EARLY CHILDHOOD physical growth and development, many

new motor skills are also the result of brain

Preschoolers’ Physical Development - This growth.
lesson will help you understand typical
physical development or, in other words, Genetic Makeup: Genetic inheritance plays
how children develop and refine motor a significant part in children’s physical
skills, during their preschool years. growth.
Nutrition: Young children require healthy,
Our bodies go through amazing
transformations when it comes to physical balanced diets that provide them with
growth and development. Moving the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients.
different parts of our bodies, sitting up, Cultural Diversity: Despite universal
rolling, crawling, walking, running, patterns in child development, there are
jumping, holding and manipulating different
variations in how and when children develop
items are all examples of ways in which we
use our bodies to explore our environment motor skills.
and learn about the world. Plan meaningfully: Purposefully plan
activities that allow you to observe how
Physical Development - Physical children are developing and refining their
development refers to advancements and motor skills.
refinements in children’s motor skills as
they practice their ability to use and gain Be sensitive to individual children’s needs:
control over their bodies. Remember that each child is different and
that sometimes children may not reach
Physical Growth and Appearance - Physical milestones as expected.
growth and appearance refers to the steady
increase in children’s height, weight, and Be responsive to families’ needs and
muscle tone. preferences: If a family approaches you and
shares concerns about their child’s
Motor Skills - are the muscle movements of development, encourage them to talk to a
our bodies to perform a certain task. pediatrician.
Gross Motor Skills - involve the use of large
muscles in the legs and arms as well as
general strength and stamina. Cognitive Development of Preschoolers

Fine Motor Skills - involve the use of small Cognitive development in preschoolers
muscles in the arms, hands, and fingers. Fine focuses on information processing, such as
motor skills are supported by children’s decision-making, attention, memory,
improvements in perception, or the ways in language abilities, learning, and perceptional
which children use their senses to skills. This lesson will help you understand
experience the world around them. typical cognitive development, or how
children develop thinking skills during the
Influences on Physical Growth preschool years.
Brain development: Even though motor During preschool, amazing changes happen
abilities in preschool emerge as a result of with children's thinking skills. Their
memories are becoming stronger, which experiences and interactions with others,
means they often remember surprising they learn to share, cooperate, resolve
details. They can share their ideas in new conflict, negotiate, and make friends.
and interesting ways. Their imaginations are
Tips To Encourage Your Preschoolers'
becoming a primary vehicle for play and
Cognitive Development
learning. They begin to compare, contrast,
organize, analyze, and come up with more  Allow for mistakes.
and more complex ways to solve problems,  Celebrate their successes.
which helps their math skills. This lesson  Encourage decision-making
will highlight cognitive developmental  Spend quality time playing together.
milestones for preschoolers.  Help them learn about friendship,
Milestone sharing, and empathy
 Invite your youngster to help with
Watching preschool children’s thinking simple chores.
skills develop as they encounter new people,
 Support problem-solving
places, and ideas is exciting. The chart
 Talk with your preschooler
below highlights cognitive development
during the preschool years. Keep in mind
that individual differences exist when it
Cognitive Activities For Preschoolers
comes to the specific age at which children
meet these milestones; each child is unique. As the parent, you can help increase your
child's cognitive learning by making
Play and Cognitive Development in Early
available fun and playful cognitive
Childhood
activities. No structured agenda or lesson
Play is not only a vital component of plan is required. Just plenty of time to play
cognitive development in early childhood alone and with others expanding their
but also allows parents to engage with their experiences.
children. The more your child plays, the
more they test their limits, explore
challenges and fine-tune their decision- Emotional Development for Preschoolers
making skills. Through social interaction
with adults and their peers, they begin Socio-Emotional Milestones - Both social
developing their language skills. and emotional development include
behaviors that represent children’s
How To Promote Cognitive Development In emotional growth and their ability to
Preschoolers successfully navigate their world through
interactions with adults and peers. Since
All types of play, even adult-guided play,
these skills develop together, this area of
are beneficial. When children are playing,
development is referred to as social-
they explore, think, create, experiment, learn
emotional development. Social-emotional
how things work, and solve problems. As a
milestones focus on children’s developing
matter of fact, children need lots of
abilities to regulate their attention, emotions,
unstructured play that helps build
confidence and resiliency. Through these
and behavior, and to form positive own emotions or feelings, as well as the
relationships with adults and peers. feelings and emotions of others.
Preschoolers and Socio-Emotional
Development
Relationships with others: Supporting Preschool Children’s Socio-
Emotional Development - Children learn
Preschoolers engage in pretend play with social-emotional skills in the context of their
friends and use words and sentences to relationships by watching, imitating, and
express their feelings and thoughts. Even responding to the social behaviors of others.
though they may still need adult support to Children also learn from the way others
share toys and materials with friends, they respond to their emotions.
improve on their own as time passes.
Healthy socio-emotional development is
Self-awareness: highly associated with responsive
caregiving. Responsive caregivers:
Preschoolers improve their ability to control
their bodies during different activities  Offer support and positive feedback
throughout the day. They learn to take turns  Provide stimulating materials
and have conversations with peers,  Play and engage with children
acknowledge and use their own names and  Share events and experiences
the names of others, and self-evaluate and  Follow the child’s lead
know when they made appropriate or  Support children’s interests and
inappropriate choices. learning
Emotional regulation:  Plan meaningful opportunities
throughout the day to help children
Preschoolers display a variety of emotions in practice and learn social skills.
different ways. For example, they may use
words to share their feelings such as “I am Mildred Parten’s 6 Stages of Play
upset”, they may match facial expressions to
happy, mad, sad, or they may laugh when 1. Unoccupied play - This type of play
excited. sets the foundation for the stages that
follow. It’s a period of time where
Independence: babies and young children take part
in unstructured play—mostly by
Preschoolers with a healthy sense of exploring materials around them
independence will follow predictable daily without any sort of agenda.
routines and activities in family child care, 2. Solitary play - This type of play
at home and outside the home, for example, occurs when little ones are exploring
at an outdoor playground. They may start on their own. Without anyone from
identifying a favorite friend and ask that the outside world manipulating their
friend to play or independently play with environment, children involved in
toys and materials. solitary play can explore freely.

