DEVELOPMENT IN INFANCY TO EARLY

CHILDHOOD

Courtney SImmelink

Development of the Brain and the Nervous System:

Synaptogenesis Synaptic pruning Myelinization Reticular Formation

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS

Medulla and midbrain are developed at birth

Years one and two cortex develops

Reflexes:

Adaptive Reflexes: Sucking reflex Rooting reflex Stepping reflex

Primitive Reflexes: Moro Reflex Babinski Reflex

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS CONT.

Behavioral States:

States of Consciousness Deep sleep lighter sleep alert wakefulness

fussing

Colic: Intense bouts of crying (3+ hours per day)

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS CONT.

Motor Development

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS CONT.

Age(Months)

Locomotor Skills

Nonlocomotor Skills

Manipulative Skills

1 Stepping reflex Lifts head slightly; follows slowly moving objects with eyes

Holds object if placed in hand

2-3 Lifts head up to 90- degree angle when lying on stomach

Begins to swipe at objects in sight

4-6 Rolls over; Sits with support; moves on hands and knees

Holds head erect while in sitting position

Reaches for and grasps objects

7-9 Sits without support; crawls

Transfer objects from one hand to the other

10-12 Pulls self up and walks grasping furniture; then walks alone

Squats and stoops; plays patty cake

Shows some signs of hand preference; grasps a spoon across palm but has poor aim when moving food to mouth

13-18 Walks backwards, sideways; runs

Rolls ball to adult; claps Stacks two blocks; puts objects into small container and dumps them out

19-24 Walks up and down stairs, two feet per step

Jumps with both feet off the ground

Uses spoon to feed self; stacks 4 to 10 blocksNote. Retrieved from Lifespan Development, Boyd, Johnson & Bee,

2009

Health and Wellness: Research says breastfeeding should be sole source of

nutrition for babies unless they are preterm or the mothers are drug abusers

Infants require immunizations to start at two months old

DTaP Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis Hib Haemophilus influenza PC Pneumoncoccal conjugate vaccine MC Meningococcal conjugate vaccine MMR Measles, mumps, and rubella Hep B/V Hepatitis B

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS CONT.

Vision:Visual Acuity

At birth visual acuity is 20/200 to 20/400 Improves rapidly

Color Vision: Developed one month after birth

SENSORY DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS

Early Visual Stimulation:

Early visual stimulation is critical in early infancy

Lack of stimulation limits visual capability in later years Sleeper Effect

SENSORY DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS CONT.

HearingAuditory Acuity

At a general range of pitch and loudness infants can hear just as well as humans

Smelling and TastingNewborns respond differently to 5 different basic flavors

SENSORY DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS CONT.

Perceptual Skills

Young infants are able to make discrimination among sight, sound, feelings, and respond to patterns.

Habituation a decline in attention that occurs because a stimulus has become familiar

Dishabituation responding to a somewhat familiar stimulus as if it were new

PERCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS

Depth Perception in Infants:

Binocular Cue involves both eyesPictorial Information requires information from only one eye

Kinetic Cue comes from your own motion or motion of another object

PERCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANTS CONT.

ERIKSON’S FIRST STAGE OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT

Children learn from interaction

Helps educators: Plan Understand how infants up to adulthood

age develop

RELEVANCY AND PERSONAL IMPORTANCE

Future career goal Gain a better

understanding of how children develop

Once educators understand how children develop, they can plan developmentally appropriate activities

By understanding infant development:Help me plan activities for childrenHelp educate children’s parents on the development of their child

Example: If a child comes to my childcare organization and has been crying for a majority of the day and the mother is asking why, I will be able to

tell her it is Colic and that often moving the babies legs and rubbing the tummy will help soothe the child.

PROFESSIONAL IMPORTANCE AND APPLICATION

Boyd, D., Johnson, P., & Bee, H., (2015). Lifespan

Development (5 th ed.). Ontario: Pearson Canada

Inc.

REFERENCES