Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle and Late Childhood Chapter 9

Physical Changes and Health They gain greater control over their bodies, can sit, and keep their attention focused. Growth is slow but consistent Calm before the rapid growth of adolescence. Motor skills become much smoother and coordinated Running climbing, skipping, swimming, etc Girls usually outperform boys in use of fine motor skills.

Physical Changes and Health Exercise US-children and adolescents not getting enough exercise But very important to physical development Aerobic exercise is linked to child's cognitive skills

Physical Changes and Health Exercise- Parents and Schools play important roles Growing up with parents who exercise-provides positive models for children School-based activity is successful in improving children's fitness and lowering their fat levels Higher level of screen time increased the risk of obesity

Physical Changes and Health Accidents and Injuries Injuries are the leading cause of death during middle and late childhood Most common cause of severe injury and death is motor vehicle accidents Either as a pedestrian or as a passenger

Physical Changes and Health Overweight Children Over the last three decades- risk for obesity has increased Overweight parents tend to have overweight children Environmental factors Greater availability of food Energy-saving devices Declining physical activity Parents eating and monitoring habits Heavy screen time

Physical Changes and Health Overweight Children - Consequences Diabetes Hypertension Elevated blood cholesterol levels Low self-esteem Being teased by peers and family members

Physical Changes and Health Cancer second leading cause of death in US children % of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia are cured with current chemotherapy treatment

Physical Changes and Health Disabilities 13% from 3-21 in US received special education or related services in Learning disability the largest group Followed by speech or language impairments, intellectual disability, autism and emotional disturbance

Physical Changes and Health Learning Disabilities Child that has difficulty in learning that involves understanding or using spoken or written language And the difficulty can appear in listening, thinking, reading, writing, and spelling... Can also include difficulty with math

Physical Changes and Health Learning Disabilities But....The learning problem is not primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities; Or intellectual disability, emotional disorders, environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage

Physical Changes and Health Learning Disabilities Three times as many boys as girls.... Boys are more likely to be referred by teachers for troublesome behavior 80% of learning disability children have a reading problem

Physical Changes and Health Learning Disabilities Dyslexia- involving a severe impairment in the ability to read and spell Dysgraphia- difficulty in handwriting Dyscalculia- arithmetic disorder, difficulty in math computation... All often due to difficulty integrating information from multiple brain regions Interventions over a period of time can be helpful

Physical Changes and Health Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Children show one or more of the following characteristics over a period of time: Inattention Hyperactivity Impulsivity 4-9 times more in boys than girls However misdiagnosis could be an issue

Physical Changes and Health Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Increased risk of school dropout, adolescent pregnancy, substance use and antisocial behavior Definitive causes have not been found Ritalin or Adderall has been effective in many children With Behavior management... Could be helpful Exercise has been found as a possible treatment

Physical Changes and Health Emotional and Behavioral Disorders Minor emotional difficulties are common Serious and persistent disorders are a small percentage EX: depression, aggression, problems with relationships, fears associated with personal or school matters Inappropriate socioemotional characteristics 8% of children who have a disability and required individualized education plan Boys three times more then girls

Physical Changes and Health Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)- also called pervasive developmental disorders Severe is labeled autistic disorder Mild is called Asperger syndrome ASD characterized by : Problems in social interaction Problems in verbal and nonverbal communication Repetitive behaviors

Physical Changes and Health Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) May show atypical responses to sensory experiences Some with intellectual disability Some with average or above average intelligence Can be detected as young as 1-3 years of age Identified five times more often in boys than in girls

Physical Changes and Health Autistic Disorder deficiencies in social relationships Abnormalities in communication Restricted, repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior

Physical Changes and Health Asperger Syndrome Relatively good verbal language skills Milder nonverbal language problems Restricted range of interests and relationships Often engage in obsessive, repetitive routines and preoccupations with a particular subject

Physical Changes and Health APA (2013) DSM-V They were consolidated in the overarching category of Autism Spectrum Disorder Distinctions based on Severity based on amount of support needed Brain Dysfunction is thought to be the cause along with some genetic factors Boys estimated five time more the girls Children with autism benefit from well-structured classroom, individualized teaching and small-group instruction

Physical Changes and Health Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) Spells out broad mandates for services to children with disabilities of all kinds Services include: Evaluation and eligibility determination Appropriate education Individualized education plan (IEP) Education in the least restrictive environment (LRE)

Physical Changes and Health Individualized education plan (IEP)-A written statement that spells out a program specifically tailored to a child with a disability Education in the least restrictive environment (LRE) - A setting that is as similar as possible to the one in which children who do not have a disability are educated Inclusion- Educating a child with special education needs full-time in the regular classroom

Cognitive Changes Piagets - The Concrete Operational Stage 7-11 years of age They can perform concrete operations. Operations are mental actions that are reversible Concrete operations are operations that are applied to real, concrete objects Child can consider several characteristics rather than focusing on a single property of an object They can reason logically

Cognitive Changes Neo-Piagetians- Those who argue that Piaget needed revisions Giving more emphasis to information processing, strategies and precise cognitive steps

Cognitive Changes Information Processing Instead of stages-"how children's process information" Long-term memory- Increases at middle and late childhood Working memory-where individuals manipulate and assemble information when they make decisions, solve problems, and comprehend written and spoken language

