...patohyChapter 7: Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Childhood PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT ASPECTS OF PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT Bodily Growth and Change Sleep Patterns and Problems ● Sleep terror: The abrupt awakening of a child or adult from deep sleep in a state of panic, usually about one hour after falling asleep. The person typically remembers nothing about the episode in the morning. Also known as a night terror. Enuresis: Repeated urination in clothing or in bed. ● Brain Development Motor Skills ● ● ● Gross motor skills: Physical skills that involve the large muscles. Fine motor skills: Physical skills that involve the small muscles and hand-eye coordination. Systems of action: Increasingly complex combinations of skills, which permit a wider or more precise range of movement and more control of the environment. Handedness ● Handedness: Preference for using a particular hand. Artistic Development ● ● ● ● Scribble: In the first stage of children’s artistic development, the vertical and zigzag lines drawn in patterns by young children. Shapes: Circles, squares, triangles, and other figures drawn by young children in the second stage of artistic development. Designs: The stage of artistic development in which children combine shapes into more complex designs. Pictorial: The stage of artistic development in which children draw actual depictions of objects, such as houses and trees. HEALTH AND SAFETY Nutrition: Preventing Obesity Malnutrition Deaths and Accidental...
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...children in the future. Therefore, it is crucial to understand human development theories that I will be able to use in my work. Human development theories can help professionals examining how a person’s behavior and personality improves during the lifespan (Berk, 2010). For this assignment, I chose two key theories that address human development. I will introduce and analyze Piaget’s cognitive-developmental theory and Erikson’s psychosocial theory. I will identify similarities and differences. Finally, I will discuss how these theories relate to my goals in research. Piaget’s Cognitive-Developmental Theory Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was a Swiss theorist who conducted research studies on cognitive development. Although he observed his own children, his theory is one of the key theories of human development. Piaget published several books on childhood development, psychology, moral judgment, and intelligence (Berk, 2010). Few of his major works that I will use for this assignment are: The Moral Judgment of the Child (1948), The Early Growth of Logic in the Child (1964), Biology and Knowledge (1971). Piaget’s four stages address infancy, early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence (Mussen, 1983). Piaget believed that there is a significant connection between biological and cognitive development. Human beings physically, mentally, and emotionally adapt to their environment (Piaget, 1971). In early childhood, the child has a lack of logical thinking that will develop through everyday...
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...This essay seeks to critically evaluate my role as a child observer. Drawing on two or more theories of child development, I will look at the main theoretical concept and critically evaluate in relation to my observation. First, I begin a brief description of the child I have observed and the setting in which the observation took place. Next I attempt to show my understanding of normal child development, and aspects that can disrupt ‘normal’ child development. Throughout the essay, I will critically examine and reflect on the process of undertaking my observation. And finally, issues of ethics and anti- oppressive practises will be discussed. The child I have observed was three and half year’s old girl called Sara (not her real name), of African Caribbean background and English is the only language spoken at home. All three observations took place at the day-centre she attends. The day-care centre gave me permission to observe her, but not to interact and interfere with her educational activities. As this was my first observation, I was a bit anxious about how Sara might react about me watching her, and while her parents consented about the observations, Sara did not know that I am here to observe her; it is this scenario that made me uncomfortable. I was particularly more concerned about the ethical issues of not informing Sara about the observation. One element of anti-oppressive practice is to make sure that people’s rights are not violated. Social workers must put children’s...
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... Description | Sensorimotor Stage | Birth to Two Years | This is the first stage of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. In this stage an infant’s understanding about the world happens trough their five senses. The sensory term in the Sensorimotor Stage indicates how important senses are to this stage. Through sight, smell, and touch, etc., the baby is able to learn and discover the world. The term motor in the Sensorimotor Stage points out that the infant learns mostly through muscle movements. In this stage the infant lacks ability to grasp object performance. This can be observed when one hides a toy with which they play. He or she immediately loses interest. Therefore, what is out of sight is also out of a baby’s mind. In addition, the baby has no capacity for any symbolic representations (Martinez, 2010). The task a baby can perform in this stage is crawling to an object and trying to manipulate it. Most likely, objects that are very bright and shiny are of most interest. | Preoperational Stage | Two to Seven Years | This is the second stage, where children begin to format concepts. An increased independence is indicative in this stage. Object performance is mastered in this stage, which helps him or her to know that even if a toy disappears, it still does exist. However, the most important development during this stage is the one of language. This development helps him or her to describe important things such as other people, their feelings, and...
