CHILD DEVELOPMENT

Author: Prince Foday

 

 

STAGES IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT FROM BIRTH TO NINETEEN YEARS

Birth to 3 Month

Physical Development

The movements of the child are smooth with arms and legs. Child can push heads up when on their tummy and hold head up.

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

The head of the child is responsive to sound. The child can make babbling sound and coos.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child makes efforts to look at parents. He or she can calm down by sucking fingers.

Intellectual Development

 The child begins to cry if activities are boring and monotonous. He or she recognises things from a distance and follow trends through eye movement. The child becomes cognisance of faces.

 

 3-6 MONTHS

 Physical Development

The child can push up to elbows when on stomach, can lift hand to mouth, capable of holding and shaking toys and move to swinging toys. He or she can roll from tummy to back, push down on legs when feet are on hard surface and can hold head without support. The child can sit without support, support weight on legs when standing and capable of bouncing.

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

Child cries to express the feeling pain and hunger, chat by showing expression and imitate sounds he or she hears and can start to say some consonants like “b” and so on. The child produce sounds to convey pleasure and displeasure, become responsive to own name, follows parents in making sounds, and produce chains of vowels like “oh”, “eh” and so forth.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child can replicate facial expression and some other movements, will like playing with people and might cry when the play ends, can impulsively smile at people, and can be responsive to familiar faces and might show if someone is a stranger. He or she would like to view him or herself in a mirror, can be responsive to other people’s emotions and will develop the passion to play with others.

 Intellectual Development

The child can recognise distance objects and builds familiarity with people, can watch faces closely, being observant of moving objects, can simultaneously use both eyes and reach out for objects, and be responsive to affection. He or she can show signs of pleasure and sadness and pass things from left to right hand, develops curiosity, and seek for things. The child can further view objects nearby, go for them and bring objects to the mouth.

 

 6-12 MONTHS

 Physical Development

The child is capable of creeping, stand or sits without support, can be in a sitting position. He or she can hold on to an object, capable of standing independently and take some steps without holding on an object.

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

The child can utilise fingers to point at objects, imitate the sounds and gesture of others, can make different sounds like “mama”, “baba” and so on. He or she can be assertive by saying “no” or wave hands and can be responsive to requests.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child can make decide on their best toys, can be attached to familiar adults, shy of strangers, play games, use their arms or legs to a support their dressing, and repeat sounds to seek attention. He or she can make effort to hand over a book to hear a story, express fear in certain situations, build the situation of favourite objects and people, and would want assurance from their parents and scared of strangers.

Intellectual Development

The child takes things by using the index and thumb fingers, capable of moving objects from one hand to the other, place objects in his or her mouth, play around and search for hiding objects and can watch things as they fall. He or she can follow easy direction, poke with index finger, put objects in and out of container, pound objects together and rightly start to use objects.

 

 1-2 YEARS

Physical Development

The child can use spoon to eat and drink from a cup, capable of undressing. He or she can drag object while walking and can run up and down steps without supervision.

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

The child can point what is needed by someone, capable of expressing “no” by shaking head, say various single words and follow easy instructions. He or she can say sentences with two or four words, express the name of familiar things and points to objects or pictures when they are named.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child can explore with parental supervision, point at interesting things to others, and cling on caregivers in unfamiliar situations, imitate by feeding a doll, show affection to familiar people and frightened of strangers. He or she can show outburst of displeasure, hand over things to others in play time, can be stimulated when with other children and show disobedient behaviour.

Intellectual Development

The child can follow verbal instructions, sit down when told to sit down, write on his or her own, point to body parts, show concern for doll by pretending to feed and seek attention by pointing. He or she can have knowledge about ordinary things like spoon, brush, etc., can identify the name of pictures, build towers with toy blocks, and do simple puzzles, read, and complete sentences, identify shapes and colours, and find hidden objects,

 

 3-5 YEARS

Physical Development

The child can independently walk up and down stairs, ride a tricycle, and easily run and climb wells. He or she can catch a bouncing ball sometimes, stand on one foot and hop for few seconds.