Cognitive Changes Information Processing Strategies for adults to use when attempting to improve children's memory skills: Advise children to elaborate on what is to be remembered Encourage children to engage in mental imagery Motivate children to remember material by understanding it rather than by memorizing Repeat with variation on the instructional information and link early and often Embed memory-related language when instructing children

Cognitive Changes Information Processing Critical Thinking-involves thinking reflectively and productively and evaluating evidence. Mindfulness-being alert, mentally present, and cognitively flexible while going through life's everyday activities (important part of critical thinking)

Cognitive Changes Information Processing Creative Thinking-the ability to think in novel and unusual ways and to come up with unique solutions to problems Convergent thinking-thinking that produces one correct answer (Ex: standardized tests) Divergent thinking- thinking that produces many answers to the same question.... Characteristic of creativity

Cognitive Changes Strategies for Increasing Children's Creative Thinking Encourage Brainstorming Provide Environments that stimulate creativity Don't over control children Encourage internal motivation Build children's confidence Guide children to be persistent and delay gratification Encourage children to take intellectual risks Introduce children to creative people

Cognitive Changes Intelligence-the ability to solve problems and to adapt and learn from experiences Binet Tests (Alfred Binet)-first intelligence test Measure to determine which children could benefit from instruction in schools Mental age (MA)- an individual's level of mental development relative to others

Cognitive Changes William Stern- created the concept of Intelligence Quotient (IQ) A person's mental age divided by chronological age (CA), multiplied by 100 IQ = MA/CA X 100 Stanford-Binet Test (now called Stanford-Binet 5) Measures: fluid reasoning, knowledge, quantitative reasoning, visual-special reasoning, and working memory

Cognitive Changes Wechsler Scales- widely used to assess students intelligence... Provide overall IQ scores and several other indexes like Verbal Comprehension Index and Working Memory Index, and Processing Speed Index) Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence- Third Edition (WPPSI-III) (2.5 yrs. to 7.25) Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children- Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) for children and adolescents (6-16 Yrs) Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale- Third Edition (WAIS- III)

Cognitive Changes Sternberg's Triarchic Theory of Intelligence (three forms of intelligence) Analytical Intelligence (ability to analyze, judge, evaluate, compare and contrast) Children tend to be favored Creative intelligence (ability to create, design, invent, originate, and imagine) Children are often not top of the class and may not conform Practical intelligence (Ability to use, apply, implement, and put ideas into practice) Often do not relate well to the demands of schools, but may have excellent social skills and good common sense

Cognitive Changes Culture Fair Tests- Tests of intelligence that are designed to be free of cultural bias... Two types: Test that includes items that are familiar to children from all socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds Test that has no verbal questions Difficult to create because most tests tend to reflect what the dominant culture thinks is important.

Cognitive Changes Using Intelligence Tests Avoid stereotyping and expectations (Maturation and environmental experiences can change a students intelligence.) Know that IQ is not a sole indicator of competence (Consider areas such as verbal skills, creative and practical skills) Use caution in interpreting an overall IQ score (There are many domains of intelligence)

Cognitive Changes Extremes of Intelligence Intellectual Disability (formerly called mental retardation) Inadequate intellectual functioning Usually below 70 IQ Has difficulty adapting to the demands of everyday life Exhibits these characteristics by age 18 Not after normal functioning is interrupted by damage of some form

Cognitive Changes Organic intellectual disability-caused by brain damage IQs between 0 and 50 Down Syndrome, prenatal malformation, brain diseases

Cognitive Changes Cultural familial intellectual disability No evidence of organic brain damage Usually identified in schools (where they often fail, need tangible rewards, highly sensitive to what others expect of them) IQs between Often results from growing up in a below-average intellectual environment

Cognitive Changes Giftedness Having above average intelligence (IQ of 130 or higher) And/or superior talent for something Schools tend to focus on academic aptitude where as those talented in visual and performing arts, athletics, or special attitudes are overlooked 3-5% of US students are gifted

Cognitive Changes Giftedness- Characteristics Tend to be socially adjusted, more mature with fewer emotional problems Begin to master an area earlier than their peers (Precocity) Learn in a qualitatively different way from other children (may need little help, or scaffolding) - March to a different drummer Driven to understand the domain in which they excel (a passion to master)

Cognitive Changes Reading Instruction Whole-language Approach- an approach to reading instruction Based on the idea that instruction should parallel child's natural language learning Materials should be presented in whole and meaningful way- in a complete form such as entire sentences, stories and poems Connected with listening and writing

Cognitive Changes Reading Instruction Phonics Approach- reading instruction should teach basic rules for translating written symbols into sounds Thought to be needed before complex reading materials such as books and poems Child can benefit from both... But research supports Phonics should be incorporated first

Cognitive Changes Writing Encourage early writing, but be selective with concern of letter formation or spelling (to avoid discouraging child) Good writing is linked to good reading. However 70-75% of US students (grades 4-12) are low archiving writers They need Strategy instruction involving planning, drafting, revising, and editing 50% of high school graduates are not prepared for college level writing

Cognitive Changes Bilingualism and Second Language Learning For late language learner (adolescents and adults) new vocabulary is easier to learn than new sounds or new grammar US is behind other developed countries in learning a second language Bilingualism-has positive effect on children's cognitive development

Cognitive Changes Bilingual Eduction-English Language Learners (ELL). - taught in two ways: Instruction in English only A Dual-language approach-involves instruction in their home language and English Researchers have found that the dual-language approach does not interfere with performance in either language. And their academic performance is usually higher