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...Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development Jean Piaget is a Swiss developmental psychologist and philosopher known for his epistemological studies with children. Piaget believed that children play an active role in the growth of intelligence. He regarded children as philosophers who perceive the world as he or she experiences it (ICELS). Therefore in Piaget’s most prominent work, his theory on the four stages of cognitive development, much of his inspiration came from observations of children. The theory of cognitive development focuses on mental processes such as perceiving, remembering, believing, and reasoning. Through his work, Piaget showed that children think in considerably different ways than adults do and as such he saw cognitive development as a progressive reorganization of mental processes resulting from maturation and experience (1973). To explain this theory, Piaget used the concept of stages to describe his development as a sequence of the four following stages: sensory – motor, preoperational, concrete operations, and formal operations. There are three elements however to understanding his theory of cognitive development. They are schema, the fours process that enable transition from on stage to another, and finally the four stages themselves. He began his studies by making naturalistic observations. Piaget made careful, detailed observations of children, typically his own children or their friends, from these he wrote diary descriptions charting their development...
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...Child Growth and Development Home and Family Life June 10, 2009 Growth and Development For every human being, the process of growth and development begins at birth and continues until we die. Growth is defined as the process of increasing in physical size, while development is the process of maturation and the refinement of body systems, thought processes and judgment. Child development unfolds in a complex manner as he or she interacts with the surrounding environment. Although some children may grow and develop a little earlier or later than others, they tend to follow a general pattern of progression. A child's development can be followed by how they play, learn, speak, and behave. The tasks and skills the child learns during the different stages of development are referred to as developmental milestones. Milestones develop in a sequential fashion. This means that a child will need to develop one set of skills before he or she can develop new skills. For example, children must first learn to crawl and to pull up to a standing position before they are able to walk. Each milestone that a child acquires builds on the last milestone developed. I had the opportunity to observe a two year old female child at Home and Family life. The child at this age is growing at a rapid pace and usually gains approximately 8 oz or more per month. The child I observed was able to demonstrate some fine motor skills such as stacking blocks on top of each other and then knocking them down...
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...A behaviorist theory, operant conditioning, and a cognitivist theory, Piaget’s theory of stages of cognitive development, have multiple similarities and differences. A behaviorist theory is based on the fundamental idea that behaviors that are reinforced will tend to continue, while behaviors that are punished will eventually end. Piaget’s Stage Theory of Cognitive Development is a description of cognitive development as four distinct stages in children. These stages are sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete, and formal. The term operant conditioning was coined by B. F. Skinner. His approach was to “focus on the external, visible causes of behavior, rather than try to unpack the internal thoughts and motivations” (Skinner, 1958, p. 48). Skinner understood that reinforcements come in two forms such as negative and positive forms. The negative reinforcements typically are characterized by the removal of an “undesired or unpleasant outcome after the desired conduct” (Alexander, 1996, p. 119). Skinner hypothesized that the response is strengthened as something considered negative is removed. On the other hand, the positive reinforcements are favorable outcomes or events that are given to the person after the desired behavior such as in the form of rewards or praises. Skinner suggested that, to reach these goals, the “reinforcement is for the person’s behavior to increase” (Casas, 2002, p. 133). On the other hand, there are positive and negative reinforcement. The two forms of punishment...