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

The child can take part in conversion by using two to three sentences, communicate clearly for strangers to understand most of the time, and communicate words like “me” and plurals like “cat”. He or she can name a friend and say first name, have knowledge about words like “under”, “in”, etc., name things that familiar, and follow commands with 2 or 3 steps.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child can dress and undress him or herself, be offended with changes in routine, and can easily disconnect from mum and dad. He or she can show affection for friends, take turns in games, and imitate adults and friends.

Intellectual Development

The child can turn door handle and build towers with more than six toy blocks, turn the pages of books one at a time. He or she can copy a drawing with a pencil and can count some figures and can do three- or four-pieces puzzle.

 5-7 YEARS

Physical Development

The child can climb and swings, capable of using toilet on his or her own, and use cutleries unsupervised. He or she can skip and somersault and stand on feet for 10 seconds or longer.

 Language, Communication and Literacy Development

The child can express names and address, use tenses, have interesting thoughts and opinions to share, capable participating in conversations and can ask questions to gain information, and make friends and engage with people outside their immediate family. He or she can learn to separate themselves from others and have separation anxiety, being self-assertive, try to figure out their place in the world, and learning about empathy and making efforts to understand the feelings of others.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child can be very demanding and sometimes cooperative, displays more level of independence, decipher between real and mmake-believe. He or she can be aware of gender, sing, dance, and act, more likely to accept rules and would want to please friends and want to imitate friends.

Intellectual Development

The child can be aware of everyday things, say food and money. He or she can solve mathematical problems, write numbers and letters, and draw images and count numbers.

 

7-12 YEARS

Physical Development

The child is independent for physical activities. He or she will be able to jump, skip, walk on her toes, use scissors, gain general athletics skills, and improve coordination skills.

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

The child can show the differences between left and right. He or she improves vocabulary (say 50,000 words by the age of 12), tenses, contest incomplete sentences, and resorts to social speeches than being egocentric.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child can build more in-depth understanding of how social interaction works, starts to enjoy teamwork, and understand what it means to contribute to task. He or she can show competence, sexual feeling is not obvious, and become self-assertive and self-regulatory.

 Intellectual Development

The child can solve problems without adult input, decipher between right and wrong and become more logical.

 

 12-16 YEARS

Physical Development

The child develops primary and secondary social attributes. Ten years plus becomes the start of sexual maturity. There is evidence of Adolescent growth spurts (girls before boys).

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

Child communication becomes the focus of relationships. He or she takes up personal speech pattern.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child builds cross-gender relationships, or otherwise. Compliance to rules and regulations become significant. The issue of identity becomes significant. Organised sporting activities lessens for many.

 Intellectual Development

The child will have the ability to understand past, present, and future. He or she can deal with opinion or fact, develop problem-solving skills, and understand abstracts.

 

 16-19 YEARS

 Physical Development

The child has necessarily completed physical maturity and the likelihood of acting on sexual desires enhances.

Language, Communication and Literacy Development

The child can communicate like an adult, manage their job or homework without supervision, and capable of driving a car safely. In education setting, they can interpret concrete and abstract thoughts, fully understand grammatical rules, punctuations, and can read and write sentences with complex structures. They can calm down by playing video games, read and browse through social media.

Social, Emotional and Behaviour Development

The child has confusing feelings about independence and dependence, might appear angry, moody, lonely, stubborn, confused, lonely, impulsive, and self-centred, and may be concern about failure. He or she might strongly involve in romantic relationship, usually have many friends and few confidants, can talk about marriage, and may fluctuate in maturity. The child may sometimes feel that parents are too nosy. Relationship with parents will span from friendly to hostile.

Intellectual Development

The child can seriously be interested about the future and begin to combine knowledge that may lead to decisions about the future. He or she might be short of information or self-assurance concerning personal skills and ability.

