara initially refused to try broccoli, but after
seeing her parents eat it regularly without pressure to try it herself, she
eventually became curious and now enjoys it with her dinner -
demonstrating how modeling and patience can establish healthy eating
habits.

Sleep in Early Childhood
Sleep needs: 10-13 hours per 24-hour period
Sleep patterns:
o Consistent bedtimes and wake times
o Napping decreases throughout this period
Sleep problems:
o Fear of dark/being alone
o Bad dreams (13% of children)
o Night terrors (1-6.5% of children)
Sleep importance: Associated with
o Cognitive functioning
o Emotional regulation
o Physical health
Example: Six-year-old Tyler gets 11 hours of sleep each night with a
consistent 8:00 pm bedtime routine. His parents notice he's more irritable
and has trouble focusing on days following disrupted sleep, showing the
immediate impact of sleep quality on daily functioning

Health Protection: Vaccinations
Importance:
o Prevent serious, potentially fatal diseases
o Protect children who cannot be vaccinated
o Contribute to community immunity
Common vaccines:
o Measles, mumps, rubella (MMR)
o Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (DTaP)
o Polio, hepatitis B
Safety: Overwhelming scientific consensus supports safety and
effectiveness
Example: Before widespread measles vaccination began in the 1960s,
there were approximately 750,000 cases annually in the US. With
vaccination, this decreased to fewer than 200 cases per year,
demonstrating vaccines' effectiveness in disease prevention.

Health Risks in Early Childhood
Leading health concerns:
o Unintentional injuries (accidents)
o Infectious diseases
o Environmental hazards
Risk factors vary by:
o Geographic location
o Socioeconomic status
o Access to healthcare
Preventive measures:
o Childproofing environments
o Adult supervision
o Regular medical check-ups
Example: After Hannah's parents installed cabinet locks, covered electrical
outlets, and secured furniture to walls, Hannah was able to explore her
environment more safely, reducing the risk of common household
accidents during this curious age.

Gross Motor Development
Ages 2-3 years:
o Climbs with increased confidence
o Ascends stairs with alternating feet
o Runs (initially stiff-legged)
Ages 3-4 years:
o Jumps with two feet together
o Pedals a tricycle
o Throws and catches a ball
Ages 4-5 years:
o Stands on one foot
o Walks across a balance beam
o Hops on one foot
Ages 5-6 years:
o Skips with coordination
o Performs somersaults
o Jumps rope
Example: Four-year-old Marco struggled
to hop on one foot last year but can now
do so easily and is learning to skip,
showing the progressive development
of gross motor coordination during early
childhood.

Fine Motor Development
Ages 2-3 years:
o Uses utensils like forks
o Turns doorknobs
o Manipulates simple toys
Ages 3-4 years:
o Cuts with scissors (with supervision)
o Strings beads
o Builds towers with blocks
Ages 4-5 years:
o Uses scissors with control
o Draws recognizable figures
o Begins to tie shoes
Ages 5-6 years:
o Writes letters and numbers
o Uses tools with precision
o Ties shoelaces independently
Example: At 5 years old, Laila
can use scissors to cut along a
curved line and is beginning to
write her name with proper
letter formation, demonstrating
the refinement of fine motor
skills that occurs during early
childhood.

Physical Actvity Guidlines
Ages 3-4 years:
o 3 hours daily of physical activity
o 1 hour of moderate-to-vigorous intensity
o Not restrained for more than 1 hour at a
time
Ages 5-6 years:
o 1 hour daily of moderate-to-vigorous
activity
o Vigorous activity 3 times weekly
o Limit sedentary behavior
Benefits:
o Motor skill development
o Bone and muscle strength
o Cognitive development
o Mental health
Example: A preschool that
incorporates both structured
physical activities (like obstacle
courses) and unstructured
outdoor play time helps
children meet activity
guidelines while developing
both fine and gross motor
skills.

Preoperational Stage (Piaget)
Age range: 2-7 years
Key characteristics:
o Symbolic representation
o Imaginative play
o Development of language
o Limited logical reasoning
Limitations:
o Egocentrism (difficulty seeing others' perspectives)
o Centration (focus on one aspect at a time)
o Inability to conserve (understand unchanging quantities)
Example: When shown the same amount of water poured from a short,
wide glass into a tall, narrow glass, 4-year-old Olivia insists the taller glass
contains more water, demonstrating centration as she focuses solely on
the height of the liquid

Theory of Mind Development
Definition: Understanding that others have different thoughts, beliefs,
and knowledge than oneself
False belief tasks: Test children's understanding that others can hold
incorrect beliefs
Three-Mountains task: Assesses the ability to take another's visual
perspective
Development timeline:
o Limited understanding at age 3 E
o merging understanding at 4-5 years
o Well-established by age 6
Example: In a false-belief task, 5-year-old Noah correctly predicts that his
friend will look for a toy where he last saw it (in the blue box), even though
Noah knows it was moved to the red box when his friend wasn't looking -
showing Noah understands others have different information than he
does.