Emotional Literacy - Emotional literacy is a 3. Onlooker play - Onlooker play

child’s ability to label and talk about their involves children watching others
 playing without joining in. Although Girls:
it might seem concerning that
children are not participating in play, Small lumps from behind the nipple may
people naturally learn from watching occur, which sometimes could be painful but
others. eventually, the pain goes away.
4. Parallel play -This type of play
involves children playing near or It is normal for one breast to develop more
beside one another without slowly than the other.
interacting directly. For example,
two children might be playing with Boys:
blocks on the rug without necessarily
building something together. May also have swelling on their chest but
tends to go away within a year or two.
5. Associative play - As children grow,
their interest in the object or game Genitals
itself becomes less so.
6. Cooperative play - As the name Girls:
suggests, this stage is about working
with and cooperating with others The vulva starts in increase a bit.
during play. This stage can be
difficult for children as they are still The vagina gets longer.
navigating how to share, take turns,
and problem solve. The uterus gets bigger.

Boys:

Subtle increase in testicle size

Penis and scrotum start to grow.

Semen may be released when he is awake or

even during sleep.

Hair Growth
LATE CHILDHOOD
Girls:
Physical Development - Rates of growth
generally slow during these years. Typically, Hair will start to grow in the armpits and
a child will gain about 4-6 pounds a year pubic areas.
and grow about 2-3 inches per year. They
also tend to slim down and gain muscle Boys:
strength and lung capacity making it
possible to engage in strenuous physical Hair will start to grow and become thicker.
activity for long periods of time.
New hair will also grow in the armpits and
Breast pubic area around the genitals.
May start developing chest and facial hair. out sexual content in television, movies, the
internet, and printed material.
Height - An average of 2 ½ inches in height
and an average of an inch I head Cognitive Development - Intermediate
circumference each year. school children greatly enjoy the cognitive
abilities that they can now utilize more
Weight - During late childhood, a child's effectively as compared to their thinking
weight on average, may be 2.3 to 3.2 skills during their primary years.
kilograms per year.
Cognitive Delay
Muscle - Weight increase was mainly due to
the increase in size of skeletal and muscular Cognitive delays may affect a child's
systems as well as several organs. intellectual functioning, interfering with
awareness and causing learning difficulties
Motor Skills that often become apparent after a child
begins school. Children with cognitive
- During this stage, movements or the delays may also have difficulty
muscles and bones become more communicating and playing with others.
coordinated. At the age of 10 or 11 years,
most children will have learned to play
sports like swimming, basketball, volleyball
and running. These physical skills become a Socio-Emotional Development - - At this
source of pleasure and great achievement to period of socio-emotional development,
the children. children are spending less time at home. The
bulk of their time is spent outside the home,
Insecurities either alone or with other children, rather
than with adults. Other children have
At this stage, children may become very already familiarized themselves with other
concerned about their physical appearance. children.
Girls especially, may become concerned
about their weight and decide to eat less. Understanding Self-Competence, Self-
Boys may become aware of their stature and Identity and Self-Concept
muscle size and strength. Since this stage
can bring about insecurities, parents and One of the most widely recognized
teachers must be very conscious about their characteristics of this period of development
dealing with these children. is the acquisition of feelings of self-
competence. This is what Erik Erikson
Sexual Development - Once children enter referred to when he described the