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...Theories of Development Amanda M. Glover Walden University There are dozens of developmental theories. There are theories that believe developmental a child learn behavior and other theories believe children are subjects of their environment. There is an age-old debate, dating back to the earliest Greek philosophers, of whether knowledge is innate-that is we are born with it-or whether it is learned through experience (Cohen, 2011). There is no proven scientific way to determine if nature or nurture controls a child’s behavior and how they develop. The developmental theories that I lean toward the most are as a Piaget’s cognitive stages of development, Freud’s psychosexual development, and Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development. Piaget’s cognitive stages of development suggest that at each stage of a person’s life they learn a new skill and as they process in age their skills progress. He has identified four major stages; sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. Sensorimotor occurs from birth to 2, at this stage the child is learning to use his or her hands, feet, and eyes. He or she learns to walk and crawl or use the bathroom. The next stage is preoperational occurs from 2-7, at this stage a child “engages in symbolic thought, but dominated by perception” (Perdue University , 2009). The third stage is concrete operational this occurs from ages 7 to 11. At this stage a child’s thoughts are more rational and logical. Children become...
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...Versus Vygotsky Jean Piaget (1896-1980) and Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934) proposed the classical constructivist theories of cognitive development. Although often compared, the concepts differ significantly. Indeed, the purpose of this essay is to argue that Piagetian theory marginalizes the social contribution to intellectual development and that, consequently, the Vygotskian approach offers a more accurate and comprehensive analysis. This paper will begin with an explanation of the theories of cognitive development propounded by Piaget and Vygotsky followed by a definition of constructivist and social constructivist theory. The superiority of Vygotsky’s theory will be established via a critical examination of Piaget’s stages of intellectual development, his perspective on language acquisition, and the methodology of his classic tests. Piaget maintained that cognitive development is a continuous progression of assimilation and accommodation and that these complementary processes lead to adaptation. Knowledge is constructed progressively via a sequence of behaviours or mental operations, what Piaget termed schemas. Piaget proposed that children develop mental representations of the world based on physical or mental actions, which they execute on the environment. These initially reflex behaviours are repeated while intrinsic motivation encourages the child to apply schemas to different situations. Assimilation occurs when the new experience is incorporated into an existing schema. The...
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...observation took place in a park where a birthday party was celebrating. I looked at a girl of 4 years old or so. The girl was wearing a red blouse and black shorts. I think she was Hispanic. She was about 50 inch tall and weighed about 35 to 40 pounds. I could hear when her dad called her Penelope. Physical development For her age, she had a perfect physical development because I could see how she ran with other girls and boys of the same age. She was jumping the string, and playing hides and seeks, so I could tell that the girl was healthy and had good physical development. Cognitive development (Piaget’s stages) According to Piaget’s stages Penelope is in preoperational stage because for example, she played with her friends building a sturdy house of plants’ leaves acting as if it was a princess castle. Also she used branches of the tree as if they were magic wands, so I realized that Penelope is in the section of mental representation make believe play. Another example that I realized was that Penelope father offered a juice, and gave her a choice of a bottle or a glass and she chose the bottle allowed more amount then the glass. Emotional and Social development (Erikson’s Stage) According to Erikson’s stages, Penelope is in industry versus inferiority because I noticed that she was all the time in cooperation with the other kids. She developed a sense of competence at useful skills and tasks. To support what I say I have an example. She was dancing all the time with...
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...born with cognitive functions like memory or perception. Behaviourists believe we all learn in the same way, therefore it is acceptable to associate results from experiments that are carried out on animals; with humans. This could also be seen as a downfall for the behaviourist approach as they do not anticipate any difference between animals and humans behaviour. Cognitive psychologists believe if they want to know how people think then they need to gain knowledge on a person’s mind and mental processes. They focus more on internal factors unlike behaviourists who focus of external factors. They study internal processes such as thought processes, attention, memory, language and perception. Behaviourists only study behaviour that can be observed. It assumes that we learn by associating certain events with certain consequences, and people tend to...
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...“systematic study” of cognitive development. The work of Piaget is often described as genetic epistemology simply put, “the origins of thinking” (McLeod, S. A. (2015). This theory is often recognized for its four stages, sensorimotor, preoperational thinking, concrete operations, and formal operations. Later in this article we will go over the details of each stage. The goal however of these studies was not to measure how well a child could function cognitively in order to grade their I.Q., but to identify the way the material concepts emerge in the mind. In this article we will be going over some key information regarding Jean Piaget and the theory he developed. Jean Piaget: Contributions After understanding what Jean Piaget set out to prove with this theory it is important to recognize the contributions that were made. It is because of this theory that “discovery learning” has been integrated with the primary school curriculum. The stages that were developed by Piaget help teachers, psychologists, etc. to identify the path that each child takes cognitively. Once we fully understood the true benefits of understanding the youth and were able recognize the importance of individuality we could then see an influence on the learning process. According to Piaget’s theory, classroom learning should be student centered using discovery learning as opposed to teachers using a more direct style of facilitating. It is because of changes like these that Piaget’s findings are and were extremely...