Information Processing Theory
Components:
o Attention: Focusing on specific stimuli
o Memory: Encoding, storing, and retrieving information
o Executive function: Planning, organizing, decision making
Development during early childhood:
o Increasing attentional control
o Improved working memory
o Enhanced information processing speed
o Development of inhibitory control
Example: When playing a memory matching card game, 6-year-old Aiden
can remember more card locations and strategize better than when he
was 3, demonstrating improvements in working memory, attention, and
executive function

Memory Development
Autobiographical memory:
o Memories of personal experiences
o Develops during early childhood
o Influenced by caregiver conversations about past
Memory strategies:
o Recognition develops before recall
o Rehearsal strategies emerge
o Organizational strategies begin
Improvements with age:
o Increased capacity
o Better retention
o More efficient retrieval
Example: When Emma's parents regularly discuss past family events with
her, asking "Remember when we went to the zoo and saw the
elephants?", they help strengthen her autobiographical memory and
narrative skills

Sociocultural Influences on Cognition
Vygotsky's key concepts:
o Learning occurs through social interaction
o Culture shapes cognitive development
o Adults and peers facilitate learning
Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD):
o Gap between current ability and potential
o Skills that can be achieved with guidance
Scaffolding:
o Temporary support during learning
o Gradually removed as skills improve
Example: A teacher helps a 4-year-old complete a puzzle by first
demonstrating, then guiding his hand, then offering verbal cues, and
eventually just encouragement - gradually reducing support as the child's
ability increases, demonstrating scaffolding within his zone of proximal
development

Learning by Observing and Pitching In
Rogoff's perspective:
o Children learn through observation and participation
o Valued in many Indigenous communities
o Children contribute to household and community activities
o Learning occurs through guided participation
Contrasts with:
o Western formal education models
o Isolated, adult-directed learning
Example: Four-year-old Maya learns to make tortillas by watching her
grandmother, starting with small tasks like mixing ingredients, then
gradually taking on more complex steps - learning through observation,
participation, and cultural practice rather than formal instruction.Learning by Observing and Pitching In
Rogoff's perspective:
o Children learn through observation and participation
o Valued in many Indigenous communities
o Children contribute to household and community activities
o Learning occurs through guided participation
Contrasts with:
o Western formal education models
o Isolated, adult-directed learning
Example: Four-year-old Maya learns to make tortillas by watching her
grandmother, starting with small tasks like mixing ingredients, then
gradually taking on more complex steps - learning through observation,
participation, and cultural practice rather than formal instruction.

Language Features
Phonology: Sound system of language
o Children master most speech sounds by age 6
Morphology: Word structure and formation
o Understanding prefixes, suffixes, word roots
Semantics: Meaning of words and phrases
o Vocabulary expands dramatically (10,000+ words by age 5)
Syntax: Rules for constructing sentences
o Increasingly complex sentence structures
Pragmatics: Social use of language
o Adjusting communication for different contexts
Example: Five-year-old Sasha not only knows more words than when she
was three, but also uses more complex sentence structures, understands
double meanings in jokes, and changes her tone when speaking to adults
versus peers.Language Features
Phonology: Sound system of language
o Children master most speech sounds by age 6
Morphology: Word structure and formation
o Understanding prefixes, suffixes, word roots
Semantics: Meaning of words and phrases
o Vocabulary expands dramatically (10,000+ words by age 5)
Syntax: Rules for constructing sentences
o Increasingly complex sentence structures
Pragmatics: Social use of language
o Adjusting communication for different contexts
Example: Five-year-old Sasha not only knows more words than when she
was three, but also uses more complex sentence structures, understands
double meanings in jokes, and changes her tone when speaking to adults
versus peers.

Language Development Milestones
3 years:
o Uses 3-5 word sentences
o Follows 2-3 step directions
o Speech mostly understandable
4 years:
o Uses complex sentences
o Tells simple stories
o Asks numerous questions
5-6 years:
o Speaks fluently with few grammatical errors
o Uses the future tense
o Understands 10,000+ words
o Engages in extended conversations
Example: Three-year-old Leo
might say "Me go park now,"
while at five he says "I want
to go to the park after lunch
because I want to try the
new swing," showing
dramatic growth in
vocabulary, grammar, and
complex sentence
construction.