THE IMPACT OF EXTERNAL FACTORS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE 

Poverty and deprivation

Poverty and deprivation have a direct relationship with the development of the children and young people. Children and young people from financially challenged or low-income family can have an  effect on their educational performance and development. Child Poverty Action Group (2021) proposed that the entire areas of children’s life are unpleasantly influenced by poverty, school, and friendships, and so forth. The organisation further expressed that children living in poverty are usually known to face humiliation and have the feeling of exclusion. It is a truism that children and young people from low-income background are deprived largely of physiological needs ( basic needs) and other needs appropriate for their wellbeing and sound frame of mind. Children from poor family settings are deprived from enjoying their childhood and meant to experience suppressed aspirations. Children from overcrowded households due to poverty are prone to high health risk and many domestic challenges that can have an impact on their emotional, physical wellbeing and educational achievements, and development in general.

Family environment and background

Children and young people are meant to be faced with a situation that is not only defined by relationship with family members but society, friends, and strangers. Although family background (financial status, educational level, social skills) plays a significant role, the presence of other stakeholders can influence the development of the child and young people. Children from family background with strong financial status, high educational level and appreciable social skills can develop faster. The parents’ strong social skills through the acceptance of the fact that society has a stake in the development of the child can build the right growth environment for the child. Children deserve social protection and parents of the child should understand that society has a role towards the development of the child and the young. Children and young people rely on their family and society. The right family and society support can have a positive impact on their general wellbeing and development (ahpoohnjuvian, 2014). Children and young people rely on their family and society. Children deserve social protection and parents of the child and young people should understand that society has a role towards their development.

Personal choices

Freedom of choice is great within the context of human rights. However, children and young people need guidance in their personal choices. Making the wrong choice or decision can be costly and have a spread effect on development. Children and young people’s personal choices such as food, groups, friendship, academic environment, and extra-curricular activities will impact their development as they grow (Graduate Way, 2021). The wrong choice of food that is unhealthy can have a negative impact on the health of the child. Being in the wrong social group or peer group or around inappropriate friends and family members will affect performance and that can enable them to imbibe a culture that will affect their social image. An academic environment or extracurricular activity that does not decipher between weak and strong students can impact on the performance of outstanding students. Providing the enabling academic or extracurricular environment for students with outstanding performance can influence the performance of children and young people. Children and young people need to be guided or supported in their personal choices and environment that suits them the best.

 

Look after/Care Status

Children and young people that are looked after by people outside their family setting can affect their development and mindset. Children and young people that are impacted by physical and emotional abuse will lack trust in the care of others outside their past parenting experience. Protective lineage builds a strong pillar for understanding oneself and others, enhances healthy self-reliance and positive interactions with others, support one’s resilience, and serves as a psychological model that directs both present and future experiences, enlightening one’s expectations, beliefs, emotions and having the ability to build successive healthy relationships throughout one’s life span (Kvarnstrom, 2018).  Growing up in an abusive family and the trauma that accompanies it can dent the trust of a child and young people, even where someone outside their family is given the care responsibility. The healing process takes time, and it takes time for the child and young person to adapt to a new care scenario. Children and young people from a caring family or that are well looked after will have a positive impact on their development. They will have a sound frame of mind to concentrate on their education, can unleash their potentials and perform better.

 

Education

Education has a significant impact on children and young people. It does not only assist them in shaping their personality but helpful when dealing with real life situation. There is a shift in mentality that education does not only provide knowledge and earning money but can assist in personal development. After our physiological needs, education is a necessity of life (EducationWorld, 2021). Education is an important necessity of life after food shelter and clothing. It helps children and young people to develop healthy thought and improve their cognitive ability. Education should focus on satisfying the mental aspect, social aspect and physical aspect of children and young people. Education can broaden the horizon of children and young people in different areas like people, literacy, politics, history and many more. It provides the outlet for them to socialise, meet different challenges and acquire new ideas. The school environment provides the avenue for them to use their energy to the best of their capability and enable them to unleash hidden physical talents through extracurricular activities.  

