8_Childhood_I

University of Lethbridge

  • Course: KNES 3630: Childhood I

  • Instructor: Kelsey Kendellen, PhD

Lecture Objectives

  • Describe children’s bodily growth.

  • Describe the process of myelination and its importance for developmental change.

  • Discuss the importance of developing motor skills in childhood.

Overview of the Lifespan

Periods of Life

  • Prenatal Period: Conception to birth (9-months).

  • Infancy: First 2 years of life (first month is neonatal/newborn).

  • Childhood: 2 to 10-12 years old.

    • Early Childhood: up to age 5-6.

  • Adolescence: 10-12 to 18-22 years old.

  • Early Adulthood: Late teens/early 20s to 45 years old.

  • Middle & Late Adulthood:

    • Middle: 45-60 years old.

    • Late: 60 years to death.

Physical Growth

  • Period of Slow, Consistent Growth: Characterized as the calm before the storm of rapid growth.

Individual Differences in Height & Weight

  • Height Development: Growth patterns depicted for boys and girls.

  • Weight Development: Varied changes with age illustrated for boys and girls.

Changes in Body Shape & Structure

  • Transition from round and chubby to slender.

  • Loss of pot-bellied appearance.

  • Increase in muscle mass and decrease in 'baby fat'.

  • Size proportion between head and body becomes more adultlike.

The Nervous System & Brain: The Foundations of Development

Neuron Structure

  • Neuron: Basic cells of the nervous system.

    • Dendrites: Receive messages from other cells.

    • Axon: Carries messages to other neurons.

    • Neurotransmitters: Body's chemical messengers.

Early Neuronal Development

  • Infants are born with 100-200 billion neurons.

  • Neuron multiplication at an extraordinary rate before birth (250,000 neurons/min).

  • At birth, neurons have few connections; billions of new connections form in the first two years.

Synaptogenesis and Synaptic Pruning

Synaptogenesis

  • Formation of synapses, which are junctions between two neurons.

Synaptic Pruning

  • Babies are born with excess neurons; many new synapses are formed, but some are unnecessary.

  • Synaptic Pruning: Elimination of unused synapses caused by lack of stimulation.

Myelin and Brain Growth

  • After birth, neurons increase in size; axons become myelinated.

  • Myelin: Fatty substance that speeds nerve impulse transmission.

  • Myelination begins prenatally and extends for several years.

Brain Functional Reorganization

  • Neurons reposition by function:

    • Cerebral Cortex: Associated with higher-order processes (thinking, language, memory).

    • Subcortical Levels: Responsible for fundamental activities (breathing, heart rate).

Myelination & Its Implications

  • Myelination affects brain areas for language and attention, impacting cognitive and behavioral development.

  • Infants have shorter attention spans due to ongoing myelination of attention-related pathways.

Neuroplasticity

  • Brain's ability to change/adapt due to experience.

  • Neuroplasticity is greatest during the early years, allowing for recovery from brain damage.

Environmental Influences on Brain Development

  • Sensory experiences shape neuron size and interconnections.

  • Severe sensory neglect can lead to developmental delays.

Brain Lateralization

Specialization of Hemispheres

  • Left Hemisphere: Controls right side of the body; involved in analytic reasoning and language.

  • Right Hemisphere: Controls left side of the body; involved in emotions and visual-spatial processing.

  • Damage to one hemisphere can allow the other to compensate, particularly in children.

Motor Development in Childhood

Gross Motor Skills (Ages 3-5)

  • Children become skilled at activities like jumping, hopping, and running.

  • Skills refine with age, becoming smoother and more coordinated.

Fundamental Movement Skills (FMS)

  • FMS serve as the building blocks for further movement skills (running, jumping, swimming, etc).

  • Critical time for FMS development occurs during childhood.

FMS & Sport Specific Skills (FSS)

  • FSS are complex applications of FMS in sports contexts.

  • Proficiency in FMS is essential before learning FSS.

FMS Proficiency Amongst Children

  • Most children can master FMS by age 6; all can master them by ages 10-11.

  • Proficiency varies by region, with significant deficiencies observed.

Fine Motor Skills Development

  • Development progresses from clumsiness at age 3 to precision by age 5.

Research on Motor Skills

  • Linked to cognitive development, expressive and receptive language capabilities, and executive function.

Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)

  • Affects 5-6% of school-aged children; more prevalent in boys.

  • Characterized by clumsiness and difficulty with coordination.

  • Symptoms present in early childhood and persist over time.