Explain the Sequence and Rate of Each Aspect of Development from Birth- 19 Years.

Task 1.1 Explain the sequence and rate of each aspect of development from birth- 19 years.
Development can be defined simply as: ‘A significant event, occurrence or change’. (www.thefreedictionary.com) When relating to a child, this development can be measured through several social, physical, emotional and intellectual milestones. Development by children usually occurs at similar stages with roughly the same pattern, however, each child will develop at varying rates and so it is important to analyse each area of development for each individual child in order to discover whether their development is occurring evenly across all areas. Key areas of development involve physical development (which includes movement, motor skills and eye hand co-ordination), social and emotional development such as relationship building, social skills, decision- making, feelings and the development of self-confidence and intellectual development which involves developing the skillset for understanding information, processing information, memory development, reasoning and logical thinking patterns. Research has shown that a child’s development can be divided into roughly four age ranges. Between the ages of 0-3 years a child will have developed basic physical skills, social and emotional connections and the foundations of intellectual and language development. As a guide by the age of 6 months an infant will be able to turn their heads towards sounds and movement, recognise familiar faces and voices, look and reach for objects, hold and play with objects and place everything in their own mouths. Socially and emotionally an infant of up to 6 months shall be able to respond to familiar faces and sounds, smile, show affection and associate with simple games such as peek-a-boo. Intellectual and language development can be reflected through imitating others, developing self-confidence in their own abilities (aided by an adult), make a variation of sounds to reflect their mood and recognition of their carers face by imitating facial expressions, in particular mouth movements. In order to meet an infant’s needs parents and carers should encourage and pay attention to what an infant is trying to say, have patience and awareness and introduce varied visual experiences. Between the age of 6 months to a year a child’s physical skills will have generally developed so that they can crawl, sit unaided, pull and push against objects, turn their heads to look around them, raise their arms, lift and study objects and begin to associate food with their mouths. Socially and emotionally between this age range a child will begin to show emotional connections through affection to their carers and will enjoy social company and games with others. Intellectual and language development will be reflected through making four to five various sounds in response to sounds they hear, they will respond to feelings by crying or squealing in excitement and they may also show their response by laughing or giggling. By the age range of one year to two years there are more noticeable milestones particularly within a child’s physical development. The majority of children will begin to crawl and eventually learn to walk unaided. They will enjoy pushing and pulling objects, feeding themselves, sit upright unaided, begin to show preferences to one hand , bang objects together, crawl upstairs, point to objects and also begin to develop their motor skills with regards to gripping objects with their fingers and thumbs and stooping downwards to pick up objects. In relation to a child’s social and emotional development at this age group, there will be indications of the child wanting to play alongside other children and the desire to please adults, particularly in front of an audience. The child will also begin to exhibit signs of feeling distressed, anxious, cautious or frightened, especially when within new environments or surrounded by new faces. Furthermore, it is common for the child to seek comfort from an object such as a blanket, a teddy or sucking their thumb. These objects are seen to be used as a soothing mechanism for the child and often relieve feelings of anxiety or tension: ‘Security objects are used by toddlers to relieve tension and anxiety. They are usually soft, cuddly things, like a blanket, a diaper, or fuzzy teddy bear’. (www.ecpcla.org) Between one and two years old a child will also begin to further develop their language skills through beginning to use words in a collective phrase rather than individual words. They will also learn to understand more key words used by adults within a sentence. Research has shown that by 12months a child will understand basic words (mostly nouns) such as dog, ball, car etc. By 15months their vocabulary bank will have grown to recognise around 50 words and the child will also become more inquisitive about objects that are new to them. By 18- 24 months a child will have around 300 common words they will use and will begin to express abilities of how to use these words in a conversation. The child will also refer to themselves by ‘I’ rather than their name. Furthermore, the child will have an understanding of simple directions and phrases such as ‘put that down’ and ‘give me a kiss’. ‘At around 12 months, your child will understand the names of things nearby…At around 15 months, she’ll point to things further away and ask you to name them….At around 18 months, he’ll refer to himself by his name…..’ (www.raisingchildren.net) By the ages of 3-7 years a child’s developmental milestones become more acutely defined and there would be an increase in their physical and mental ability to carry out tasks. Physical development at this age range aids ‘co-ordination, control, movement and manipulation of objects’ (www.studymode.com) Physically at the age of three the majority of children will be able to jump up and down, walk on their tiptoes, walk up and down stairs and catch gently thrown objects such a balls. Their fine motor skills are also developing through the ability to hold a pencil or crayon, paint and begin to show signs of using a fork and spoon to eat with. At the ages of four and five these physical abilities will have increased so that a child can pedal a bike, hop on one foot, catch a ball with more confidence and throw objects with aim. Their fine motor skills are further tuned during this age range so that on average a child will be able to use scissors, use a pencil with more control, copy shapes and letters and start to draw recognisable pictures of people and houses. It is estimated that by the ages of 6-7 years a child will show the capabilities of skipping, jumping from heights, climbing with confidence, writing, tying laces and doing up buttons. The child will also be able to carry out the previous noted skills of throwing, hopping, drawing, kicking etc with confidence and ease. Social and emotional development between the ages of 3-4 is very important for it is a milestone whereby a child begins to become more independent and self-reliant on their own capabilities. During this age range a child will be confident in dealing with an environment that is new to them and shall show signs of being more co-operative with adults. They will develop bonds and connections with other children who