 

THE INFLUENCE OF PERSONAL FACTORS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE 

Health status

Biological factors such as gender, hormones, brain chemistry and genetic composition can influence the development of the child and young people. Experiencing serious adversity at the early part of life can build up physical, emotional, and intellectual challenges (Harvard University Centre on the Developing Child, 2021). A high level of stress can affect the educational performance of the child and young people. Adult’s positive and responsive relationship with children and young people can have a dual beneficial effect of developing a healthy brain and combating stress. Additionally, prevailing health conditions can affect the development of the children and young people. The development of a baby can be influenced by maternal consumption habit. A mother that takes drugs, smokes and drinks alcohol during pregnancy is likely  to have an infection (say, rubella) that can affect the development of the child. The toxic consumption habit of the mother during pregnancy can stifle the physical and mental capacity of the child and young people.

Disability

Neurodevelopment refers to a  various group of situations that start in the early years of child’s lives and that will have an adverse effect on their lives and development. People develop in their own way and that should be considered when dealing with children and young people. Children with development impediment desire immediate help and early diagnose and intervention can have an important influence on a child’s ability to learn new skills and minimise the cost of intervention as time unfolds (Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021). The early diagnose and intervention of a child’s neurological problem can have a positive impact on the development of the child. It would help in reducing cost as well as provide the desired support to their welfare and development. Cerebral palsy and spinal bifida are different forms of disability. Cerebral Palsy is a neurological problem that affects the brain and general nervous system. Spinal Bifida is a health condition that exists from birth and can affect the child’s cognitive, physical, social, emotional, and social development.

Sensory impairment

This is evident when one of the senses (taste, touch, smell, hearing, spatial awareness, and sight) is not functioning. A momentous hearing loss can have a huge influence on the child’s development, specifically on their social interaction skills and communication. A hearing impairment is a situation where speech is unclear and words not rightly articulated, and such sensory impairment can affect the development of the child.  Children with hearing loss are meant to use sign language or a combination of speech and sign language, and unless necessary action is taken to make them feel confident and inclusive in social situations, they are likely to be withdrawn and on the edge of other children (teach Early Years, 2021). Children with sensory impairment are part of our society and should be provided the platform to feel confident and not be on the edge with other children. Allowing them to feel withdrawn can have a negative impact on their development and deprive them from unleashing latent potential.

 

Learning difficulties

Children and young people with learning difficulty will find it challenging to achieve academic development. Children with disability such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyspraxia and dyslexia will have problem with their cognitive development. It is appropriate to identify and recognise such learning difficulties and provide the needed support. Those with learning difficulties demonstrate an uneven pattern of development in terms of perception, academic progress, physical development, and language (Child Development Institute, 2019). Such a skew pattern of development requires educational support from a special educational needs (SEN) coordinator. Children and young people with special needs will feel different when they are stigmatised. Their emotional, social and wellbeing will be influenced by a show of stigmatisation by people around them. Learning difficulties are because of emotional problems and mental impediments. There are disparities in the development of the child, as children within the same age group develop at different rates-some develop at a slower pace than others. It is important to be cognisance of such variations in the development of the child and ensure that the desired support is provided to those with special needs. There should be an inclusive and fair child development approach.

 

THE EFFECT AND INFLUENCE OF THEORIES ON CURRENT PRACTICES 

Cognitive

Cognitive development is about how the mind thinks and learns throughout the early years of a child’s life. It is a major area that can influence current practices. Cognitive development can assist

parents/carers/educationists to delineate between a child and young people’s behaviour that demand reward or punishment. Children and young people should be able to understand such distinction as that can be helpful in mitigating bad behaviour. Jean Piaget, a psychologist, expressed that children are meant to go through different stages of cognitive development, and all are dissimilar from each other and affected by nurture and nature (Universal Class, 2021). The point raised by Jean Piaget should be embraced by all concern with the duty of care for children and young people. Children and young people should be nurtured to embrace acceptable behaviour and rewarded for that but that should not be looked at as a form of bribery. Current practices should be able to influence children to understand acceptable behaviour and influence their sense of reasoning.

