Why study children By: Megen Smith & Alex Hatfield

To understand yourself  Studying how children grow and develop can help you grow too  It’ll help you appreciate all that goes into taking a first step or saying a first word  It feels good to help children overcome a fear or leaning a new skill  Who adults are today is a result of the children they once were  Adults gain insight into their own growth, development & personal priorities

To be a responsible parent  Adults learn their children’s needs at each stage of development, they also know the best ways to respond to those needs  How much adults know about children can determine the kind of parent they will be  Studying children helps parents have realistic expectations about their parenting abilities  Parents must be responsible for meeting all their children’s needs

To be a responsible parent Physical needs:  Right diet  Well fitting clothes  Shelter/protection  Proper health and medical care Intellectual needs: Provide good experiences Experiences help children learn and develop skills they need to survive Social needs: Learning to form relationships Strong relationships with parents help children feel secure and teach them how to respond & relate to others Children need a sense of belonging, by socializing Teach children about culture

To be a responsible parent Trust needs:  Children need to feel they can cope with demands of family, friends & society  Trust begins early when parents meet their needs, it continues to grow when they are allowed the freedom to develop Love/guidance needs: Children need love & support from their parents Listen to children, set limits, give reasons for limits As a part of guidance, children develop character, and inward force that guides a person’s conduct Through love and guidance, parents help their children grow into self-directed adults

To protect children’s rights  Children are easily hurt because they are physically weaker than adults, and can’t reason like they do  Society must protect them, by learning about children, lawmakers can pass laws that keep children safe  The Convention on The Rights of a Child 1 categories: Children have the right to: An identity, a family, express themselves and have access to information, a safe and healthy life, special protection in times of war, an education, special care for the disabled, protection from discrimination, protection from abuse, protection from harmful work, special treatment if arrested

To work with children  Adults with child-related careers should study children  Anyone in a child-related field should know about all aspects of children’s growth and development  It allows people who work in these fields to serve them better

What is child development?  Development is the gradual process through which babies become adults  The process has many stages: beginning at conception, then Infancy, childhood, adolescence, & adulthood, continuing until death  Child development is the scientific study of children from conception to adolescence  It focuses on changes that occur over time, how children’s bodies change, how they think and learn, and how they feel about themselves and interact with others  Anyone who is around children can use this knowledge

Individual Life Cycle  A description of these stages of change people experience throughout life, experts divide life into stages: The prenatal stage, the neonatal stage, infancy stage, toddler stage, preschool stage, and the school-age stage  These stages were chosen based on changes in growth and behaviour that occur as a result of age, the exact age may vary but average ages are given  These are only the life stages for children, there are also stages for teens and adults

Factors that Influence Growth and Development Heredity, environment, a combination of both  Heredity: Children have many traits in common with their family, this is due to the passion pf genes from their parents  Genes are sections of the DNA molecule that determine traits each person will have, genes instructions are life-long, ex: eye color  Genes determine body features like blood type, facial structure and eye, skin & hair color  Some genes determine whether a person will have a certain trait, others determine the range of a trait

Factors that Influence Growth and Development  Environment affects growth and development aswell  Physical conditions such as food & rest, relationships with others, and everything a child hears or sees are part of environment  Factors in the environment can affect physical traits, for example a baby’s brain has delayed development if no one holds or talks to it  Intellectual and social-emotional traits are also affected by environmental factors, for example a child whose family hugs and kisses a lot will be more,likely to do the same, a child whose family does not show such affection will likely be more uncomfortable with it

Factors that Influence Growth and Development Heredity & Environment combined:  Genes control how quickly a baby’s muscles and bones grow (heredity) a proper diet is needed for the baby to grow (environment) however a proper diet does not make bones and muscles bigger than heredity allows (heredity & environment)  Parents can exercise their baby’s to help muscle growth (environment) but the baby cannot walk until muscles and bones are ready (heredity) When the baby’s muscles and bones are ready heredity and environment work together by excersicing

Brain Development The command center of the body Basic wiring occurs:  Responsible for controlling most body functions, including: operation of body systems, movements, thinking, memory, and feelings  Brain cells called neurons control these tasks, the send and recieve electrical impulses throughout the brain, they tell the body parts what to do  Define: Neurons, wiring, axons, synapse, pruning, windows of opportunity, plasticity

Difference in the Rate of Growth and Development  All people change with time, they grow & develop certain skills & behaviours in expected sequences called stages  Developmental acceleration: is when a child preforms like an older child  Developmental delay: is when a child performs like a younger child With support and encouragement, children with delays usually catch up over time  It’s possible for a child to be delayed in one area & accelerated in another. Some children have favorable heredity & environment, these children may be accelerated in most areas.  Sometimes unfavorable conditions can delay areas of development, ex: a baby born too early may be delayed in most areas.

Principles of Growth & Development The likenesses in the way people generally grow and develop Growth and development are constant, Gradual & continuous, happen in sequenced steps, Happen at different rates, and Have interrelated parts  The principles of growth & development do not fit every person exactly, but are true enough to be used as a guide while learning about children

Theories of Growth & Development Havighurst’s Theory of Developmental Tasks:  Each child masters skills and activities that fit his or her level of growth & development  Children are expected to learn skills called developmental tasks, like self- feeding & dressing, at a time that is right for them  Havighurst believed achieving developmental tasks leads to happiness & success with later tasks, failure to achieve task leads to unhappiness & problems with later tasks He identified the developmental tasks as coming from 3 sources: Physical growth, social pressures, and inner pressures (define each)

Theories of Growth & Development Maslow’s Theory of Human Needs: he believed that development is a result of meting personal needs, his theory states everyone work to fulfill basic & higher level needs  Basic needs are both physiological and psychological, he divided basic needs into 4 categories, physiological needs, safety, belonging & love, and esteem.  He then created higher-level needs called self-actualization needs (to grow and feel fulfilled as a person)  Maslow ranked these basic & higher level needs in an order he called the Hierarchy of Human Needs, this means low levels needs must be accomplished before higher-level needs  The higher level needs a person reaches, the happier and more fulfilled they become