Child Development

Child Development is important for teachers to know to enable them to find ways or strategies on how to improve a child’s learning development skills.This is also a way for them to know how to properly discipline them if they are misbehaving. By simple understanding child and adolescent development, a teacher will be able to make the most appropriate decisions possible. Nonetheless with teachers learning how and when this development occurs, they can better understand that students will be at very different stages of development in these areas and that much structure and modeling will be necessary in the classroom to help them learn how to use their higher level cognitive skills and use self-control with their emotions.

Nurture means to take care of, feed, and protect someone or something, especially young children or plants, and help him, her, or it to develop. Erickson proposed that we are motivated by the need to achieve competence in certain areas of our lives. According to psycho social theory, we experience eight stages of development over our lifep, from infancy through late adulthood. Stage5 occurs during early school-age years when children have an innate desire to socialize and play with other children. During this phase, children leave the home nest for school or other children’s homes. This is where they learn to interact with adults and their peers according to accepted rules and mores of others.They adapt to structured activities of interest, including sports. Classroom etiquette, homework demands, and team activities that further promote structure, cooperation and social grooming.

Through positive encouragement from their parents, teachers and peers, they develop a sense of initiative and motivation to achieve as their confidence grows. They feel accepted.The child uses their sense of accomplishment and self-confidence to interact with others in a more structured environment filled with rules and demands.

If the child exiting Stage III emerged in Stage IV with low self-esteem and immobilized by fear when making their own choices or interacting with others, he or she is likely to feel a sense of inferiority and withdraw from group activities and interaction. The child may lack confidence in their ability, doubt their ability to make a decision, and be prone to defeat and guilt in team exercises. In this stage, the child is determining how they fit in with the world of people. They are discovering their special talents and worth. Every effort should be made to encourage the pursuit of their interests and to be with others of like interest. They require the ability to succeed at friendship and experience bonds.

Unit 201- Child and young person development 3. 1 Identify the transitions experienced by most children and young people 3. 2 Identify transitions that only some children and young people may experience e. g. bereavement 3. 3 Describe with examples how transitions may affect children and young people’s behaviour and development Most children and young people will experience the following transitions: * Starting Nursery or reception * Going from part time to full time education * Going from infant to junior to secondary school * Starting to arrive or leave school alone Starting puberty * Exams * Starting college or higher education Some Children and young people may experience the following transitions: * Divorce * New partners * Step siblings * New siblings * New pets * Family members dying * Pets dying * Contracting, or recovering from, illness * Going into care * Moving house and changing schools * Abuse * Moving countries * Older siblings moving out of home * Injuries * Becoming disabled * Becoming a carer All of these things will have an effect on a child or young person’s development and behaviour.

Ways that a child’s development or behaviour could be affected include: * Being traumatised- A child may block an event from memory and in rare cases, can block out the whole world. This can lead to psychologically becoming blind, deaf and mute. * Becoming attention seeking- If a child has experienced a transition that means they get less attention they may act out in ways they would not normally act, breaking things, shouting, swearing etc because they crave attention and know they will get a reaction from adults * Uncharacteristic behaviour- using actions and language they would not normally use, not always to get attention.

Children and young people may be looking for an escape, or a way into a new social circle. * Being anxious or nervous- Change in routine can affect a child because disrupting their normal day to day life brings in uncertainties, things they cannot control and new people who they do not yet trust. * Becoming withdrawn- children can often become withdrawn after any kind of transition, they can be found sitting alone, playing alone, and are less responsive, if they respond at all.

It is important to try to get the child to interact with other children as well as adults. * Self harm- Not to be confused with attention seeking, if a child has had a dramatic transition, they may turn to self harm to help them feel better. Most people who self harm are never found out, because they do not want to be found out. This usually only happens in extreme situations, and is very unlikely to happen to anyone younger than 12. It is important to report any concerns about a child that may be self harming.

The vision comes clearer as babies develop the ability to focus and center of things or people especially during this crucial stage, babies form a strong bond with their caregivers. It is very important for parents to be very loving and have a great amount of understandable, In the second year babies still have no ability to see the world In any perspective. They are learning about individual objects from ground level. Concepts of time and distance, “too fast, too slow, too far” are all beyond their grasp, often to the despair of parents for whom these concepts are painfully real.

They are however irking hard on their categories, sorting the objects they see into understandable groups. Consequently, having seen and remembered a duck they are likely to say “duck” when they first see a chicken because they both have feathers and wings. It’s truly wonderful to see what powers of observation they bring to this task of organizing the objects, characters and animals they come across In their world. For example in our neighbor’s child, the mother says at the age of 6 months her daughter can able to walk then started to say ;meme” means milk.

And now she’s two years old, I observed, she can balance her body while biking a bicycle with three pedals, then can walk up and down stairs on both feet, one step ate time while holding on to a rail. This child, I think she was a taste learner because she’s different with others children. OBSERVATIONS: Two-year-olds enjoy using their senses and motor skills to explore the world and are highly curious about unfamiliar objects, events and phenomena. They can solve simple problems with the “trial and error” method and will practice an activity many times to master It. Hillier this age also pretends more during play, using familiar objects and situations to process their daily experiences. New discoveries are also facilitated by d two-year-olds blossoming language skills that prompt many “why,” “what” and “how” questions. During the year, children this age picks up most parts to speech to form more complete sentences. They can understand and say hundreds of words, but familiar adults may need to “translate” for others due to Immature pronunciation skills. They also understand simple directions and many common phrases used In routine situations.