Environmental Influences on Language
Language exposure:
o Quantity of words heard
o Quality of language interactions
o Child-directed speech
Socioeconomic factors:
o Access to books and educational resources
o Parental education levels
o Time available for verbal interaction
Interventions:
o Early literacy programs
o High-quality preschool education
o Parent education programs
Example: Children whose
caregivers regularly read to
them, ask open-ended
questions, and engage in rich
conversations typically develop
larger vocabularies and
stronger narrative skills than
those with fewer language-rich
interactions

Language in Diverse Populations
Deaf and hard-of-hearing children:
o Sign language provides complete language system
o Early exposure crucial for language development
o May use cochlear implants or hearing aids
Multilingual development:
o Similar timeline to monolingual development
o Possible cognitive advantages
o May initially have smaller vocabulary in each language
o Code-switching between languages
Example: Six-year-old Miguel, who has been exposed to both English and
Spanish since birth, easily switches between languages depending on
who he's speaking with, and shows stronger executive function skills
compared to his monolingual peers.Language in Diverse Populations
Deaf and hard-of-hearing children:
o Sign language provides complete language system
o Early exposure crucial for language development
o May use cochlear implants or hearing aids
Multilingual development:
o Similar timeline to monolingual development
o Possible cognitive advantages
o May initially have smaller vocabulary in each language
o Code-switching between languages
Example: Six-year-old Miguel, who has been exposed to both English and
Spanish since birth, easily switches between languages depending on
who he's speaking with, and shows stronger executive function skills
compared to his monolingual peers.

Early Literacy Development
Emergent literacy skills:
o Print awareness (understanding text represents language)
o Phonological awareness (recognizing sounds in words)
o Letter knowledge
o Vocabulary development
Supporting literacy:
o Reading to children regularly
o Providing writing materials
o Creating print-rich environments
o Engaging in language games
Example: Before Amara can read independently, she shows emergent
literacy by "reading" a familiar storybook to her teddy bear, turning pages
at appropriate times and retelling the story based on the pictures and her
memory of being read to

Types of Play (Parten)
Unoccupied play: Random movements, observation (birth-3 months)
Solitary play: Playing alone, focused (3+ months)
Onlooker play: Watching others, not participating (2.5+ years)
Parallel play: Playing next to others, similar activities (3.5+ years)
Associative play: Interacting while playing, shared materials (4+ years)
Cooperative play: Organized play with roles and rules (4.5+ years)
Example: In a preschool classroom, you might observe four-year-olds
engaged in associative play as they build with blocks side by side,
occasionally sharing pieces and commenting on each other's structures,
but each creating their own distinct building.

Play and Development
Physical development:
o Gross and fine motor skills
o Coordination and balance
o Strength and endurance
Cognitive development:
o Problem-solving
o Creativity and imagination
o Language development
Social-emotional development:
o Emotional regulation
o Perspective-taking
o Communication skills
o Conflict resolution
Example: During pretend
play, 5-year-old Jamal takes
on the role of store clerk,
using math concepts to
"calculate" prices, practicing
fine motor skills as he "writes"
receipts, and developing
social skills as he negotiates
roles with playmates.

Variations in Play
Cultural differences:
o Emphasis on different types of play
(physical, imaginative)
o Indoor vs. outdoor play preferences
o Structured vs. unstructured play
Socioeconomic influences:
o Access to play spaces and materials
o Time available for play
o Neighborhood safety
Individual differences:
o Gender socialization
o Physical abilities
o Temperament and preferences
Example: In some Nordic
countries, preschool children
spend several hours outdoors daily
regardless of weather, while
children in urban environments
with limited outdoor access may
have more experience with indoor
structured activities -
demonstrating how culture and
environment shape play
experiences.

The Importance of Play
Benefits:
o Natural context for learning
o Stress reduction
o Development of social skills
o Application of cognitive concepts
o Physical activity and health
Challenges:
o Decreasing time for play in schools
o Screen time replacing active play
o Inequitable access to play opportunities
Play as a right: Recognized by the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child
Example: When kindergarten
curricula include substantial
time for self-directed play,
children show better self-
regulation, stronger problem-
solving skills, and more positive
attitudes toward learning than
when their day is dominated
by academic instruction