grade school (approximately ages 7–12), developmental task of middle childhood-the
their awareness of social rules increases and social crisis industry versus inferiority.
they may become more modest and want Industry refers to the drive to acquire new
more privacy, particularly around adults. skills and do meaningful "work".
Curiosity about adult sexual behavior also
tends to increases—particularly as puberty There are five types of peer status:
approaches—and children may begin to seek
  Popular - frequently nominated as changes and growth spurts, there is a large
the best friend and one who is rarely focus on the development of children’s
disliked by peers. brains from birth until 5 years of age.
 Average - receive an average number
of positive and negative nominations
from peers.
 Neglected - very seldom nominated Concentration
as best friend but I not rarely
disliked. School-age children are able to focus on a
 Rejected - infrequently nominated as task or topic. They begin to develop
a best friend but one who is also methods of ignoring distractions when
disliked by peers. focusing on a task.
 Controversial - frequently nominated
as a best friend but at the same time Memory
is disliked by peers.
Both long- and short-term memory skills
Family improve in school-age children. They can
recall important things from months or even
Family support at this stage is crucial. If years in the past and can recall things like
children do not find a supportive family where they put their jacket after outdoor
when they find their interest (e.g. in hobbies time.
like riding a bike or playing a musical
instrument) they can easily get frustrated. Attention span

School-age children can focus on important

tasks for longer periods. They begin to read
MIDDLE CHILDHOOD longer books, stay interested in topics at
school, and participate in long-term projects.
Physical Developmental Milestones -
Developmental milestones are a set of Influences and Factors Affecting School-
functional skills and abilities that children Age Growth
reach throughout their childhood. Educators
and pediatricians use these milestones to Environment
check that a child’s development is
progressing along the typical track. Each Living and learning in positive
milestone corresponds with an age or grade environments where a child feels valued,
level, but it is important to remember that all loved, and challenged, fosters positive
children develop at their own pace. It is growth and self-esteem. Factors such as
normal for a peer group to reach milestones pollution, lack of cleanliness, and lack of
at a variety of ages, even spanning a few stimulation can have negative effects on a
years in either direction. child’s physical development.

Brain Development Culture

A child’s brain develops rapidly during the

first few years of life. Because of these rapid
A family’s culture or religious views can Cognitive development is a unique process
influence the nutrition, activities, and is specific to each school-age child.
independence, and daily routines of a child. Sometimes school-age children may exhibit
cognitive difficulties that can affect their
Nutrition learning and behavior. Some potential red
flags for school-age cognitive development
A child who does not receive enough include:
nutrients can be at risk for delayed or
stunted growth. As well, a child who has an  Lacking an understanding of basic
excess of specific nutrients or food types can concepts such as colors, shapes,
be at risk for obesity. Both types of letters and numbers
malnutrition can lead to other risks, diseases,  Intense frustration by school related
and disorders. tasks and assignments
 Inability to follow the rules of games
Genetics or assignments
 Inability to stay focused and on-task
Certain physical attributes such as height
and body build can be a result of the Socio-Emotional Development - Young
family’s genetics. Genetics can also children tend to focus on themselves and the
influence the onset of puberty and world around them. They are working hard
developmental milestones, and certain to discover how their environment can help
diseases, disorders, and disabilities. them learn, develop, and imagine.