Takeaway-olds can sing the A-B-C song, but they onto yet understand that the letter names correspond to specific graphic designs. They also make a variety of scribble marks anywhere and everywhere and may even attempt to write the first letter of their name. As they play and complete their daily routines, two-year-olds learn important math skills. They can use a toy to represent another object, recognize patterns with daily activities and understand concepts of time like, “tomorrow” and “yesterday. ” Two-year-olds are Just beginning to use logical reasoning to solve everyday problems.

They can sort shapes, complete puzzles with eight pieces or less and stack a set of rings on a peg by size. They also understand addition and subtraction with the numbers “one” and “two. ” Physically, two-year-olds explore all the ways to travel from here to there, including rolling, crawling, creeping, walking, running, Jumping and climbing. They can also kick a small ball forward, catch a rolled ball and throw a ball overhand (but with little accuracy). Two-year-olds love finger play activities (e. G. “The Its, Bitsy, Spider”), pounding and squeezing clay, shaking rhythm instruments and scribbling. They can turn doorknobs and unscrew lids and have improved their skills using eating utensils. Two-year-olds also use their motor skills to explore the creative arts. They make sounds by banging and shaking instruments and household items. They enjoy dancing upon request, doing finger plays and acting out chants and songs. Children this age is also gaining control over their voices and will Join in singing the refrains of their favorite songs.

With art, they enjoy the sensory pleasures of the art materials and focus on the process of creating art, rather than the final product. Two-year-olds enjoy playing alongside other children, but usually keep to themselves. When conflicts arise, adults need to step in to prevent aggression and teach appropriate behaviors. Children this age are beginning to label feelings that they recognize in themselves and others. Controlling emotions is still difficult, however, so frustration may trigger emotional meltdowns. Comfort objects like blankets or teddy bears help two-year-olds cope with new situations or strong emotions.

Discussions: Child and adolescent development refers to the biological, psychological and motional changes that occur in human beings between birth and the end of adolescence, as the individual progresses from dependency to increasing autonomy. Because these developmental changes may be strongly influenced by genetic factors and events during prenatal life, genetics and prenatal development are usually included as part of the study of child development. Related terms include developmental psychology, referring to development throughout the lifep, and pediatrics, the branch of medicine relating to the care of children.

Developmental change may occur as a result of genetically-controlled processes now as maturation, or as a result of environmental factors and learning, but most commonly involves an interaction between the two. It may also occur as a result of human nature and our ability to learn from our environment. Conclusions: As children develop from infants to teens to adults they go through a series of developmental stages that are important to all aspects of their Persephone including physical, intellectual, emotional and social.

The proper role of the parent is to provide encouragement, support and access to activities that enable the child aster key developmental tasks. Therefore, a parent is their child’s first teacher and should remain their best teacher throughout life. Functioning as a coach, the parent exposes a child to age appropriate challenges to encourage development as well as to experiences that allows the child to explore on their own and learn from interacting with their environment. Child Development specialists have learned that from birth children are goal directed to experiment and learn from each experience.

Child Development experts have taken the concept of scaffolding from the building reads. Just as scaffolding is put up to support the structure of the building as it is being built and gradually taken down as the building is able to stand on its own, a parent needs to provide the necessary support for a child to allow them to safely and productively explore and learn from their environment. As the child matures and develops mastery the scaffolding is removed or changed to allow the child to become more independent. If the child is not quite ready, the support is reinstated and then gradually withdrawn once again.

When professionally assessed, the young person will be assessed against a nationally recognized level and compared against these to assess their progress. Factors to be taken into account when assessing a child’s development will be their health; whether they come from an economically deficient background that may have impaired their early development because of a lack of a healthy diet. If there is a history of mental or disability within the birth family that is having an effect on the child’s capability to progress in education and comprehend fully the surroundings and situations they are in.

Maybe they are physically disabled and cannot fulfill certain everyday functions and activities they may come normally to any other child or young person. This may have an emotional bearing and need to be taken into account when assessing them on their development. AGE Physical Intellectual Language Emotional Social 3 Months eggs not strong yet to hold weight when standing Visually alert and follows adults with eyes, moves head Stops crying to sound of rattle Quietest to sound of familiar voice Stares at parent or career when being fed 6 Months FM. Uses palmary grasp to pick up objects. GSM.

Held standing with feet touching hard surface. Manipulates objects attentively. Forgets about toy if hidden. More alert now. Turn to where familiar voice comes from, listens to voice Laugh, show excitement and displeasure. Will reach out to be picked up. Show preference for primary career. Friendly with strangers on most occasions. 9 Months Rolls along, wiggles and may crawl Recognizes names, points at pictures and books. Splashes deliberately. Laughs before action toy works, remembers the action. Babbles, will shout for attention, wait and repeat. Copies simple sounds. Still cry for attention, but ill also use their voices.

Have become aware of other people significant to them. Copies facial expressions 12 Months Controls legs and feet, can stand Throws toys on purpose. Says first real word Responds to own name. Can eat finger food after being weaned. 15 Months Walks unaided Understands many words, simple phrases, and directions. Repeats words Really loves books now and will pat the pages when looking at pictures. Feeds him/herself. 18 Months Walks very well without holding on to furniture, needs arms for balance. Uses objects to imitate everyday activities. Will build a 3 brick tower. Scribbles bad ND fed, can make dots.

