Infancy and Toddlerhood Development

Infancy and Toddlerhood

• Physical Growth:

  • Average newborn weighs 7.5 pounds (5-10 pounds) and is 20 inches long.
  • Lose 5% of birth weight initially.
  • Double birth weight by 4 months, triple by one year, and quadruple it by age 2.
  • Average length at one year is 29.5 inches and around 34.4 inches at age two.
  • Head comprises 50% of total length at womb development, 25% at birth, and 20% at age 2.

• Infant Sleep:

  • Newborns typically sleep 16.5 hours per day.
  • Average sleep time decreases over time (15 hours at one month, 14 at 6 months, and around 10 at 2 years).
  • Approximately 50% of newborn sleep is Rapid Eye Movement (REM). REM sleep decreases to 25-30% during childhood.

• Expected Developmental Tasks:

  • Reflex Behavior: Automatic, innate responses to stimuli (e.g., sucking, rooting, Moro reflex).
  • Primitive Reflexes: Related to survival needs (e.g., sucking, rooting, Moro reflex). May support early caregiver connection.
  • Postural Reflexes: Reactions to position or balance changes.
  • Locomotor Reflexes: Resemble voluntary movements, disappear after 6-12 months. Includes Moro (startle), Darwinian (grasping), and Tonic Neck (support neck).

• Infant Ages and Sensorimotor Stages:

  • Substage 1: Reflexes (0-1 month): Use reflexes to explore.
  • Substage 2: Primary Circular Reactions (1-4 months): Infants repeat actions that produce pleasurable results.
  • Substage 3: Secondary Circular Reactions (4-8 months): Explore environment through actions.
  • Substage 4: Coordination of Secondary Circular Reactions (8-12 months): Combine actions to achieve a goal.
  • Substage 5: Tertiary Circular Reactions (12-18 months): Trial and error experimentation.
  • Substage 6: Beginning of Representational Thought (18-24 months): Use symbols to represent objects.

• Language Development:

  • Crying of Infants:
    • Basic Hunger Cry: Rhythmic, followed by brief silences.
    • Angry Cry: Increased airflow through vocal cords.
    • Pain Cry: Sudden, loud, and long-lasting cry, followed by breath holding.
    • Frustration Cry: High-pitched, monotonic vocalization.
  • Language development begins before birth, progressing through intentional vocalizations, gestures, and word understanding. Holophrasic speech (partially formed words for conveying thoughts).

• Developmental Issues:

  • Temperament: Innate characteristics like mood, activity, and emotional reactivity (Easy, Difficult, Slow-to-Warm-Up).
  • Communication Issues: Adults communicating with infants and toddlers using gestures, partially formed words (holophrasic speech).

• Attachment:

  • Strange Situation Technique (Mary Ainsworth): Measures attachment styles (Secure, Ambivalent, Avoidant, Disorganized/Disoriented).
  • Attachment is a reciprocal, enduring emotional bond between infant and caregiver. Secure attachment styles establish a base for later development.

• Developmental Challenges and Milestones:

  • Anoxia/Hypoxia: Lack of or reduced oxygen supply during delivery.
  • Meconium: Stringy, greenish-black waste.
  • Neonatal Jaundice: Yellowing of skin due to liver immaturity.
  • Low Birth Weight/Preterm Infants: Birth weight less than 5 lbs, 8 oz or born before 37 weeks.
  • Kangaroo Care: Skin-to-skin contact for preterm infants, promoting survival.

• Developmental Milestones (Infancy and Toddlerhood):

  • 1st month: Turning head side-to-side, grasping reflex; practice with reflexes.
  • 2nd-3rd month: Lifting head, grasping objects, coordinating actions.
  • 4th month: Holding head steady, matching voices to faces.
  • 6th month: Rolling over, reaching for objects; sensory coordination.
  • 7th month: Pincer grasp; independent sitting.
  • 8th month: Sitting independently, pulling themselves up.
  • 10th month: Standing alone, babbling.
  • 11th month: Walking alone, anticipating events.
  • Later milestones involve exploring the world, using symbols, understanding words, and exhibiting social emotions.

More Detailed Topics (if needed):

Include detailed information on any of the above topics, if necessary, to have further detailed explanations or specific examples. This is a structured summary, and more depth can be added if needed.

This quiz explores key aspects of physical growth, sleep patterns, and expected developmental tasks in infancy and toddlerhood. It covers important milestones such as weight changes, sleep duration, and reflex behaviors. Test your knowledge on developmental stages from newborn to age two.