they socialise and play with, leading to future friendships. Furthermore, between 3-4 years a child will exhibit social and emotional skills such as sharing with others and begin to show signs of concern and awareness of others. Their emotional recognition of their own feelings and others will be heightened. Between 4-7, years socially and emotionally a child will tend to have established friendships; however, they may require assistance with regards to resolving disputes with their friends. The brain is still developing and refining their problem solving skills. Their ability to understand rules will be developed and they will express enjoyment of helping others, although they will still have difficulties in taking turns. Signs of understanding people and relationships can be noted during these developmental milestones and a child will also begin to take responsibility for their behaviour, toys and delegated tasks. However, although the child has begun to develop and express complex social and emotional skills, they still require routine and structure instilled by an adult and at times may require behavioural limits. By the time the child reaches 3-4 years their intellectual development will show understanding of two or three simple tasks that are to be carried out in concession such as ‘go and put your pyjamas on, brush your teeth and get into bed.’ They will also have the ability to sort objects by size, colour or shape such as pairing socks and matching types of animals. Furthermore, language development can be associated with the child’s use of pitch and tone, extension of their vocabulary and the use of past and present tenses. As the child grows to the ages of 5-7 years he or she will express intellectual development by understanding patterns of sameness and differences in aspects of their lives and establishing connections between current and past events. In addition to this, the child’s language development will express more accurate use of grammar, their understanding of language will deepen and their ability to communicate more effectively can be noted. Moreover, children at this age group will learn to appreciate and enjoy books and that books can be used as a source of wider learning and knowledge and that they carry meanings. Their reading skills will also develop during these developmental milestones through recognition and association to frequently seen words. From the ages of 7-12years a child will have more defined and practised forms of physical, social, emotional, intellectual and language development. Physically at these milestones children will be able to run, jump, climb and skip with confidence, control and co-ordination, however, up until they are the age of nine they misjudge their full capabilities. Socially and emotionally children within this age bracket will further develop their independence and can be more susceptible to peer pressure from those of a similar age group. Awareness of their own gender and wanting to fit into social groups can be notice during this developmental age group, alongside a deeper understanding of moral principles such as right and wrong, fair and unfair, honest and dishonest. Children within this age group also show tendencies towards playing with children of the same sex and establish stronger relationships with friends. On an intellectual basis a child will be capable of reading to themselves and will show stronger interests in particular subjects that interest them. Their language skills will have developed so that they will learn how to spell words, use their vocabulary in a more complex manner through conversations and descriptions of happenings in day to day activities. The child will also express various use of past and present tenses and will speak more fluently. Their ability to read out loud may also be exhibited. It is important to note that during these developmental milestones a child may develop more quickly in one or two areas, such as physically they may appear to look older than their age, however, socially and emotionally they still maintain the developmental stage of a child. It is important that the carer encourages and listens to the child giving them space and independence to grow, however, this should be within controlled limits and in a realistic manner. Development between the ages of 13-19 years is often referred to as adolescence and can be a difficult developmental period for teenagers for it is the progression from childhood into adulthood: ‘The period in development between the onset of puberty and adulthood…. During this period, the individual undergoes extensive physical, psychologic, emotional, and personality changes.’ (www.medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com) Adolescence acts as the transition period when teenagers start to become detached from their parents and begin to show more independence and maturity in decisions they make for themselves, however, they still lack clearly defined roles and still require guidance, even when they feel they do not need it. Physical changes are the most evident developmental milestones in an adolescent for there is often a large growth spurt (particularly notable in boys), they have an increase in body hair growth and sweat production, girls will develop breasts and their menstrual cycle will begin and boys voices often tend to deepen and become husky. There is also an increase in their strength and co-ordination. Socially and emotionally the adolescent may often become self-conscious due to the physical changes that are occurring, such as their body shape changing, odours and in some cases the onset of acne. Their emotional needs are also in a delicate balance between childhood and adulthood, shifting between the need for more independence and reassurance from their parents. They begin to develop their own identities and often have a tendency to question things before accepting them. Moodiness and changes to their temperament are evident also. Approval is sought from their friends rather than adults and peer pressure becomes more of a concern for the parents. There is also an increase in their sexual drive at this period of development as their hormones increase. Further development of their intellect also occurs during adolescence as the mind matures and behavioural attributes such as thoughts, actions, planning for their futures and deepening relationships occur. Their moral, social and cultural codes deepen and their scope of knowledge is broadened further with more complex understandings of the world. Lastly, language development in adolescents can be recognised through tones of sarcasm and wittiness and the use of sophisticated language: ‘Language development shifts in the teen years from basic grammar mastery to the use of language on a higher level.’ (www.livestrong.com) To conclude, by categorising a child’s developmental milestones from 0-19years into key stages it allows adults to assess and monitor whether a child is progressing at the average rate of other children and if necessary to isolate problem areas and deliver necessary measures to aid that child. As Heckman states: ‘Learning starts in infancy, long before formal education begins, and continues throughout life. Early learning begets later learning and early success breeds later success, just as early failure breeds later failure.’ (Heckman 2007)