Motor Play for Infants and Toddlers

Physical and Motor Development Rapid in growth and development during the first two years Infants triple their weight in the first year and increase in length by 75% Growth is rapid but irratic. It occurs in spurts. Growth can be described by two rules to development: Cephalocaudal and Proximodistal. First two years of life are marked by rapid brain development. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

CHARACTERISTICS OF MOTOR DEVELOPMENT Gross Motor Skills Lifts head Stands holding on Rolls over Crawls / Walks Sits propped up Kicks / Jumps Sits without support Fine Motor Skills Abilities in grasping objects (6 months) Clapping, Scribbling, Transferring objects from hand to hand (2 years). Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Variations in Physical/Motor Development in Infancy Variations in physical development tend to be related to gender, ethnicity, & nutrition Girls tend to be slightly shorter African-Americans tend to be larger and more advanced physically Japanese infants tend to be smaller than Americans Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

What Affects these Variations in Physical Development? Prenatal Nutrition/Neonatal Malnutrition Infants tend to be smaller/less developed Brain development impacted Infants born in institutions or low stimulation environments show significant cognitive and physical delays (sitting-up; walking). Cultural Differences Western culture varies with Uganda & Jamaican cultures toward child holding and carrying practices. Non-western cultures tend to develop motor skills faster. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Play and Motor Development Infants are primarily sensorimotor and therefore play is limited to sensory stimulation and reflexes Manipulative Play Initial play in which infant plays with fingers and toes Grasping reflexes are prevalent in play as infants observe interesting objects and inspect thru grasping, oral exploration and banging. Later, they develop greater ability to sit up and take in more stimuli. They gain greater control over motor skills (can not move hands across body and greater hand/eye coordination). Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Toddlers Experience a New Environment With growing ability to walk, Toddlers experience a new environment of stimulation. Greater usage of toys with wheels for pushing or pulling. Greater usage of durable toys for punching or toys with buttons to push and things to turn. Basic puzzle themes are important. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Adult Roles in Motor Play To Facilitate Growth in Motor Skills Provide stimuli that’s colorful and has a variety of sounds Encourage holding, mouthing, banging and rattling. Arrange toys where they are obtainable to the baby Ensure the variety of toys are childproof / safe. Arrange soft, sturdy objects so older infants can experiment with standing and walking. Provide tiny, soft food objects to facilitate use of fingers and promote self- feeding by older babies. Use chairs, hassocks, or pushcarts to promote walking. Demonstrate to toddlers and assist them in undressing skills. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT: INFANCY & TODDLERHOOD

Cognitive Development Piaget identified cognitive development as sensorimotor (0-2yrs). Knowledge development is a function of senses and motor abilities to comprehend the world. Development of object permanence. Cognitive development is fostered by environment, nourishment, care, stimulation. Positive and promoting environments stimulate brain development (synaptic links) that last throughout the 1st decade. Unused synapses succumb to pruning. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Cognitive Development Stimulating environment is essential while infant is resilient (Infant plasticity). When infants are not stimulated, there are significant cognitive delays. Neglect by parents Stressful living conditions Social deprivation Poverty Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Play and Cognitive Development 8 to 12 months Play evolves into Symbolic (Pretend) Play due to the emergence of object permanence. 18 to 24 months Play becomes more imaginative and planning is reflected. Piaget Described 3 stages of play: Practice Play. Repetition of schemes (motor or verbal). Babbling or singing for practice. Symbolic Play. Toddlers use language to describe the pretend action and demonstrate that the pretending has been planned Games with rules. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Language Development Infants display sensitivity to language during prenatal. Within the 1st two years of life Infants and toddlers are capable of speaking with a vocabulary ranging from 50 to 200 words. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Theories of Language Development Behaviorist theory (B.F. Skinner): Language is acquired through operant conditioning. Adults reinforce accurate sounds toward language. Imitation/modeling. Nativist theory (Noam Chomsky): Children have a biological predisposition to learning language. Coined Language Acquisition Device (LAD). Interactionist theory (Lev Vytgotsky): Language is learned through socialization and interacting with other people within family and community context. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Language Development Parentese Holophrastic Speech Adults adjust their style of communication to fit the infant’s stage of development. Implement high pitch, shorter sentence structure, and simpler vocabulary. Holophrastic Speech A child’s responsiveness (smiles, gestures, and physical movements) and attempt to imitate the sounds of their parents speech. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Language Development Cont. During 2nd yr of life Children develop private speech and engages more into pretend play. Social play is enacted to enhance language development. Parents also use telegraphic speech, which is play through questions: What colour What colour blanket What colour mop What colour glass Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Social & Emotional Development During the first 2 years Freud: Oral stage development Erikson: Trust/Mistrust; Autonomy/Shame Mahler: Children develop an awareness of self. This awareness develops in two phases: Symbiosis (around 2 months) Egocentric child fuses awareness of self with caregiver. Separation-individuation (5 months) With increasing awareness of self, the infant begins to explore beyond the relationship between infant and mom. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools

Play and Social Development According to Watson The game is not important to the infant because people play it, but rather people important to the infant because they play the game. Peek-a-boo Patti-cake Attachment is fostered between parent/child when there is positive interaction. This translates into later competence development among preschoolers. Phoenix Children's Academy Family of Schools