Physical Development In Early Childhood

Psychosocial Dwarfism

A growth disorder that appears between ages 2 and 15, characterized by decreased GH hormone, very short stature, immature skeletal age, and significant adjustment problems

Growth Hormone (GH)

A hormone that is necessary from birth and onward for development of almost all bodily tissues

Corpus Callosum

A broad transverse nerve tract connecting the two cerebral hemispheres

Development Of THe Amygadala

Development ------- Increased sensitivity in facial expressions, memory for salient events Damage ---------- Weak ability to learn about fear and safety signals, and often results in socially inappropriate behavior

Cerebellum

the "little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem; it helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance

Pituitary Gland

the endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, this gland regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands

Prevalence Of Immunization

* 20% of US infants and toddlers are not fully immunized, of the 80% who are, they do not continue to receive them later in childhood * 24% of US preschoolers do not receive immunization, the rate has increased to 28% for poverty-stricken children, who do not receive full protection until age 5 or 6, for this is a medical requirement for attending school * The average infant or toddler gets sick 9-10 times a year, 6-7 for preschoolers

Gross Motor Development In Early Childhood

* Age 2: Walk becomes more smooth and rhythmic, begin to run, jump, hop, gallop, and skip * Age 3: Children flex their elbows when they catch a ball * Age 4: Body rotates when child throws a ball * Age 5: Children shift their weight forward, and step as they release the ball * Age 5-6: Learns how to ride bicycles

Fine-Motor Development In Early Childhood

* Age 3: Children can dress and undress themselves well enough to take care of toileting needs by themselves * Age 4: Children can use a fork * Age 4-5: Children can dress and undress without adult supervision * Age 5-6: Children can use a knife to cut soft foods

Changes In Sleeping Patters

* Ages 2-3: 11 to 12 hours of sleep * Ages 4-6: 10 to 11 hours of sleep * The average preschooler takes 1-2-hour naps in the early afternoon, some take 2 naps

Brain Development During Early Childhood

* Ages 2-6: The brain increases from 70% of its adult weight to 90% * Ages 3-6: Left hemisphere is most active, and then dies down * Age 4: - Many parts of the cerebral cortex have overproduced synapses - In some regions, such as the prefrontal cortex, the number of synapses is nearly double the adult value - Energy metabolism in cerebral cortex reaches a peak at this age * Ages 8-10: - Energy consumption of most cortical regions diminishes to near-adult levels - Cognitive functioning --------- Neural systems > Cerebral cortex

Mental Retardation And Handedness

* Early damage to the left hemisphere ------------ * Mentally retarded individuals more likely to use left hand than the right hand * Prenatal challenges and birth defects -------- Left handedness

Implications Of Tooth Development

* First Tooth: - North America: 6.5 years old - Ghana: 5 years old - Hong Kong: 6 years old * Young children in homes with regular smokers are 3 times as likely as their age-mates to have decayed teeth * 30% of US preschoolers have tooth decay, which rises to 60% by age 18 * Poor nutrition/healthcare ---------- Tooth decay * 12% of low SES children have tooth decay

Implications Of Growth Hormone

* GH -------- Insulin-like growth factor 1 ------------- Duplication of cells throughout the body, including the skeleton, muscles, nerves, bone marrow, liver, kidney, skin, and lungs * 2% of children suffer from inherited conditions that cause either GH deficiency or IGF-1 deficiency, and without treatment, children, on average, will reach a mature height of only 4-4.5 feet. * Injection of growth hormone -------- Catch-up growth, can also be used for normally developing children

Behavioral Influences Of Handedness

* Handedness ---------- Practice * When newborns spend more time using one hand, this contributes to greater skillfulness in that hand * Handedness is strongest for complex activities, such as eating with utensils, writing, and engaging in athletic activities

Other Advances In Brain Development

* Hippocampus ----------- Cerebral Cortex ----------- Prefrontal Cortex - Gains in memory and spatial understanding - Enables children to store and retrieve information - Expands autobiographical memory - Enables children to draw and read maps

Development Of The Cerebellum

* Increase in motor coordination ---------- playing hopscotch, throwing a ball, writing out the letters of the alphabet * Defects ---------- Issues with memory, planning, and language

Implications Of Childhood Injuries

* Injuries ---------- Ecological system of individuals, family, community, and societal influences * Boys are 1.5 times more likely to get injured than girls * Personality characteristics, such as inattentiveness, over-activity, irritability, defiance, and aggression, put children at greater risk for injury * Poverty, single parenthood, and low parental education --------------- Injury * Death from injury before age 15 is 5 times as high for people in developing countries * Childhood injury rates in the US ------------- * Extensive poverty, shortages of high-quality child care, and high rate of births to teenagers who are neither financially or psychologically ready for parenthood * Risk of injury = US children from wealthy families > European children from wealthy families * Car seats, childproof bottle caps, flameproof clothing, and fencing around backyard swimming pools ------------------- Prevention of childhood injuries