Sounds like speech but not yet understandable. Will chatter away whilst playing. Uses 6-20 words. Pretend play, dolls and domestic scenarios. Still needs familiar adults to be close by. No sense of danger. Can feed self and drink from a cup. Throws toys but doesn’t look where they drop. Can undress self. 2 Years FM. Picks up objects and places down neatly. GSM. Runs on whole foot. Can negotiate obstacles and stairs. Turns pages carefully, notices finer points of picture. Identify a picture. Can name well known objects No understanding of need to defer immediate satisfaction of wishes. Enjoys ole-play.

Finds sharing difficult. Can spoon feed self with no problems 3 years Can balance on one foot for a moment. Name colors, build small brick tower. Inquisitive questions. Can recite numbers, but only count 3 objects. Show affection to sibling. Will now wait for needs to be fulfilled. Will share, will play with others and alone, has best friends. Tidies up. 4 Years Walks on tip-toes, uses pedals and can steer. Good special awareness. Skilful at holding pencils. Able to have a conversation with. Can recite rhymes and songs, and has favorite stories. Begins to show understanding of past and present. Uses humor.

Can be cheeky to an adult, can use a spoon and a fork to eat. Can manage personal hygiene. 5 Years FM. Showing signs of skill with construction toys. GSM. Energetic, plays ball games. Counts fingers, can match well. Can copy letters. Confuses S with HTH or F. Enjoys stories and will repeat them in their play. Reassures friends when they are upset. Best friends, sense of humor increases. Lots of complex play, using lots of imagination. 6-12 Years Significant differences between children’s physical appearances due to heredity, nutrition and normal developmental variation. Strength, hand-eye coordination & stamina progress rapidly.

Puberty for some girls can start. Rapid development of mental skills. Greater ability to talk about thoughts and feelings. Learning to plan ahead. Think more logically. Developing mathematical and literacy skills. Reading and writing become more articulate, being able to relate involved accounts of events. Hold adult conversations. Learn by watching and talking to each other. Give support in times of stress. Begin to see things from other child’s point of view. Still may require help to express their feelings in appropriate ways. More independence from parents and family. Stronger sense of right and wrong.

Beginning awareness of the future. More attention to friendships and teamwork. Growing desire to be liked and accepted by friends. 12-14 Years Puberty for both sexes. Rapid musculoskeletal growth. The adolescent can put together all the possible outcomes before beginning the problem. Sizes actions more than words to express themselves. Moodiness and shyness. Feels like nothing bad can happen to them. Revisits childish behavior. Spend more time with peers. Begin to form their identity exploring clothes music and hobbies. Push limits. 14-17 years Continued physical activity important to maintain strength and fitness.

Youth begins to question family and school rules and challenge parents. Believe nothing bad can happen to them, risk takers. Use language to campaign for what they believe in. Maybe reluctant to speak to adults directly preferring anonymity. Displays mixed feelings about ‘breaking away’ from parents. Troubled youth may act out to express emotional pain (drug use/skip school/ fights) May select adults other than parents as role models. 17-19 Years Fully developed and completed puberty. Males growing facial hair. Either finished full-time education and seeking employment, or continuing with Geiger education.

Interests are stable. Can set goals and follow through. Expresses feelings in words. Shows emotional stability. Greater concern for others. Starts listening to parents’ advice again. Greater concern for the future. Concerned with serious relationships. Clear sexual identity. Self esteem is based on the adolescent’s view of him/herself, rather than other people. More self reliant and independent. Peer group not as important as few ‘good’ friends. Accepts social institutions and cultural traditions. Age One must also consider their cultural background and ethnicity.

Does this present a language barrier that is hindering their ability to mix with their peers and develop at a normal and satisfactory rate and maybe hindering their ability to attend education or there are not the facilities available to help them with education. Are the cultural and religious beliefs of the birth family having a negative effect on the development of the child or young person creating social and moral barriers to their development. The table above shows an indication of what is expected of a child and person to achieve in an emotional and physical way in a normal environment without negative influences upon them.

W. Q. 1. 2 – Assess a child or young person’s development in the following areas: Physical Communication Intellectual/con dive Social, emotional and behavioral Moral There are many ways to assess the development of a child or young person’s development, and a starting point is to consider what information is needed and how the information will be used to assess accurately. This should be done holistically (upholding that all aspects of people’s needs including: – psychological – physical – social – spiritual should be taken into account and seen as a whole).

Developing activities that will involve the child or young errors so that they can be observed in the areas above and then these observations can be recorded for evidence when formulating a development plan. There are many ways and tools used to record information in the care setting:- Free description, or narrative description -? the child’s behavior is recorded during a short period of time and includes what the career sees during specific tasks or activities. Checklists and tick charts – this method is used by health visitors when assessing, in the care setting this may be used by the LACK nurse on routine health visits to the care home.

Time sample seed to observe a child over a longer period of time, taking snapshots within that time period, and is a way of assessing more than one area of development. Filming, photographs – a good way of recording the child or young person in ‘real time’ which can be played back and re-analyses several times to observe completely different aspects of the child and how they interact. Information from parents and colleagues – such information gained from questionnaires or sitting down and having meetings to discuss topics relevant to the child or young person: their experiences they have had with he young person.

At motivations we record information on a daily basis, this in the form of our Daily/Weekly record. As part Of the care team record my observations and then share this with the social workers involved, the Line manager and the Head of Care within our company. The information recorded will cover how the child or young person coped with activities, day to day routines, new experiences and family contact. Included in this will be there emotional state and behaviors and reactions to moral problems and situations, failing and successes and how they have benefited, learnt and progressed.

