Child Development Milestones Quiz

Preschool-Aged Child Human Growth and Development

• This presentation covers the development of preschool-aged children (ages 3-5).
• Key aspects include: definitions, physical, emotional, social & cognitive development, family influences, theoretical perspectives (Piaget, Vygotsky, Montessori), and health and safety.

Terms

• Cooperative play: Children playing and interacting together.
• Egocentrism: A child's belief that everyone thinks the same as they do.
• Imitation: Learning by copying others.
• Incidental learning: Unplanned learning.
• Initiative: Motivation to accomplish more.
• Manipulate: To work with an object using hands.
• Moral development: Learning to base behaviour on right and wrong.
• Passive observing: Watching another's actions without responding.
• Peer: Someone close to one’s same age.
• Permanent teeth: Teeth not naturally replaced.
• Preschooler: A child between the ages of three and five.
• Reaction time: Time to respond to a stimulus.
• Self-concept: How a person views themselves.
• Self-confidence: Belief in one's own abilities.
• Separation anxiety: Fear of being away from parents, caregivers, or familiar environments.
• Trial and error learning: Learning through trying various solutions.

Physical Development

• Height: Average increase of 2.5-3 inches per year.
• Weight: Average gain of 4-5 pounds per year.
• Gross motor skills: Activities like ball tossing, hopping, skipping, running, jumping, climbing, and walking.
• Fine motor skills: Skills such as stacking blocks, using scissors, drawing, dressing, using utensils, and buttoning.

Emotional Development

• Three years: Cooperative, responsive to praise, imaginary friends, fear.
• Four years: Self-centered, seeks approval, active imagination.
• Five years: Views themselves as a whole person, fears.

Social Development

• Three years: Share, eager to please, cooperative play.
• Four years: Forms friendships, sharing toys, some conflict.
• Five years: Outgoing, talkative, plays in groups, social acceptance.

Cognitive Development

• Three years: Uses longer sentences(approx 900 words), follows two-part directions, sorts by shape and color.
• Four years: Speaks in full sentences (5-6 words), creates stories, asks many questions, understands three-step instructions, knows colours and shapes.
• Five years: Speaks in complete sentences (6-8 words), understands about 13,000 words, learns alphabet, recalls parts of a story, counts up to ten, sorts by size.

Family Influences

• Close ties to family unit.
• Desire to feel important within the family.

Societal Influences

• Play groups.
• Mother’s day out programs.
• Friends
• Places of worship.

Piaget's Theory

• Children in the preoperational stage (ages 2-7) think in terms of their own activities.
• Make-believe play.
• Use of symbols.
• Egocentric viewpoint.
• Limited focus.

Vygotsky's Theory

• Children are individuals who learn differently based on experiences.
• Social environment.
• Small groups for learning.
• Language.
• Parents, teachers, and peers.

Montessori's Theory

• Children learn best through prepared learning environments.
• Strengthen muscles.
• Prepare a child's mind and body.
• Encourage independence.

Special Needs Children

• Encourage independence by involving children in family and school life.
• Offer love and support.

Health and Safety of Preschoolers

• Health: Involve children in meal planning and preparation (stirring, mixing, setting table).
• Nutrition: Teaching about food groups and creating healthy snacks.
• Safety: Bicycles- always wear helmet, Traffic- look both ways before crossing, Playgrounds- keep a safe distance from swings, go feet-first on slides and hold onto rails.

Learning

• Provide hands-on learning experiences.
• Encourage reading.
• Express emotions through art and music (clay, crayons, markers, paint, finger play).

Principles of Human Growth and Development - Infancy (0-1 month)

• Physical: Reflexes (moro, rooting, grasping, stepping), swallowing, sucking, coughing, yawning, blinking, elimination, holds hands in fist, attempts to track objects.
• Cognitive: Eyes may appear crossed, attempts to track objects.
• Language: Crying and fussing, reacting to loud noises, shows preference for certain sounds (voices).
• Social-emotional: Short periods of alertness, sleeps up to 19 hrs a day, enjoys being held, establishes bond with caregivers.
• Additional info: May enjoy bath, express displeasure when clothes are pulled over head; enjoys being swaddled; enjoys face to face position.
• What to do: Read baby’s cues, eye contact, talk and sing, recognize and show delight, show simple pictures and have them track, etc.
• Physical: Stepping reflexes disappear, rooting & sucking reflexes developed.
• Cognitive: Continues to gaze, exhibits some sense of color/shape/texture, does not search for object out of sight, watches hands.
• Language: Babbles/coos, coos single vowel sounds, laughs, gurgles.
• Social-emotional: Smiles, plays with hands and toes, needs familiar routines, reaches for objects, stops crying when caregiver is near, enjoys being held.
• Additional info: Not ready for solid foods, begins to sleep through the night, likes being talked to/sung to.
• What to do: Smile with baby, imitate vocal sounds, sing songs, baby play, gently encourage motor activity ("bicycle"), walk, etc.

Principles of Human Growth and Development - 4-8 Months

• Physical: Teeth begin to appear, true eye colour is visible, Moro reflex disappears.
• Cognitive: Turns towards familiar or known sounds; reaches for objects, may wave, depth perception is evident; looks over side, searches for toy in hidden location, bangs & shakes objects, puts everything in mouth.
• Language: Responds to own name, may express some vowel/consonant sounds, responds to variations in others voices; babbles, reacts to various noises (vacuum cleaner, phone, dog).
• Social-emotional: Watches people and activities, can tell the difference between strangers and familiar people, responds differently to facial expressions, enjoys being held, laughs out loud, becomes upset when toys are taken away, seeks attention with body movements.
• Additional information: Reaches for cup or spoon when feeding, accepts small amounts of strained solid foods, closes mouth when not hungry or turns head, enjoys pulling of clothes/socks, likes kicking/arching/bringing feet to mouth.
• What to do: Use baby's name, provide toys, remember first rule for bath time, 'This Little Piggy', play music, read/talk to baby, name body parts etc.