Humanist

Humility helps in caring for children and young people and the current practices should be cognisance of that. Children and young people desire to be rewarded or inspired for doing their best. Maslow’s humanist approach stressed on the insatiability of human needs and drew the link between personality and motivation. Bartlett et.al (2006) advanced that the five hierarchy of needs suggested by Abraham Maslow are physiological needs (food, shelter and clothing), safety needs (the need to be freed from physical damage), social needs (the need to belong and approved by others), ego-status needs (the need for self-confidence, prestige and power) and self-actualisation needs (the need for self-fulfilment or unleash one’s skills and talents). In my opinion and from evidence, current practices are streamlined towards such hierarchy of needs. Children and young people can provide their best where such hierarchy of needs are satisfactorily met. Humility matters in the dispensation of services and Maslow’s humanist approach provides a significant template for service providers, and for parents/carers to deliver a humanist approach to the development of the child and young people.

Operant Conditioning

School should be the platform for teaching good behaviour and imbibing the culture of politeness to children and young people. Discipline matters in school, and it is a way of teaching good behaviour. Operant conditioning is a theory developed by Skinner as method of learning using rewards and punishments, and that the conditioning is embraced by the principle that reward and punishment have a link that leads to learning (Sincero, 2021).  The theory stressed that operant conditioning is a type of learning that clings on the likelihood that a response will be achieved as a result reinforcement. Operant condition is an approach to learning where the outcome of responses determines the likelihood of it being repeated.  Reinforcement or stimuli can be positive (its application can increase the probability of a specific behaviour...reward through food, grades, praise, medals, etc.), and negative (its removal increasing the probability of a specific behaviour...exempting students from a homework when the undergo a particular punishment).  The three types of responses that can influence behaviour are neutral operant (responses from a specific punishment that neither decreases nor increases the chances of behaviour being repeated), Reinforcers (reactions from a particular punishment that increases the probability of behaviour being repeated) and punishers (reactions from a specific scenario that minimises the probability of a behaviour being repeated). Punitive measures on children and young people that lead to behaviour not being repeated are ideal for the learning environment and their development.

 

Social Learning

Social learning is a form of learning that was developed through social network. The theory was developed in the 1950’s by a psychologist Albert Bandura and his doctorate student, Richard Walters, and the concept of social learning is that humans improve their learning process through mutual learning (Zoe, 2021). Zoe further stated that Bandura and Walters discovered that by sharing ideas and perspectives and monitoring the process, people can learn effectively and better retain information.  As the adage goes, “two heads are better than one”. The theory has influenced current learning as institutions have developed teamwork or encourage groups to share ideas together. The theory of social learning had improved its significance through the emergence of social media (Facebook, twitter, WhatsApp, zoom, etc.) and online learning. Learning is a continuous process. The use of social media has influenced ongoing learning from a distance. Online learning has made people to acquire knowledge from a distance and enhanced employability. Zoom has made it possible for presentations or meetings to be done from a distance and reduced the cost on institutions. 

THE TYPES OF CHANGES OR DIFFICULTIES THAT MAY AFFECT A CHILD'S DEVELOPMENT OR WELLBEING, AND WHEN IT IS APPROPRIATE TO REFER TO COLLEAGUES FOR SPECIALISTS SUPPORT 

Economic Instability

Economic instability due to parental or carer financial hardship can affect a child’s development. Children from financially challenged families can have cognitive and emotional problems. The financial hardship can affect their academic performance and they would not have the support needed for learning. Identifying children with financial hardship and referring them for specialist support can mitigate the spread effect of the hardship on their academic performance.

 

Employment Instability

Some children may be unfortunate to have parents or carers with unemployment problem. There may not be much household income to meet the physiological and academic needs of the child, and that can affect their development. The employment instability of the parent or carer can affect a child’s domestic and external behaviours and can lead to weak academic performance. Specialist support is needed for such children.