Recording their educational achievements and gathering information from schools and colleges on a weekly basis all forms important data to include in the assessment of the young person towards formulating a Review report and in-depth Care Plan for the future development and progression for the young person. W. Q. 1. 3 – Explain the selection of the assessment methods used. It is important that assessment methods used are justifiable and recognize that there are limitations to these methods but that we can justify our conclusions and support them with relevant and appropriate information.

Free ascription -? is an unobtrusive way of recording information, is flexible and we are able to carry this method out many times during the day/week. However, it can be hard to record everything that we see and that if several people are contributing to the narrative then people’s bias may influence what is being recorded. Time sample – possible to see what is happening over a longer period Of time and the observers can see many different aspects Of the child or young person through varied activities.

Filming/photographs more information can be gained, but the child or young person will be aware f the recording method and those recording choose what to be recorded and so may accidental miss important actions or reactions that the child or young person may do. Information from parents/colleagues – important that parents and colleagues know that the child is involved in activities that are developing them, but again may show bias as to how well they have performed previously in the same or similar situations.

W -Q. 1. 4 -? Develop a plan to meet the development needs of a child or young person in the work setting Developing a plan to meet the development needs of a child or young errors in the work setting can be completed once the assessment stage has been completed or it is agreed that enough information has been gathered to proceed further. When a new referral enters Motivations, it is standard practice that a Planning Meeting is held within five working days of the date of arrival.

This happened recently at Victoria Rd (where I am Acting Deputy Manager); the social worker involved with the young person will visit the home and discuss aims and objectives to promote the welfare of the young person. In attendance will be the House Manager, the young person for some Of the meeting and a representative Of senior management. In this Case, the person with parental responsibility was unable to attend but was invited as this was a re-scheduled meeting (24. 01. 13).

Elements covered in the Planning meeting will be: Date for review Timescale Aims and purposes Targets or criteria for success Suggested activities Resources and costing Location and suitability Roles and responsibilities Of those involved 2. Be able to promote the development of children or young people BOB. 2. 1 – implement the development plan for a child or young person according to win role and responsibilities, taking into account that development is holistic and interconnected BOB. 2. – Evaluate and revise the development plan in the light of implementation W. Q. 2. 3 – Explain the importance of a person centered and inclusive approach and give examples of how this is implemented in own work It is very important to have a person centered and inclusive approach when developing the plans for the child and young person. They should be included in the reviews and planning meetings wherever appropriate as they should be able to voice their opinion in matters hat directly affect them long and short termed.

The young person is capable then Of voicing their opinion at a time that is most relevant and when the most important decisions are made for their future, it may also be that their opinion is not understood or has not been correctly recorded in the day to day record and assessment taking. The young person may feel that it is only during Review Meetings when there is an independent reviewing officer present, that they feel they can voice their own opinion and it is listened to in an UN-biased manner. During my work setting this is achieved on a weekly axis by having regular ‘Client Meetings’ and ‘Group Meetings’ held within the home.

The young person is able to talk to staff on an agenda based format or ad-hoc depending on the circumstances and events. These meetings are recorded and the minutes are given to the Line Manager for review and auctioning when necessary. During a placement period, there will be regular reviews held which will assess the young person’s placement and how their needs are being met. A plan will be formulated based on outstanding requirements and to fulfill the developing needs of the young person, from his their Placement Plan can be updated to inform all those involved in the care of the young person changes that have been made. Attached example is a Placement Plan I updated on young person that was in our care). Information changes and requests will then be passed on to staff through the process of handovers and team meetings (which are held every month). BOB. 2. 4 – Listen to children or young people and communicate in a way that encourages them to feel valued BOB. 2. 5 – Encourage children or young people to actively participate in decisions affecting their lives and the services they chive according to their age and abilities 3. Be able to support the provision of environments and services that promote the development of children or young people W.

Q. 3. 1 – Explain the features of an environment or service that promotes the development of children and young people Planning an environment that promotes the development of children and young people requires a lot of thought and experience, and is not just a case of putting in nice furniture and supplying a big TV for the residents to watch! The features of the environment relate to the entire running and ethos of the setting. Features to be considered are: Stimulating and Attractive – young people learn through their senses, so an environment needs to be stimulating and interesting, and also attractive.

It should include opportunities for play and activities. Planned and Organized a structured system with boundaries that help the young person feel safe and secure, individuals will have their needs, interests and personality fulfilled and developed. Encouraging participation – trying to make the young person feel valued and part of the group environment and not excluded. Promoting equality, diversity and inclusion. Regularity ARQ reorients -? the setting must et the minimum standards require by Posted, and also be compliant to Health & Safety legislation and other legislation involving safeguarding, protection of their human rights.

High-quality policy and procedures – as well as legislative requirements, there is an important need to have policy and procedures for staff to follow which are reviewed, updated and evaluated on a regular basis to check their effectiveness in the workplace. Varied – up to date working practices implemented with current thinking. Providing appropriate risk and challenge – provide a care setting where the young errors is capable of making mistakes in a safe environment.

Children and young people must be able to learn from their mistakes in a positive way, if they are wrapped in cotton-wool and stifled they will be ill-prepared for when they leave care and the safe environment they are in presently. Involving parents – the ultimate goal is that where and when possible we return the child or young person back to their home environment, and therefore we need to include parents and family as much as possible so that they are prepared and skilled in the care of the child to effectively manage this happening.

This achieved by organizing regular contact, discussing the young person’s development and having the parents involved in planning and review meetings. BOB. 3. 2 – Demonstrate how own work environment or service is organized to promote the development of children or young people 4. Understand how working practices can impact on the development of children and young people W. Q. 4. 1 – Explain how own working practice can affect children and young people’s development I understand and realism that my own working practice can have a significant effect on the development of the children and young people in my care.