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...Psychologists' Compare And Contrast – Jean Piaget & Sigmund Freud Similarities and differences Jean Piaget was a philosopher and developmental Swiss psychologist who is widely known for the epistemology studies relating children. Piaget’s theory of epistemology and cognitive development are both referred to as genetic epistemology. Jean Piaget’s specific concern was on cognitive or intellectual development of a child and manner in which minds progress and process knowledge. Piaget’s fundamental thesis was based on the fact that children’s first grow theories of self-centric about the environment they are living in or about persons and objects in that environment. Secondly, children normally base the theories on the personal experiences that they go through while interacting with objects and persons in the environment. Thirdly, the child uses ‘Schemas’ in order to master or gain information regarding the environment. Lastly, sophistication of any child cognitive structure intensifies as a child develops as it did with a child’s schemas. A child’s schema is a tool case of responses and actions to make things happen, initiating with rudimentary connections like grabbing or mouthing items and finally progress towards extremely sophisticated skills like scientific observation. Sigmund Freud, an Austrian neurologist, is the naissance father of the process of psychoanalysis. Sigmund Freud’s main concerns were psychoanalysis which is a clinic...
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...Jean Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development PIAGET’S BACKGROUND His was one of the most important, yet most controversial theories of cognitive development (Hetherington & Parke, 2000). In 1907 at age ten, he published his first scholarly article in a journal on a rare albino sparrow.1 The career of this philosopher, psychologist and observer of children began the day his wife said to him, “watch the children for a while, will you, Jean?”2 He is a philosopher, psychologist and observer of children.2 He studied in Paris with Alfred Binet. He began to focus on the relationship between psychology and biological science with particular emphasis on development. While assisting Binet to develop standardized IQ tests for children, Piaget noticed not only that children of the same age made similar errors but that these errors differed from those of older or younger children. His opinion about cognitive development began to form as he also observed that these differences in the types of children’s errors seemed to also show unique age-related thought style and understanding of the world. Thus, he opined that the study of what children know or do not know is an avenue to understand the changes in how they think.3 He adopted unstructured interviews with children, such that he would pose the children with a problem to solve or a question to answer. But he substituted detailed observations for formal interviews, and this approach led others to criticize his work. He later...
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...CHILD DEVELOPMENT Principles & Perspectives © 2005 Joan Littlefield Cook Greg Cook 0-205-40028-0 Exam Copy ISBN 0-205-31411-2 Bookstore ISBN Visit www.ablongman.com/replocator to contact your local Allyn & Bacon/Longman representative. s a m p l e c h a p t e r The pages of this Sample Chapter may have slight variations in final published form. Allyn & Bacon 75 Arlington St., Suite 300 Boston, MA 02116 www.ablongman.com Cognitive Development Piagetian and Sociocultural Views CHAPTER PREVIEW Piaget’s Constructivist View of Cognitive Development Vygotsky’s Sociocultural View of Cognitive Development • Piaget as a Child Prodigy • Constructivism and Interaction with the Environment Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development • Vygotsky’s Background: The Sociocultural Context for a New Theory • The Role of Speech and Language • Mediation: With a Little Help from Your Friends • The Zone of Proximal Development • Scaffolding: Support during Learning Recent Sociocultural Views of Cognitive Development • Stage 1: Sensorimotor Thought (Birth to 2 Years) • Stage 2: Preoperational Thought (2 to 7 Years) • Stage 3: Concrete Operational Thought (7 to 11 Years) • Stage 4: Formal Operational Thought (Approximately Age 12 and Above) • Evaluation of Piaget’s Theory • Piaget’s Legacy • Situated Cognition • Guided Participation • Thinking as Socially Shared Cognition: Two Heads Are Better than One “Maria wants to pick the best school for her sons, so she...
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