Physical Development Profile

Each individual developmental age group has a normal physical development. Infancy’s physical development is much different from that of early or middle childhood. Early and middle childhood’s physical developments are different from that of early or late adolescence.
During the infancy period a person can already see signs of physical development. Reflexes can be noticed as early as birth in some children. These reflexes are inherited to increase their chance of survival. In the infancy stage there is a noticeable amount of physical growth. There is an increased ability to move around; from rolling, to crawling, to finally walking. As the child gets closer to age two their coordination should improve. Fine motor skills should also improve. Self help skills also improve during the infancy stage.
The second stage of development is early childhood. During early childhood, a child will lose their baby-like appearance. A child will have an increased amount of energy for more physical activities, such as running, climbing, and swinging. The fine motor skills will increase, especially for the pencil grip and scissors use. During this stage a child will move away from an afternoon nap which will result in some fussy afternoons, but the child does eventually outgrow that fussiness.
The third stage is middle childhood. During this stage there will be steady gains in height and weight. The gross motor skills that were increasing during early childhood will now be used for structured play. A child may get involved into an organized sport. This stage will also be when the fine motor skills continue to develop. During this stage handwriting and drawing will increase.
The fourth stage of development is early adolescence. This stage will bring more periods of rapid growth. Puberty will begin during early adolescence. Some children may get self-conscious about their physical changes.
The last stage of development is late adolescence. Girls will achieve their mature height. Boys will have an ongoing increase in height. Children will have an increase in their appetite. This stage may have an increase in sexual activities.
The five stages of development each have their own distinguishing characteristics of physical development. A person should be able to tell which stage a child is in based on their physical size and what skills they have attained.