Questions that ask myself about my working practice may include: Am I and my colleagues within the care home aware of the developmental needs of the young person in our care, IS relevant and important information handed over in a proper manner that is informative and of a quality standard. Are the systems that use ensuring that everyone gets the information needed; if not what can I do to effectively change this in a positive manner. Are the activities planned for the young person positive and beneficial to the young person, could alternatives be employed or are they biased towards the needs of the care staff!

Activities need to be specifically planned to meet the needs of the individual in a positive manner. Are activities balanced positively to meet the needs of the young person? Are they gaining anything from going to the cinema three times a week?! Do activities planned cover the key areas of the educational curriculum and build in a positive developmental way. Do work with the young person enough to gain a proper insight into their developmental needs and requirements, if not then why not?

Is the young person engaging fully in their activities or routines to develop themselves fully and take full advantage Of the opportunities presented to them? W. Q. 4. 2 -? Explain how institutions, agencies and services affect children and young people’s development Institutions, agencies and services affect children and young people in a positive way by being able to provide a varied and positive development experience that a single agency like ourselves would not be able to provide.

We at Motivations are currently using an outside education agency called Inconsiderateness to support us in supplying educational support off-site to a young person in our care who is permanently excluded from main-stream Tate education. They are able to deal with challenging behavior and satisfy the Local Authority with full-time education which was planned during the initial Placement Meeting. Without this outside agency, educational needs for the young person would not have been met at a very important stage in their life aged 13.

Other agencies provide support for the young person in times of crisis in their life: NSP can give support to the young person as well as Childlike. Another service that we use at Motivations is ‘Ability’ in Clotheshorse; they supply a very specialized outward bounds service run y professionals experienced in emotional and behavioral challenging young people. Without such agencies, the activities available to young people to challenge and develop them would be limited. 5. Be able to support children and young people’s positive behavior BOB. 5. – Demonstrate how they work with children and young people to encourage positive behavior W. Q. 5. 2 -? Evaluate different approaches to supporting positive behavior There are many different approaches that we use at Motivations to support and encourage positive behavior. Initially, we attempt to treat the child as normal as possible, creating surroundings that reward good and positive behavior, either by words of encouragement during day to day activities, or initiating positive rewards that culminate in a material goal for the young person or child – depending on their age etc.

During the course of a normal day words of encouragement, a positive glance or smile, to a ‘thumbs up’ or a comforting hand on a young person’s shoulder is all that is needed to show support and give encouragement for the young person to put a little extra effort into an activity and achieve their goal. So support positive behavior and compliance in a day to day house routine, here appropriate we use a ‘Daily Points Scheme’ – the child or young person is scored out of ten on a daily basis on five key factors which we want the young person to improve in.

Child Development – Case studies Mrs Roberts is returning to work after maternity leave. Today she has an appointment with a local nursery as she requires full time care for Timothy who is six months old. Mrs Roberts is extremely anxious as Timothy is her first born and she is feeling guilty about returning to work and leaving him in childcare. How will you ensure that Mrs Roberts and timothy are reassured? Explain the daily nursery routines to Mrs Roberts such as play sessions, toilet, and food.

Give her the Policy & Procedures booklet and ask questions about Timothy – likes, dislikes, special requirements. Be reassuring and understanding with regard to her apprehensions and explain that good communication between the nursery, parents and child are essential. Maybe suggest that she could stay for a while in the first few sessions to reassure her about how Timothy is handling the transition. How could their situation affect practice? You must be wary of the other children at the nursery – how may they react to a parent staying?

Set a length of time that she could stay and suggest for only 3 sessions initially. All Staff must be made aware of the situation and confidentiality be adhered to. Today is Bethany’s first day at pre-school. Bethany who is an only child has attended for short spells with her mother which went well. Bethany has woke up this morning with a tummy ache, her mother suspects it is related to going to pre- school and reassures her daughter. When Bethany arrives at pre- school she becomes very clingy to mum and when mum goes to leave she starts to cry and gets upset.

How will you deal with the situation? Reassure mum and Bethany. Be friendly and engage the child in funny conversation and/or involve them in play. Identify her favourite thing to do – distraction point. How will you reassure mum? Explain to mum that ‘Bethany will be fine’ and if there are any problems they will contact her. How will you reassure Bethany? Explain that ‘She will see mummy later’, show her the clock/time line and show when mummy will be back. Introduce her to some other children – meet a friend and distract with play, keep her busy.

Rosie and Jim are 4 year old twins today they will be staring primary school, the twins will be doing mornings for a week before going all day, their parents have decided to split the twins at school so that they can develop as individuals. The twins wake up very excited about going to school which pleases their parents, however when they arrive at school they become agitated and upset when they realise that they are in different classes. How are you going to reassure the twins? Explain to them the day’s routine and show them a time line, pointing out when the twins will be together – break times, story time, end of day.

Encourage them to meet new people and play with different things. How are you going to reassure the parents? Explain to them the day’s routine and tell them when the twins will be together – break times etc. Ensure that the parents are given positive feedback. What contingency plan could you have in place? Ensure that the twins will be together at least once a day. Show both twins where the other one is – classroom. Put a ‘buddy’ with them both – so they always have someone. Worst case – put them in the same class! by Jo Quinn

There are five sub categories when looking at a child’s development and although all of these are age guided, not all children reach the same area at the same time, neither do they systematically achieve each stage by a certain age, although they are achieved in order, they are there for guidance purposes only. The five Identified areas that a child develops are physical, Intellectual, social, emotional and language The first stage which has been termed by cognitive psychologist Jean Planet as the Seniority stage covers the age range from birth to 2 years of age.