Socioeconomics Milestone

A family’s financial status can affect the Both social and emotional development
types of food that are available and include behaviors that represent children’s
accessible, as well as the types of activities a emotional growth and their ability to
child may be able to participate in. successfully navigate their world through
Additionally, families experiencing financial interactions with adults and peers.
issues may also not be able to provide
proper medical care.

Cognitive Development - School-age

children usually follow predictable patterns
in how they grow and learn. ADOLESCENCE

Milestone What is adolescence?

School-age children’s thinking skills Adolescence is a period of transition in

become increasingly sophisticated as they terms of physical, cognitive and socio-
encounter new people, place, and ideas. emotional changes. The period of
They develop the ability to learn in abstract adolescence begins with the biological
ways from books, art, movies, and changes of puberty. The specific ages for
experiences. this period vary from person-to-person:
  early adolescence characterized by hair capacity for ejaculation growth spurt
puberty may come at the ages of 11 voice change facial hair continuing growth
and 12 of pubic hair
 middle adolescence may meet
identity issues between the ages of Estrogen - Stimulates: triggers the beginning
14 and 16, of breast enlargement; the appearance of
 late adolescence marks the transition pubic hair; widening of hips; and menarche.
into adulthood at ages 17 and 20.
Cognitive Development - is a field of study
in neuroscience and psychology focusing on
a child's development in terms of
Puberty Changes information processing, conceptual
resources, perceptual skill, language
Hormone flooding during adolescence learning, and other aspects of the developed
causes acceleration known as growth spurts. adult brain and cognitive psychology.
Growth spurts include a change in body
dimensions (leg length, shoulder width, Piagets formal operational thinker
trunk length). A spurt in height is ascribed to
trunk growth rather than leg growth. Piaget formulated the theory of Formal
Operational Thinking which demonstrates
Growth Spurt how the cognitive capacity of the adolescent
allows him/her to go beyond the sensible
Girls - begin at age 10 reaching its peak at and concrete in order to dwell on what is
age 11 and-a-half abstract, hypothetical and possible. In this
realm of thought, the adolescent begins to
Boys - begin at age 12 reaching a peak at attain subtlety in thinking, entering the
age 14 and declining at age 15 and-a-half sphere of possibles and futuribles.

Factors Affecting Development Propositional thinking

making assertions outside visual evidence,
a.) secretion of gonadotropic hormones and stating what may be possible in things
by the anterior pituitary at the base not seen by the eyes.
of the brain near the geometric center
of the head; Relativistic thinking
b.) gonads which are the ovaries for subjectively making an opinion on facts
the female and the testis for the male involving one's own bias, prejudice of
are then stimulated by the distortion of facts- which may be either right
gonadotropic hormones, in turn or wrong
stimulating their own hormones;
c.) this stimulation causes the Real vs. possible
secretion of testosterone in the male examining a situation and exploring the
sex organ and of estrogen in the possible in terms of situations or solutions
female ovary.
A new capacity known as Hypothetic-
Testosteron - Stimulates: spermarche growth Deductive Reasoning emerges in the
of the testis, scrotum, and penis first pubic adolescent reasoning from general facts/
situations to a particular conclusion. The
school pendulum experiment is an example
of deducing from variables and generating
and recognizing a truth, expressed by the
transitional process of deriving a conclusion
from a hypothesis.

Over-Achiever

During adolescence, he/she can achieve very

high academic grades, in spite of not getting
IQ grades that are at the top 3 or 5 percent of
the bell curve. The case of overachievers is a
reminder that the Intelligence Quotient test
is not the only determinant in school
achievement

Underachiever

Individuals whose performance are below

the measured IQ levels are labelled
underachievers. It is a person and especially
a student who fails to achieve his or her
potential or does not do as well as expect.

2 types of underachiever

Withdrawn underachiever- more passive of

their overt behavior, submissive and docile.
Aggressive underachiever - tend to be a
talkative, if not disruptive and rebellious.