CHAPTER 7 PHYSICAL AND COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN EARLY CHILDHOOD

Body Growth Norms – standards of what is “typical” at different ages – Growth curve tables – WHO research finds similar patterns in diverse parts of the world. Wider individual differences in early childhood – BMI shows whether child’s weight is appropriate for height. – Obesity in childhood particularly troubling.

Figure 7.1: Growth in Height and Weight from Age 2 to Age 20

Figure 7.2: One Child’s Growth Over 140 Days

Figure 7.3: Body Mass Index (BMI) of Boys Who are Overweight, Healthy, and Underweight

Obesity in Childhood Lowering risk of obesity – Variety of healthy food choices – Food is not a bribe, punishment, or entertainment – Encouraging active play – Serving as a good role model

Video: Childhood Eating

Brain Development Synaptogenesis peaks at age 1, continues through childhood Synaptic pruning begins in first years, continues through young adulthood Myelination occurs sequentially. Brain anatomy – Lateralization – Corpus callosum

Figure 7.4: Parts of the Neuron

Figure 7.5: Right Lateral and Top Views of Gray Matter Maturation from Ages 5 to 20

Brain Plasticity Degree to which the brain can be altered by experience Sensitive periods

Motor Development Gross motor skills – Abilities required to control large movements of the arms, legs, and feet, or the whole body – Must be studied in cultural context Fine motor skills – Involves smaller movements of the hand and fingers – Depend on culture and experience

Video: Early Childhood: Gross Motor

Video: Early Childhood: Fine Motor

Table 7.1: Some Milestones in Normative Gross Motor Development

Table 7.2: Some Milestones in Normative Fine Motor Development in the United States

Figure 7.6 and 7.7: Cultural Differences are Evident in Young Children’s Drawings

Physical Development and Well-Being Injuries and illnesses in early childhood – Unintentional injury is the leading cause of death in the U.S. – Drowning, automobile accidents, fire and burns, airway obstruction – Successful immunization has decreased death. – Minor illnesses – Reducing childhood mortality rates Oral rehydration therapy Immunization Mosquito nets Education

Physical Development Sleep and sleep problems – Sleep problems common in young children – Promoting sleep hygiene Regular bedtime rituals Consistent sleep schedules Quiet time before lights out

Physical Development Physiological indicators of stress – Cortisol Related to children’s temperament Related to attachment security Related to quality of child care setting

Physical Development Physical abuse and neglect – Research with nonhuman animals indicate stress affects animal’s biological makeup. – Pollack studies of abused children More sensitive to anger cues May perceive anger in caring adults when not present May react intensely to situations perceived as “dangerous” – Neglected children Emotional impairment Inability to identify emotions

Piaget’s Theory: The Preoperational Period Preoperational Period: 2 to 7 years of age – Symbolic representation Language Pretend play – Gaps in preoperational thinking Reversibility Conservation Egocentric Animism

Video: Piaget’s Preoperational Stage

Figure 7.8: Conservation Tasks in Preoperational Children

The Preoperational Period Can parents and teachers accelerate logical thinking in preschoolers? – Piaget would have answered “No” Children develop logical thinking through their own explorations and actions. Peers might promote cognitive development. Contemporary challenges to Piaget – Cognitive development is better described as a series of overlapping waves. – Young children understand more than Piaget credited them for.

Theory of Mind Children’s awareness of their own and other people’s thought processes and mental states – Age 4, watershed in development of theory of mind False belief task – Cognitive and language abilities are important to development of theory of mind, as are experiences with adults and older children.

Video: False Belief

Video: Self-Concept

Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory Child embedded in a social context and focused on increasing abilities with assistance of others – Zone of proximal development – Scaffolding

Video: Lev Vygotsky: The Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding

Guided Participation Rogoff expanded Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory to examine varied ways children learn their society’s values and practices through participation in family and community activities. Goes beyond instructional activities to include family and community interactions and stories Rules for participation vary cross-culturally.

Language and Thought Relationship between language and thought – Piaget – thought precedes language development Thought evident in sensorimotor period – Vygotsky – language and thought develop together First attempts to speak are efforts to establish and maintain social contact – social speech 3 – 4 years old: children use language as a tool to organize thoughts Self-directed talk becomes private speech.

Figure 7.9: Information Processing Model

Attention Focusing on some information while ignoring other information – Continuous Performance Task – Improvements in attention linked to maturation of the prefrontal cortex and basal ganglia. – Also affected by child’s environment and experience with parents

Figure 7.10: Errors on Impulsivity and Attention Tasks by Age

Memory Sensory memory and working memory – Short term memory Long term memory – Generic memory – Episodic memory – Autobiographical memory Development of memory in early childhood

Language Development Vocabulary – Fast mapping – Telegraphic speech – Overregulaion Semantics – Meaning of words and sentences or the content of speech – Specialized knowledge accelerates development of concepts in particular areas

Video: Early Childhood: Language Development

Emergent Literacy Foundations for literacy emerge in early childhood. Changing expectations for literacy milestones Exposure to books and language, and parent- child communication, is crucial.

Early Mathematical Thinking During early childhood, children master a number of mathematical concepts: – Magnitude – Numbers – Counting – Addition and subtraction

Child Care and Early Education Programs Widespread use of child care – In-home care – Child-care homes – Child-care centers Quality of child care linked to cognitive and social development. – Structural quality – Process quality

Figure 7.11: Common Child-Care Arrangements in the United Sstates

Early Education Programs Perry Preschool Project Abecedarian Project Chicago Parent-Child Centers Head Start Pre-kindergarten programs

Figure 7.12: Impact of Early Intervention on Later Outcomes

Figure 7.13: Academic Benefits of Prekindergarten