This Is the age range when the most dramatic and primary changes happen, with the baby transitioning from being totally dependent upon a career for all sources of their welfare and development, to exercising a very limited way of communicating to others their wants as they develop into becoming a fairly able bodied toddler who can more often than to exercise their autonomy through vocal and physical displays of preference.

During the seniority stage a child learns about the world around them through the 5 senses, touch, taste, sight, sound and smell. It is through the use of these senses that the baby begins to interact with their environment, initially it is smell and sound which Is used to Identify their primary care giver normally this recognition Is In the form of bodily smells and voice.

Their sight Is the next sense, developing from a black and white Image with color slowly Integrated, It Is through this process here they begin to socially develop relationships by recognition of people within their environment, especially with a great response towards the human face , this is then built upon by the fine tuning of voluntary and reciprocal expressions of both facial expressions and noises, that eventually turn smiles or cries into fully formed words, making social exchanges a two way social interaction where by autonomy is expressed.

Through the use of taste and touch babies assist their exploration of their environment through the use of their mouths and tongue, this is soon over mom and exploration is then mostly practiced via the touch alone, so they grow the next area to develop Is to define their fine motor skills, beginning with holding a finger of a care giver, to a rattle, to aim for grabbing distant objects, using the pincher grip when learning to self feed, to finally having the ability to grasp objects and use them with Intentional purpose, like bang a drum or push a toy car along.

These fine motor skills are not just confined to upper limb movement but also the ability to aided/ unaided to crawling to walking to running to Jumping and even attempting to inferno stairs. But social interactions within their environments are Just as important to a child’s development at this very early stage as they are even later on, due to them battling internal conflicts and their abilities to grasp concepts from the world around them, therefore positive reinforcement and interactions are necessary to encourage social development.

Overall by the end of the seniority stage children have developed from being totally dependent to being more environmentally and socially aware of their surroundings. The next developmental tag of a child can be classed as pre- school or as Erik Erickson termed it, the play age, with the age band of 3-5 years. Neurological connections continue to be produced at a high volume due to the need for the increase in cognitive abilities.

Through this stage children become more self aware of themselves along with that of others developing a sense of individuality within their environments and are able to control and express their emotions at a more direct level whilst also being able to express empathy towards others. Their physical capabilities are becoming finer need with the ability of being able to catch a ball, move to rhythm, and hold a pencil and balance. Intellectually they are becoming more inquisitive therefore are able enquire and to absorb information rapidly allowing them relay it at most times a comprehensible level.

Their play also begins to incorporate details of everyday life and aspects of role play begin to show. Level Weights deems this stage of proximal development important to not only the child but also the people/ peers within the child’s environment as they are there as guide to help steer and influence the child’s hinging acting as a ‘scaffolding in development’ through encouragement of exploration. The next developmental milestone stage in child development that follows on from the ‘play age’ is the age range of 5-8 years.

During this stage of the child’s development their development becomes more sophisticated by putting into practice all they have learnt since birth by fine tuning their speech and every movement, along with their intellectual awareness being much greater with them becoming more inquisitive about the world, their environment, who they are as a person and here they fit into this world due to becoming more aware of differences in all aspects of their lives.

They are also at a stage where they begin to feel the need to ‘belong and fit in’ with a greater personal emphasis being placed upon relationships. They are also more aware of others feelings towards themselves, making this a very vulnerable stage with personal perceptions and peer group opinions being a very important factor in this stage of development proving complimentary of Level Hoosegows theory that this stage is reliant upon the ‘scaffolding of peer relationships’.

From birth to adulthood children are all developing. They develop at different rates but all follow the same basic pattern. Physical development starts from the head, and works down the body to the arms and finally the legs. Communication develops from crying to recognizable words and then intelligent conversation. Emotionally children are reliant on their primary caregiver until they develop an awareness of themselves and are able to socialize and function independently.

These various strands of development are not made in isolation or sequentially. Development is concurrent and holistic, therefore any deficiency in one area can affect the development in other areas.  A newborn lies curled up in the fetal position, unable to raise head. Movements are instinctive such as reactions to sound or closing eyes in bright light. 3 months can turn head to look at objects. 6 months child begins to hold up head, keeping it steady for increased periods.

Learns to grasp and hold objects, then moves them from one hand to the other at will. Next can pull body to a sitting position and stay upright when aided. 9 months is able to sit unaided. Releases toys by dropping. Uses pincer grip to pick up items. Holds feeding bottle. 12 months as the baby gains more body control it can roll and crawl. Early years1 – 3 years. The gross motor skills are developed as the child starts to stand with support. This progresses to standing alone for a couple of seconds. Can walk holding one hand for support. Can walk unaided, run and jump as she develops full control of her limbs.

Finer motor skills are developed such as the pincer grip to pick up small objects. Is able to hold a spoon to feed themselves. Learns to hold a crayon to scribble and then draw shapes with. Talks well in sentences, clear enough to be understood. Learns to eat independently using a knife and fork. Motor skills are developed to the point where a child can walk backwards. They can now walk placing heel to toe and balance themselves on a narrow beam. Manual dexterity now allows them to catch a ball, build structures, and draw shapes. Dress and undress with assistance, then alone.