 

Family Instability

Family instability will have an impact on child behaviour and academic performance. Children and young people desire continuous care giving to establish safe lineage, need parent/caregiver support, expect parent/caregiver to be role models, need constant residential stability and support from educational institutions to achieve success (Sandstrom and Huerta, 2013). It is inevitable that the absence of a child’s secured attachment, support, stable residence, and the right platform for academic success demands specialist assistance. Children and young people are meant to reveal more negative behaviour with the absence of material, emotional and social support.

 

Instability in out of home contexts: School and Childcare

The constant movements of families from one region to the other or changing schools can affect the development of the child and young people. Changes in care arrangements can further affect the stability of child and young people. Continuous changes in educational setting can minimise their social proficiency and hinder academic performance. Specialist support is needed where there is evidence of such child and young people school and care instability.

 

References

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Lindon, J. (2007) Understanding Child Development: Linking Theory and Practice. London: Hodder & Stroughton Educational

Child Poverty Action Group (2021) The Effects of Poverty. Available at: https://cpag.org.uk/child-poverty/effects-poverty (Accessed 22 September 2021)

Ahpoohnjuvian (2014) https://www.studymode.com/essays/Family-Background-Influences-How-a-49043403.html#cite-this-document (Accessed 23 September 2021)

GraduateWay (2021) Understand the Kind of influences that affect children and young people’s development. Available at: https://graduateway.com/understand-the-kinds-of-influences-that-affect-children-and-young-peoples development/#:~:text=Children%E2%80%99s%20personal%20choices%20such%20as%20friendship%20groups%2C%20extra-curricular,them%20to%20make%20the%20right%20choices%20for%20themselves. (Accessed 24 September 2021)

Kvarnstrom, E. (2018) How the Trauma of Childhood Abuse Affects Interpersonal Relationships, and How to Begin Healing. https://www.bridgestorecovery.com/blog/trauma-childhood-abuse-affects-interpersonal-relationships-begin-healing/ (Accessed 25 September 2021)

Harvard University Centre on the Developing Child (2021) Three Principles to Improve Outcomes for Children and Families. Available at: https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/three-early-childhood-development-principles-improve-child-family-outcomes/ (Accessed 26 September 2021)

Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (2021) Facts About Development Disabilities. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/developmentaldisabilities/facts.html (Accessed 27 September 2021)

Teach Early Years (2021) SEN: Understanding sensory impairment. Available at: https://www.teachearlyyears.com/a-unique-child/view/sen-understanding-sensory-impairment (Accessed 28 September 2021)

Child Development Institute (2019) About Learning Disability. Available at: https://childdevelopmentinfo.com/learning/learning_disabilities/#gs.ddglxt (Accessed 5 October 2021)

Universal Class (2021) The Study of Cognitive Development in Understanding Child Development. Available at https://www.universalclass.com/articles/psychology/child-development/the-study-of-cognitive-development-in-understanding-child-development.htm#:~:text=Cognitive%20development%20is%20a%20major%20domain%20of%20early,%28e.g.%2C%20to%20follow%20directions%29%20based%20on%20this%20https://www.funderstanding.com/educators/jean-piaget-cognitive-development-in-the-classroom/ (Accessed 10 October 2021)

Bartlett et.al (2006) Business: The Ultimate Resource. New Edn. London: A & C Black Publishers Ltd

Sincero, S.M. (2021) Operant Conditioning: To Reward or to Punish? Available at: https://explorable.com/operant-conditioning (Accessed 21 October 2021)

Zoe, E. (2021) Social learning: What it is and how to apply it in the workplace. Available at: https://www.talentlms.com/blog/social-learning-in-elearning/ (Accessed 30 October 2021)

Sandstrom, H. and Huerta, S. (2013) The Negative Effects of Instability on Child Development: A Research Synthesis. Available at https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/32706/412899-The-Negative-Effects-of-Instability-on-Child-Development-A-Research-Synthesis.PDF (Accessed 31 October 2021)

Harvard University Centre on the Developing Child (2021) 8 things to Remember about Child Development. Available at https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/8-things-remember-child-development/  (Accessed 01 November 2021)

 

 Author: 

Prince Foday 

Professional Freelance Journalist