child_development

Physical Development

• Preschool (3-6 years)

  • Accidents and Safety:

    • Greatest risk is accidents.

    • Children before age 10 are twice as likely to die from an injury than from illness.

    • In the U.S., 1 in 3 children has a chance each year of receiving an injury that requires medical attention.

  • Brain Development:

    • Rapid brain growth occurs during this period.

    • Corpus callosum thickens, and myelin production increases.

    • Lateralization and tandem processing of brain functions develop.

• Pre-adolescence (6-12 years):

  • Development is steadier compared to earlier childhood.

  • Average growth is 2-3 inches per year and 5-7 pounds annually.

  • Role of Nutrition:

    • Better nutrition leads to better outcomes.

    • Childhood obesity is a concern due to low exercise levels in many children.

Language Development

• Key Features:

  • Whole object constraint and language explosion.

  • Overextension (using a word too broadly) and underextension (using a word too narrowly).

  • Pragmatics: Ability to utilize knowledge and context to understand language.

  • Nativism: Suggests special innate abilities for language, distinct from other learning forms.

• Fundamentals of Language:

  • Phonology: Study of sounds.

  • Morphemes: Smallest sound units with meaning.

  • Semantics: Basic rules of a language.

• Production vs. Comprehension:

  • Production involves producing words; comprehension involves understanding them.

• Prelinguistic Communication:

  • Uses sounds, facial expressions, gestures, and imitation before words are formed.

• First Sentences:

  • By 18 months, children begin linking words into two-word combinations (noun + verb).

  • Early sentences often consist of comments or observations.

  • Learning Theory Approach:

    • Language acquisition relates to reinforcement and conditioning.

    • Even nonsense words can be learned.

Cognitive Development (3-6 years)

• Piaget’s Preoperational Stage (ages 2-7):

  • Operations involve organized, logical thought processes with symbolic function being key.

  • Centration: The focus on one aspect while ignoring others, leading to errors in judgment (e.g., quantity does not equal appearance).

• Conservation: Understanding that quantity remains the same despite physical changes in shape or appearance.

• Information Processing Approach:

  • Autobiographical memory improves after age 3.

  • Memories may be oversimplified due to scripts and recollection inaccuracies.

• Vygotsky’s View:

  • Development results from social interactions, emphasizing guided participation and collaboration.

  • Cultural factors influence cognitive development, such as gender differences in learning.

  • Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): The level at which a child can perform tasks with help.

  • Scaffolding: Support given to children during the learning process.

Prenatal Development

• Germinal Stage (Weeks 1-2):

  • Begins from conception to implantation as a zygote, with 50-75% not implanting.

• Embryonic Stage (Weeks 2-8):

  • Embryo attachment occurs, and placenta formation begins.

  • Growth patterns include cephalocaudal (head to toe) and proximodistal (inside to out).

• Fetal Stage (Weeks 9-40):

  • Brain development starts in the embryonic stage, completing neurogenesis by age five months.

  • Factors negatively affecting prenatal development include teratogens, whose risks depend on time, exposure, and genetics.

  • Alcohol exposure can lead to neuro-cognitive and behavioral issues (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, FASD).

Nature vs. Nurture

• Nature: Refers to heredity and genetic traits.

• Nurture: Refers to environmental influences and upbringing (Bronfenbrenner).

• Continuous vs Discontinuous Development:

  • Continuous: Development is cumulative, gradually evolving.

  • Discontinuous: Recognizes distinct stages from infancy to adulthood.

• Research Types:

  • Descriptive, correlational (r = -1 to 1), and experimental designs with manipulation of independent variables.

• Research Over Time:

  • Cross-sectional, longitudinal, and sequential research methodologies.

Memory Development

• Infantile Amnesia:

  • Children can retain learned information, like mobile movement actions, from as early as three months.

• Neuroscience of Memory:

  • Explicit Memory: Actively recalled information.

  • Implicit Memory: Unconscious memory used in daily functioning.

  • Semantic Memory: Memory of factual information develops at varying rates.

Cognition in Middle Childhood

• Piaget’s Concrete Operational Thought (Ages 7-12):

  • Involves active use of logic and focus on multiple aspects of an object.

  • Decentering: Ability to focus on more than one aspect of an object.

  • Reversibility: Understanding that objects can change and return to their original state.

• Criticism of Piaget:

  • Underestimated cognitive abilities of younger children.

• Information Processing Perspective:

  • Improvement in information handling, storage, and retrieval methods.

  • Concepts of metamemory and understanding of memory processes.

• Vygotsky’s Approach:

  • Advocates for active learning and collaborative efforts to enhance cognitive development.

Cognitive Development Theories

• Piaget’s Approach:

  • Involves schemata, assimilation, accommodation, and stage theory of cognitive development.

• Motor Development in Infancy:

  • Important reflexes include grasp reflex, moro reflex, and rooting reflex, among others.

  • Key milestones are rolling over, grasping, sitting support, and walking.

  • Dynamic System Theory:

    • Asserts that motor skills development involves a combination of perceptual, cognitive, and motivational aspects.

• Nutrition:

  • Non-organic failure to thrive is a concern; proper feeding is essential for growth.

  • Weaning from breastfeeding typically occurs by preschool age.

Trauma Informed Care

• Understanding Trauma:

  • Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) can lead to health issues, including abuse and neglect.

• Trauma Informed Practices:

  • Core principles include recognizing, responding, and resisting the effects of trauma for improved outcomes.

Language Development

• Nativism:

  • Proposed by Noam Chomsky, indicating the existence of universal grammar and a language acquisition device (LAD).

• Interactionist Approach:

  • Combines innate predispositions with environmental influences.

• Infant-Directed Speech:

  • Characteristics that capture children’s attention and enhance vocabulary.

• Language in Preschool Years:

  • Fast mapping and syntax development where children learn how to form sentences.

  • Differentiation of private vs social speech, with private speech serving to guide behavior.

• Gender Differences:

  • Observations show girls and boys may have varying language exposure and usage patterns.