An Introduction to Child Development

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An Introduction to Child Development

• Day Two Standish - HPW3C

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What to expect

• You are about to embark on a remarkable journey
  as you study how children think and grow from
  birth through age 6.
• Child development is an extraordinary thing to
  observe. Anyone who cares for or works with kids
  cannot help but be fascinated by the rapid growth
  and change that takes place from birth through
  young adulthood.
• Even though you dont have a child, you may find
  this process captivating because, after all, we
  were all kids once.

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What is Normal development?

• What do we mean when we use the term "normal?"
  For the most part, children all over the world
  develop in much the same way.
• Babies quickly become attached to their
  caregivers, begin to sit up at around six months,
  and are starting to walk right around their first
  birthdays.
• From the earliest days after birth when its seem
  like all they can really do is cry, sleep, and
  eat, the rapid change that happen during those
  first two years of life is astonishing.

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Question What Is a Developmental Milestone?

• Answer
• A developmental milestone is an ability that is
  achieved by most children by a certain age.
• Developmental milestones can involve physical,
  social, emotional, cognitive and communication
  skills such as walking, sharing with others,
  expressing emotions, recognizing familiar sounds
  and talking.

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Types of Developmental Milestones

• There are four basic categories for developmental
  milestones

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Physical Milestones

• Physical milestones involve both large-motor
  skills and fine-motor skills.
• The large-motor skills are usually the first to
  develop and include sitting up, standing,
  crawling and walking.
• Fine-motor skills involve precise movements such
  as grasping a spoon, holding a crayon, drawing
  shapes and picking up small objects.

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Cognitive Milestones

• Cognitive milestones are centered on a child's
  ability to think, learn and solve problems.
• An infant learning how to respond to facial
  expressions and a preschooler learning the
  alphabet are both examples of cognitive
  milestones.

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Social and Emotional Milestones

• Social and emotional milestones are centered on
  children gaining a better understanding of their
  own emotions and the emotions of others.
• These milestones also involve learning how to
  interact and play with other people.

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Communication Milestones

• Communication milestones involve both language
  and nonverbal communication.
• A one-year old learning how to say his first
  words and a five year old learning some of the
  basic rules of grammar are examples of important
  communication milestones.

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Normal versus Abnormal Whats the Difference?

• What about when development does not follow a
  normal path? While it is often referred to as
  abnormal development, it is important to remember
  that in many cases, it may involve things that
  are not particularly abnormal.
• Learning disabilities, emotional disorders, and
  behavioral problems can all present very real
  challenges, but these impairments do not mean
  that a child is "abnormal."
• In some cases, developmental problems may be a
  result of environmental changes. Death, divorce,
  and traumatic events can cause children to
  experience mood changes, misbehaviour, and
  anxiety.

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Here are Some things that you should know about
child development

• 1. Problems during the prenatal period can impact
  later childhood development. Some potential
  problems include prenatal exposure to teratogens
  such as drugs, toxins, and diseases.
• Genetic issues such as inherited diseases and
  chromosomal anomalies can also impact child
  development.

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• 2. The interaction between genes and
  environmental variables can influence how a child
  develops.
• For example, a child's genes might dictate that
  he grows to be quite tall, but if he does not
  receive proper nourishment as he is growing he
  might never achieve his full height.

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• 3. Researchers have found that parenting styles
  can influence child development outcomes.
• For example, children raised by authoritative
  parents tend to grow up to be happy and capable
  while those raised by permissive parents tend to
  have more problems with authority figures and are
  less successful in school.

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• 4. When it comes to physical development in early
  childhood, growth follows a directional pattern.
• The center of the body develops before the
  extremities, large muscles develop before small
  ones, and development follows a top-down process
  starting at the head and moving down to the toes.

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• 5. Baby talk, also known as infant-directed
  speech or motherese, has been shown to aid in the
  development of language.
• The use of simplified vocabulary, exaggerated
  vocalizations, and higher-pitched intonations
  helps babies learn words with greater speed and
  ease.

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• 6. The development of language occurs in four
  basic stages the babbling stage, the single word
  stage, the two word stage, and the multi-word
  stage.