1. Infant Growth and Development
Standard(s): 1.2
Workplace Skill(s): 1. Complex Communication

2. Patterns of Physical Development
Head to Foot
Control over head movements first then moves to arms and hands and eventually to legs and feet
Near to Far
Development close to the body, first waving arms, then more precise hand and finger control to grasp items
Simple to Complex
Develops large muscle group firsts for movement then smaller groups for complex control (ex. coloring)

3. Influences on Growth & Development
Developmental milestones: key skills used to check a child’s progress
Heredity
Nutrition: essential for growth & health
Health: stimulate brain & muscle development
Experiences
Environment: stimulating environment, variety of things to see, taste, smell, hear & touch

4. Growth During the First Year
Growth Charts show the average weight and height of girls and boys at various ages
Weight: is the best sign of good health.
Newborns lose 10% of their birth weight in the first five days
After that begin gaining 1-2 pounds each month

5. Growth During the First Year Con’t
Length: bone growth is rapid, but heredity strongly influences height
Body Shapes: first born keep tightly curled position, but gradually stretch out over the first six months
Proportion: refers to the size relationship between different parts of the body
Compared to the rest of the body, a baby’s head and abdomen are large, and the legs and arms are short and small

6. Motor Skills Motor skills, or muscle movement, is limited for infants
Most movements are due to reflexes – instinctive, automatic responses, such as grasping or sucking
Two categories of motor skills
Gross (Large) Motor skills: involve large muscles of body, such as shoulders and legs
Fine (Small) Motor Skills: involve small muscles of body such as fingers

7. Development During the First Year
Vision
Hearing
Touch
Smell & Taste
Voice
Motor skills
Reflexes: sucking reflex, rooting reflex, other automatic reflexes
Hand-Eye Coordination

8. Further Learning Activity
For each “development” bullet on the previous slide, explain how each category grows and changes.
Using chapter 7-1, pages , be specific and give examples.