PRED 2011 - 1 Physical Dev. of I&T

Physical Development of Infants
and Toddlers
The cephalocaudal trend is the postnatal growth
from conception to 5 months when the head grows
more than the body. This cephalocaudal trend of
growth that applies to the development of the fetus also
applies in the first months after birth. Infants learn to use
their limbs before their lower limbs. The same pattern
occurs in the head area because the top parts of the head
-the eyes and the brain- grow faster than lower parts such
as the jaw
The proximodistal trend is the pre-natal growth

from 5 months to birth when the fetus grows from the
inside of body outwards. This applies in the first
months after birth as shown in the maturation muscular
control of the trunk and arms, followed by that of the
hands and fingers. When referring to motor development,
the proximodistal trend refers to development of motor
skills from the center of body outward.
Height and Weight
 Its normal for newborn babies to drop 5 to 10 percent of
their body weight within a couple of weeks of birth. That
is due to baby's adjustment to neonatal feeding. Once
they adjust to sucking, swallowing and digesting, they
grow rapidly.
 Breastfeed babies are typically heavier than bottle-fed
babies through the first six months. After six months,
breastfed babies usually weigh less than bottle-fed
babies.
 In general, an infant's length increases by about 30
percent in the first five months.
 A baby's weight usually triples during the first year but
slows down in the second year of life.
 Low percentage are not a cause for alarm as long infants
Brain Development
 Among the most dramatic changes in the brain in the first two
years of life are the spreading connections of dendrites to each
other. Remember neurons, dendrites, axon, synapses?
 Myelination or myelinization, the process by which the axons
are covered and insulated by layers of fat cells, begins prenatally
and continues after birth. The process of myelination myelinization
increases the speed at which information travels through the
nervous system.
 At birth, the newborn's brain is about 25% of its adult weight.
By the second birthday, the brain is about 75% of its adult weight.
• Shortly after birth, a baby's brain produces trillions more
connections between neurons than it can possibly use. The brain
eliminates connections that are seldom or never used (Santrock,
2002). The infant's brain is literally waiting for experiences to
determine how connections are made.
Motor development
Along this aspect of motor development, infants and
toddlers begin from reflexes, to gross motor skills and fine
motor skills.
Reflexes
 The newborn has some basic reflexes which are, of course
automatic, and serve as survival mechanisms before they
have the opportunity to learn. Many reflexes which are
present at birth will generally subside within a few months
as the baby grows and matures.
 There are many different reflexes. Some of the most
common reflexes that babies have are:
Sucking Reflex: The sucking reflex is initiated
when something touches the roof of an infant's
mouth. Infants have a strong sucking reflex which
helps to ensure they can latch into a bottle or
breast. The sucking reflex is very strong in some
infants and they may need to suck on a pacifier for
comfort.
Rooting Reflex: The rooting reflex is most evident

when an infant's cheek is stroked. The baby
responds by turning his or her head in the direction
of the touch and opening their mouth for feeding.
Gripping Reflex: Babies will grasp anything that

is placed in their palm. The strength of this grip is
strong, and most babies can support their entire
weight in their grip.
Curling Reflex: When the inner sole of a baby's
foot is stroked, the infant responds by curling his or
her toes. When the outer sole of a baby's foot is
stroked, the infant will respond by spreading out
their toes.
Startle/Moro Reflex: Infants will respond to sudden

sounds or movements by throwing their arms and legs
out, and throwing their heads back. Most infants will
usually cry when startled and proceed to pull their
limbs back into their bodies.
Galant Reflex: The Galant reflex is shown when an

infant's middle or lower back is stroked next to the
spinal cord. The baby will respond by curving his or
her body toward the side which is being stroked.
Tonic Neck Reflex: The tonic neck reflex is
demonstrated in infants who are placed on their
abdomens. Whichever side the child's head is facing, the
limbs on that side will straighten, while the opposite limbs
will curl.
Gross motor skills

It is always a source of
excitement for parents to
witness dramatic changes in the
infant's first year of life. This
dramatic motor development is
shown in babies unable to even
lift their heads to being able to
grab things off the cabinet, to
chase the ball and to walk away
Fine Motor Skills
•Fine motor skills, are skills that involve a refined
use of the small muscles controlling the hand, fingers,
and thumb. The development of these skills allows
one to be able to complete tasks such as writing,
drawing, and buttoning.
The ability to exhibit fine motor skills involve
activities that involve precise eye-hand coordination.
The development of reaching and grasping becomes
more refined during the first two years of life. Initially,
infants show only crude shoulder and elbow
movements, but later they show wrist movements,
hand rotation and coordination.
Can newborn’s, see?
The newborn's vision is about 10 to 30 times lower than normal
adult vision. By 6 months of age, vision becomes better and by the
first birthday, the infant's vision approximates that of an adult.
(Banks & Salapatek, 1983 cited by Santrock, 2002
Can newborns hear?

The sense of hearing in an infant develops much before the birth of
the baby. When in the womb, the baby hears his/ her mother's
heartbeats, the grumbling of his/her stomach, the mother's voice and
music. How soothing it must have been for you to listen to your
mother's lullaby.
Can newborns differentiate odors?
In an experiment conducted by MacFarlane (1975) "young infants who
were breastfed showed a clear preference for smelling their mother's
breast pad when they were 6 days old. This preference did not show
when the babies were only two days old. This shows that it requires
several days of experience to recognize their mother's breast pad
odor."
Do infants relate information through several senses? In short, are infants
capable of intermodal perception?
* Intermodal perception is the ability to relate, connect and integrate information

about two or more sensory modalities such as vision and hearing.
*In a study conducted by Spelke and Owsley (1979), it was found out that as early
as at 3 1/2 months old, infants looked more at their mother when they also heard
her voice and longer at their father when they also heard his voice.
*This capacity for intermodal perception or ability to connect information coming
through various modes gets sharpened considerably through experience.
Can newborns feel pain? Do they respond to touch?
* They do feel pain. Newborn males show a higher level of cortisol (an
indicator of stress) after a circumcision than prior to the surgery
(Taddio, et al, 1997 cited by Santrock, 2002).
* Babies respond to touch. In the earlier part of this Module on motor
development, you learned that a newborn automatically sucks an
object placed in his/her mouth, a touch of the cheek makes the
newborn turn his/her head toward the side that was touched in an
apparent effort to find something to suck.
Can newborns distinguish the different tastes?

* In a study conducted with babies only two hours old, babies
made different facial expressions when they tasted sweet, sour,
and bitter solutions (Rosentein and Oster, 1988, cited by Santrock,
2002). * * *When saccharin was added to the amniotic fluid of a
near term fetus, increased swallowing was observed.
*This indicates that sensitivity to taste might be present before
birth.

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Physical Development of Infants

The proximodistal trend is the pre-natal growth

Rooting Reflex: The rooting reflex is most evident

Gripping Reflex: Babies will grasp anything that

Startle/Moro Reflex: Infants will respond to sudden

Galant Reflex: The Galant reflex is shown when an

Gross motor skills

Can newborns hear?

* Intermodal perception is the ability to relate, connect and integrate information

Can newborns distinguish the different tastes?

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