Cultural Differences In Sleeping Patterns

* Most Caucasian children stop napping between ages 3 and 4 * African American and Hispanic children are more likely than Caucasian children to nap throughout the preschool years, with a tendency to sleep less at night * Caucasian preschoolers are less likely to try to sleep in their parents' bed or share a room with siblings than African-American children of the same age * Western children usually ask to sleep in their own bed by 6 or 7 years old * Caucasian parents more often express concern about their child falling asleep at a regular time than African-American parents do, tend to value sleep schedule without protest as a sign of maturity

Prevalence Of Malnutrition

* Of the 10 million annual deaths of children under age 5 worldwide, 98% of them happen in developing countries, and 70% of those deaths are due to infectious diseases * Diarrhea due to malnutrition is most prevalent in the slums of Brazil and Peru. * Children who suffer from this also tend to be shorter in height and score lower on cognitive tests during the school years * Oral Rehydration Therapy: Free of charge, children are given a glucose, salt, and water solution that quickly replaces fluids that the body loses * Supplements of zinc, which only cost 30 cents for a month's supply, substantially decrease the incidence of severe and prolonged diarrhea

How To Encourage Good Nutrition In Early Childhood

* Offer a varied, healthy diet * Offer predictable meals as well as several snacks each day * Offer small portions, and allow the child to serve him/herself and to ask for seconds * Exposure children to healthy, new foods early on, with repeated exposure to increase the chances for the child to build a taste preference for the food * Maintain a positive environment during mealtimes, and have conversations with the child * Avoid using food as a reward and forbidding access to certain foods

Biological Influences Of Handedness

* One genetic theory states that most children inherit a gene that biases them for right-handedness and a left-dominant cerebral hemisphere, but that bias is not strong enough to overcome experiences that might sway children toward a left-hand preference * Prenatal events ------- Handedness * Identical/fraternal twins are more likely to differ in handedness than older or younger siblings because they lie on opposite sides of the uterus

Development Of The Corpus Callosum

* Production of synapses and mylination in the corpus callosum increase at 1 years old, peak between ages 3-6, and decline through middle childhood and adolescence * Corpus Callosum --------Smooth coordination on both sides of the body, integration of many aspects of thinking, including perception, attention memory, language, and problem-solving

Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone

* Prompts the thyroid gland in the neck to release thyroxine, which is necessary for brain development and for GH to have its full impact on body size * Deficiency of this hormone can lead to mental retardation

The Drawing Process

* Scribbling: Western children begin to draw during the second year * First representational forms: Pictures start to have recognizable shapes * More realistic drawings: 5 and 6-year-olds create more complex drawings

Skeletal Growth In Early Childhood

Ages 2-6: 45 new epiphyses, or growth centers in which cartilage hardens into bone, emerge into the skeletal system

70;90

Between ages 2 to 6, the brain increases from ________ percent of its adult weight to ________ percent

more realistic drawings

During the ________ phase of learning to draw, children may draw a pictures of their parents.

first representational form

During the __________ phase of learning to draw, children may give a names to their pictures.

Epiphyses

Growth centers in which cartilage hardens into bone

Cultural Influences Of Handedness

In Tanzania, Africa, where children are physically restrained and punished for using the left hand, less than 1% of adults are left-handed

Development of Reticular Formation

Leads to sustain, controlled attention throughout its development during early childhood

35;50

Nearly ______ percent of childhood deaths and ________ percent of adolescent deaths are due to injury.

98;70

Of the 10 million annual deaths of children under age 5 worldwide, _______ percent of them occur in developing countries, and _______ percent are due to infectious diseases

11;12;10;11

On average, 2 and 3-year-olds sleep about _______ to _______ hours a day, while 4-6-year-olds sleep about _______ to ________ hours a day.

2-3; 5

On average, children add _______ to ______ inches in height and about _______ pounds in weight each year.

Dominant Cerebral Hemisphere

Part of the cerebrum that carries out skilled motor actions, reflects handedness

United States; Norway; Denmark; Great Britain, Canada, the Netherlands, and Sweden

The population of non-immunized preschool children is highest in the country of ___________, at 28% behind _________ and __________, at 10%, and ___________, ____________, _____________, and ________, at 7%

4;3;50

__________ percent of children sleepwalk, _______ percent of children have night terrors, and ________ percent of 3-6-year-olds have nightmares.

Reticular Formation

a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal.