Child Development Across Ages

Increased social awareness, understanding of autonomy, and initiative to learn new tasks, along with better impulse control, leading to improved relationship models and increased social support opportunities.

Stages of moral development in preschoolers, including preconventional stages focused on consequences (punishment/reward) and conventional stages like pleasing others.

Emotionally-available parents, adequate resources, good parenting skills, positive preschooler-parent interactions, and high-quality childcare promote positive development in preschoolers.

Emotionally unavailable parents, insufficient resources, poor parenting skills, negative preschooler-parent reactions, peer rejection, and poor quality childcare can negatively affect preschooler development.

A small correlation exists between a child's socioeconomic status and their executive function performance.

Play helps manage stress, improve brain development and structure (including executive function and language), and support positive relationships with caregivers.

Play is crucial for regulating stress responses. Without it or supportive relationships, toxic stress can disrupt executive function and the learning of social skills.

Preschoolers, according to Mahler, experience the consolidation of their individual identity and lay the groundwork for what would become emotional object constancy.

Studies show that the vocabulary gap between children from different socioeconomic backgrounds is not as large as previously thought. Variations in vocabulary exposure exist within communities, more consistently than across them.

Children's growth during school years (before puberty) is relatively stable, around 5 cm per year for height and 2-4 kg per year for weight.

Piaget's stage of cognitive development in school-age children, characterized by the ability to perform mental manipulations on concrete objects but not abstract concepts.

Gross motor skills (running, balance, coordination) and fine motor skills (hand-eye coordination, crafting) improve significantly during school age.

Children learn by observing others (especially positive role models) and how their actions may lead to certain outcomes.

Leads to better language and cognitive development, and more cooperation in 4.5-year-olds.

Higher quantity childcare is linked to more behavior problems; while higher quality is related better language and cognitive development.

AMAB students (assigned male at birth) are 4.5 times more likely to get expelled from preschool than other genders

Includes standing on one foot (1 second), hopping (3 times), walking stairs alternating feet, bouncing/throwing a ball, climbing, and riding a tricycle

Includes building a tower of 9-10 blocks, and copying a circle. Demonstrates bilateral handedness, which is the ability to use both hands equally effectively.

Children at this age live in the present and only focus on the present

Includes smooth running, standing on one foot (5 seconds), tandem walking (walking with feet in line), and hopping (5 times).

Includes pouring without spilling, favoring one hand, cutting a straight line, and drawing a recognizable human figure with at least 3 parts.

Children start to understand past tense during this stage, although their thinking is still focused primarily on the present.

Includes 8-10 words sentences, telling stories, using paragraphs, and expressing future tense, with no expected speech disfluencies

Kohlberg's Stage 4, also known as 'Authority Morality', emphasizes societal laws and norms as the basis for moral judgments.

Fowler's work suggests altruism, or prosocial behavior, develops in children from early recognition of others' needs, progressing to empathy and self-conscious emotions about consequences of their actions.

Aggression in school-aged children generally decreases from ages 6-7. Older children, in the 7-10 age range, are more likely to express verbal aggression. It's important to note rejected peers and poor academic performance can be associated with aggression.

Chinese parents often exert more control and involvement in their children's education, while American parents tend to emphasize autonomy. Studies suggest a positive correlation between high parental involvement in learning and academic success.

Studies indicate a link between increased screentime and a variety of negative health outcomes in children and adolescents, including adiposity, unhealthy diet, depressive symptoms, and lowered quality of life.

The transition to middle school marks a significant developmental shift in adolescence, marked by changes in social structures, academic expectations, and a greater sense of independence.

The transition into high school, and later, college, further emphasizes the need for navigating new social dynamics, increased academic demands, and potentially living away from home.

Schools vary significantly in terms of safety, academic quality, mentoring relationships, expectations, levels of competition, and emphasis on athletics versus academics.

Schools that best support teenagers prioritize smaller settings, strong connections between students and teachers/coaches, clear expectations, and later start times allowing for adequate sleep.

Many adolescents experience their first sexual encounter by the age of 17, influenced by factors like parental relationships, community dynamics, and opportunities for other engagement.

Education focused on healthy sexual behaviors includes promoting safe practices, responsible use of contraception, and protection against sexually transmitted infections.

Adolescence is a period of inconsistent birth control usage, highlighting the importance of comprehensive sexual education, access to resources, and open communication.

According to Piaget, adolescence marks the stage of formal operations, characterized by abstract reasoning, hypothetical thinking, and the ability to consider multiple perspectives.

Elkind's Adolescent Egocentrism describes a tendency for teens to overestimate their uniqueness, feel constantly under scrutiny, and struggle with making sound decisions.

During adolescence, moral reasoning progresses to Kohlberg's Stage 3 (Good Kid) where behavior is motivated by pleasing others, and Stage 4 (Law & Order), where adherence to rules and societal expectations is paramount.

A structured assessment of an adolescent's well-being, including their home life, education/employment, eating habits, activities, substance use, sexuality, suicidal thoughts, and safety.

Diverse neighborhoods can shield adolescents from racism and discrimination, fostering safer development. Strong Ethnic-Racial Identities (ERI) support this.

A strong, healthy parent-adolescent relationship is critical for overall adolescent well-being. It involves open communication and avoiding rigidity.

Parents and educators should avoid framing adolescence as a negative or risky period. Instead, emphasize its positive aspects like exploration and self-discovery.

Extensive research (20 years, 18,000 participants) showing a direct link between childhood adversity (ACEs) and long-term health issues, mental health problems, and behavioral outcomes.

ACEs include abuse (physical, emotional, sexual), neglect (physical, emotional), and household dysfunction (mental illness, substance abuse, violence).

Parents who experience chronic adversity may struggle to provide responsive care, impacting their children's attachment and development.

Positive stress is normal and promotes healthy development. Tolerable stress is manageable with support. Toxic stress is harmful and long-lasting, negatively impacting brain architecture and organ systems.

Factors that shield individuals from negative influences and adverse outcomes. These can be personal resources, social support, public programs, or policies.

The ability to adapt successfully to stress, trauma, and adversity. Resilient families protect themselves from breakdown and foster adaptation.

Resilience can manifest in different ways: dispositional (personality traits), relational (social connections), situational (adaptive skills), and philosophical (positive outlook).

Positive childhood experiences that protect against the negative effects of ACEs, including safety, predictability, and supportive relationships.

Parenting practices that foster resilience in children by promoting secure attachment, emotional availability, modeling competence, and providing structure.

Factors within a family that can negatively impact children's well-being, including parental conflict, mental health issues, substance abuse, and poverty.

Factors that make adolescents more vulnerable, including developmental changes (brain circuitry, identity formation), peer influences, and risky behaviors.

Family practices that can protect adolescents from risk factors, including family involvement, school connectedness, and setting clear expectations.