Principles of Human Growth and Development - 8-12 Months

• Physical: Reaches with one hand to another, transfers objects between hands, explores objects/environment; use pincer grasp, beginning to pull to standing, begins to stand/walk (with assistance), crawls, combat crawls, walks with adult support.
• Cognitive: Watches people/objects, follows instructions, reaches for toys out of reach, puts in mouth, bangs/shakes things, drops items on purpose, spatial relationships, recognizes everyday objects (toothbrush, book, etc.)
• Language: Says "ma-ma" and "da-da", Babbles and jabbers, shakes head 'no', responds to name, babbles in sentences/utters meaningful phrases when spoken to, waves (bye-bye), imitates sounds, enjoys music/rhymes/songs, gives objects to adults.
• Social-emotional: Definite fear of strangers, wants parents in sight, social, enjoys new experiences, offers toys to others, attached to favourite toys/blankets, understands "no", may look/smile when name called.
• Additional Information: Play games with music, safe floor space close to parent/caregiver; talk about activities, simple instructions.
• What to do: Play games, provide safe space, talk, instructions, play activity as game, be patient, push-pull toys, balls

Principles of Human Growth and Development - Toddler Growth & Development

• Toddlers: Children aged 1-3, named for unsteady walk.
• Physical Growth: Grow taller and heavier, bones/muscles stronger, spine more erect, lose "baby fat", lose sway back.
• Physical Changes: Main change is ability to move quickly.
• Gross Motor Milestones: At age one, balance on one foot, jump both feet off ground, age three ability to skip.
• Gross Motor Skills: Climbing; practice climbing in safe places and may take longer to get down unsupervised.
• Hand Coordination: Throws, catching, requires practice.
• Fine Motor Skills: Eat with spoon around 15-22 months, and begin to sip from cup.
• Eating Habits: Picky eaters, can be carb-loaders.
• Intellectual Growth: Language explosion, shorten words; can understand more than they say; testing knowledge- point. Problem-solving, comparing/classifying objects, sorting by colour/shape, understand volumes, evenness.
• Social & Emotional Growth: Caregivers are most important, start parallel play, develop self-concept, not the same as parents.
• Erik Erikson: Toddler's phase is autonomy phase (2-3 years), recognizing ability to accomplish on one's own.
• Tantrums: Toddlers attempting to have autonomy; offering choices is more effective.
• Tantrums (cont.): Do not have complete control over emotions, let them throw their fit and discuss later.
• Scenario: Example of a toddler having a tantrum in a store.
• Important Note: The information presented in this section is to offer specific and comprehensive summary of the presented material.

Principles of Human Development - Family, Social Class, and Media

• Family Roles: Children learn right/wrong from family; consistency and security are important; parents model emotional management; relationships are important in social/emotional development.
• Family types: Nuclear(two parents and children), Extended (including grandparents, relatives), and Single parent (one parent raises one or more children).
• Family Structure: One Child Families, birth order (older children get more attention) absence of biological parent.
• Impact of absence of biological parent: Lower school achievement, lower self-esteem, less skilled socially; lower earnings in young adulthood and are more likely to be poor, more likely to marry early and divorce, commit delinquent acts, and engage in drug/alcohol use.
• Impact of Parental Styles: Authoritarian(High parental control/little warmth), Authoritative(Parental control/warmth and responsiveness), Permissive(lots of warmth/little control); children outcomes are affected by parental style (grades, self-esteem, social skills).
• Social and Class: Parents' social class has more impact than parenting techniques; this was discussed in relation to child’s performance at school.
• Media and Technology: Media technologies have substantially influenced childhood experiences, however has less impact than peers.
• Positive Media Impact: Increased awareness of the world, better understanding.
• Negative Media Impact: Media violence, sexual behavior, alcohol/tobacco use, and obesity.
• Family Role Towards Child and Media: Know what children are watching, watching with child, not putting TV in a child's room, encouraging parental selection, limiting media time, good role models, emphasizing alternative activities, urging no TVs for young children in waiting rooms, informing of TV's influence on children.
• Child Abuse and Neglect: Physical; sexual; emotional abuse; neglect.
• Risk Factors for Child Abuse: Community/societal - high crime, lack of social service, high poverty, high unemployment.
• Parent-related risk factors: Personal history of abuse, teenage parents, single parents, low self-esteem, low coping skills, parental substance use, history of child abuse, lack of parenting skills, history of depression, multiple children, if the child is unwanted.
• Child-related risk factors: Prematurity, low birth weight, handicap, chronic or physical diseases, mental illnesses.
• Impact of Abuse: Physical consequences, psychological consequences (depression/anxiety, eating/sleep disorders, hyperactivity, poor school performance, Post traumatic stress disorder), sexual abuse (STD, unwanted pregnancy).
• Death and Dying: Death defined by cessation of all vital functions; dying as systemic shutdown; loss of the person = grief; the stages of grief, effects of death.
• Concept of death: Reversible before age 5, temporary (like sleeping); universal (age 5 and older); Adolescents’ views of often unrealistic and highly romantic, adults are accepting but have many fears; older adults less anxious and dying than any other time.
• Key Themes for Death: Home, comfort, sense of completion (tasks accomplished), saying goodbye, and life review.