Take turns in play with friends and plays cooperatively. Could be frightened of things like spiders and ghosts. Knows their left from right and how many fingers they have. Hormonal changes are responsible for a growth spurt at this time. Gain muscles, but can still appear to lack coordination. Develop large and fine motor skills for use in sports and hobbies. Activity increases and may want to spend more time with peers rather than parents. Noticeable body changes take place, girls develop breasts and boys’ voices change. The growth of underarm and pubic hair is normal at this time.

Another indicator of this stage is the development of Acne. Pre teens begin to notice the opposite sex, but prefer to stick with their own gender. Their own identity emerges in musical taste and clothes. Teenagers frequently have close friendships with their peers. Are often concerned about how they look and what others think of them. Physical changes continue as puberty is ongoing or completed. Children become more independent but still seek advice and guidance from parents. Teens are aware of the opposite sex and may be going out with them.

Preoccupied by their own sexuality. Conflict and a lowered opinion of parents emerge as teenager tries to mature. More stable emotionally. Not so concerned about body once puberty ends. Develops clear sexual identity. By the end of this stage both girls and boys will have reached physical maturity. A newborn baby cries as their only means of communication. As young babies have no concept of time, to them all needs are urgent, and should be responded to as such.

Begins to formulate concepts and is aware of the physical sensation of hunger. Will cry in order to have the need for food met. Develops different cries for a variety of needs, changing, hurting, frightened or lonely. Once they find their voice they will make cooing noises and other sounds. Begins to take an interest in their surroundings, paying attention to toys. Uses voice to communicate feelings, with laughter when playing and screaming when annoyed. Can understand familiar objects and has an expectation of what they will do. Chatters away tunefully and uses voice to attract attention.

Watches the actions of those around them with interest.  Will learn 2 or 3 words that will be repeated constantly. Able to make the appropriate response to simple instructions. Goes through a trial and error process to discover what an object does. Can verbally communicate what they need. Is developing an inquiring mind about things and surroundings. Uses own personal jargon with many words unintelligible to most people. Knows the names for different parts of their body. Often repeats the last word spoken by any adult in earshot. Has a growing vocabulary of over 200 words and talks to themselves continuously.

Joins 2 or 3 words together to make a sentence. Can use their own name with reference to themselves. Constantly asking questions, with infantile substitution, and can relate past events to the present.  Speech becomes more confident as the substitutions decrease and full fluent speech is achieved. Can count up to twenty using repetition. Ask for the meaning of unfamiliar words. Questioning generally is at its height. Can draw a recognizable house and detailed people. Has a sense of time and can relate to the past, present and future.

Able to write their own nameCan match colours and has an understanding of numbers. Reading skills will be developing in this stage and the child might write independently.  Speech has now developed fully. Reading and writing skills are now being refined. Able to express thoughts and discuss learning making use of language skills. Shares ideas and opinions with peer group. Speech style or jargon is important to fit in with their group. Have a fairly rigid concept of right and wrong. Will confide more with their peers than their parents.

Increased use of speech reduces the amount of acting out. Have a good idea of their favorite sport and subjects and are well motivated in these areas. Fluctuates between considerable maturity and babyness. Can appear secretive at home, talkative but not very communicative. Has a stubborn unwillingness to compromise.   Thinking about choices to be made regarding further education or career choice. Emerging ability to make independent decisions and able to compromise. Begins to become more self-reliant. Conversation skills are well developed and uses prior knowledge gained.  Social, emotional and behavioural development  Creates an attachment bond with mother. Smiles at mother and may squeal with delight. Familiar routines elicit a positive response. Responds to different tones from mother. May become shy in the company of strangers and cling to a familiar adult. Can imitate hand clapping. Understands simple commands and can wave goodbye. Will cooperate with adult dressing them. Can demonstrate signs of affection. Will participate in nursery rhymes. Now should be able to help adult with dressing.

Indicates when pants are soiled or wet. Becomes emotionally dependent on a familiar adult. Drinks from a cup with both hands. At the end of this stage will gain control of bowels. May throw a tantrum when frustrated. Able to play co-operatively and may have imaginary friends. Tries visibly hard to please.  Child enjoys co-operative and dramatic play, taking turns. Understands the links between co-operation and competition. Can respond rationally to reasoning. Enjoys a degree of independence but still needs reassurance. Can become totally engrossed in activities.

Can be concerned about being disliked. Fears develop about things under the bed or ghosts. Now able to form firm friendships. Fairly independent and confident. They will develop a select group of friends. Friendships become firm and more settled. They seek more independence in order to solve problems themselves. Need continued praise and encouragement. Increasingly concerned about what others think about them. Will be unsure about changes in their setting.  Body changes can upset self-esteem of children and make them quite vulnerable.

As their bodies take on adult characteristics they still feel childlike inside. Will feel pressure from growing up and changing expectations. Some become more assured by changes in their environment. Peer pressure is a significant influence on them. Children want to spend more time with their friends than family. As children enter adulthood they are still relatively inexperienced. The peer group losses importance and is replaced by a few close friends. Mature young adults will start to listen to their parents again, asking for advice. As a sense of identity emerges they are no longer afraid to seek counseling.

One on one dating becomes important. May embark on a more intimate relationship with someone. Different aspects of development can affect one another.  A child needs to be physically developed in order to play this game. They will use gross motor skills to run around and kick the ball. Hand-eye (feet-eye) coordination is also essential as the player needs to be spatially aware of where they are in relation to other things. It is no good have strong legs and great aim if you could not see where the ball was and make a connection. It is not much fun playing this game in isolation.

As a team game players need to have the social skills to share the ball by taking it in turns. They have to understand the cooperation factor which is vital in a competitive game. No one person can win a game on their own.  This game consists of rules that are available off the pitch, these may be discussed orally or read by individuals. Professional teams are supported and lively banter between children will have them routing for their side. With little instructions or intervention children can communicate with each other to organise themselves into teams and have a very good game.  It is important that babies are spoken to regularly and exposed to a variety of rich language. The more they are talked to the more responsive they will be. The more that they hear, allows them to develop a larger and more varied vocabulary. Research shows that there is a link between early language and literacy skills. Increased reading and writing skills can be the foundation for academic and social success in the future.

This includes siblings, aunts and uncles, cousins or even neighbours and good friends. If all is well in their world the chances are that it will be the same for your child. However things do happen that can have an effect on your child’s development and you may not realize it. If a family member becomes ill or dies this can be an emotionally upsetting time not just for the adults involved, but also for the children who have formed an attachment to them. Some less obvious influences may be the ‘expected’ birth of a sibling; the introduction of a new partner or having to move home or school.

You should pay attention to any change in your child’s behaviour and check if their learning is being affected.  Is your culture the same as the environment you are raising you child in? If not you should consider how these differences will affect your child. When English is not your first language it is helpful to your child if you encourage your child to develop this along side their mother tongue. It is important that children are able to speak, write and understand English so that they can have full access to the curriculum and make progress at the same rate as their peers.  Children are known to be a very expensive to raise and educate. Not all parents have the necessary funds to feed and cloth them adequately, let alone provide for extras. Poverty may be recognized by other children if a child does not have the latest fashion or electronic gadget at home. This may lead to a child being excluded from certain playground groups. It has been reported that children from deprived circumstances do not usually do well aat school as this impacts on most areas of their development.  Ill health of a mother or baby immediately after birth can have a profound effect on a child.

It is in this very early stage of life that infants need the care of a constant caregiver. Any interruption to this process stops the child’s normal attachment progression. This could then result in a child struggling to form close relationships later in life. A child may be unwell occasionally and need to stay off from school for a few days. There will be cause for concern if this becomes a regular pattern. Any child who misses out on school restricts their developmental opportunities. A child who has a physical impairment is understandably restricted in certain areas, such as ovement in the playground and the social interactions that come with play. Support from adults around them is essential to help ensure they are included wherever possible. Growth and weight are primary indicators that are used by professionals to monitor the progress and well being of children. Children of the same age are often different shapes and sizes and there are a number of indicators that can explain this. For example boys are often bigger than girl, genetics may be responsible for a boy having a short stature and slight frame, or a poor diet may be responsible for a child being overweight.

In all these cases reference to a growth chart may provide answers or explanation for their current development position. A pattern emerges over time for each child and cause for alarm would be if there was a sudden or sharp deviation from the normal pattern. The route for a child who was born prematurely will initially be on a lower path than that of a full term baby however it would be expected to ‘catch up’ over time. Even if this was not the case as long as the child was meeting other development goals this would not be an issue in isolation.

Where children live has a marked effect on their social and emotional development. Children that live in a nice, clean, graffiti free, residential area are likely to grow up stress free. They will probably live in a single family residence, in a natural setting, with room to run and exercise their gross motor skills. It is likely that they will know their neighbours giving them opportunities for extended social interactions. High rise dwellings; noise and traffic pollution; overcrowding and access to services, all contribute to levels of psychological distress for many children.

This manifests itself indirectly as poor interactions with parents and teachers which culminate in poor language and learning development.  Children are routinely exposed to noise from cars, airplanes, music and other people. It is essential for children to be able to hear properly in order to learn how to read. However, when they are constantly bombarded with acute noise levels they begin to ignore all auditory input. This defense mechanism has been documented by researchers who recorded significantly reduced reading and speech ability.

Children’s cognitive development is also compromised by noise pollution as adults and teachers around them struggle to be heard. Teachers can become annoyed, fatigued and impatient in a loud environment. Their teaching style can become compromised as they lose valuable time dealing with distractions. This indirectly deals another blow to the child chances of developing. Crowding is another factor that has been noted as having a marked effect on children’s development. This phenomenon can affect the only child as well as those from large families.

It comes about when a child is placed in an overcrowded situation over which they feel they have no control. Children may withdraw into themselves as a coping strategy. This may occur in a children’s activity area and result in less constructive and interactive play. Language development can be affect as parents speak less to children in crowded situations. There is also a tendency to speak in simple terms, thereby depriving them of the opportunity to hear and learn more complicated words.  Importance of recognising and responding to concerns. As parents you are in the best position to observe and monitor how your child is developing. Conversely when you feel that there is something wrong you should trust your instincts and don’t be afraid to discuss them with your doctor or health care professional. You might notice that your child never makes eye contact with you; perhaps they fail to respond to your voice; or they display sudden and severe mood changes several times throughout the day. Instead of speculating what might be the problem might be on your own, a proper diagnosis is best.

Early intervention will identify any problem and work towards solutions can start straight away if necessary.  If you recognise that there are external issues affecting your child you should respond to them appropriately. As a parent or carer you could share your concerns with your child’s teacher. This will allow them to be alert to the child’s behaviour and they may be able to monitor their progress more closely for a time. It is also important to disclose changes in the family environment, such as a family break up with changes to living arrangements.

As I have already said these may well have an effect on the child that the teacher can be forewarned to deal with.  In some schools you may have direct access to the Special Education Needs Coordinator or the child can be referred to them via the teacher. It is always a good idea to find out from the school who these people are and what is the procedure to get access to them. If you have this information available before you need it you will be able to act quickly and correctly when concerns arise. Being bornMilk to solidsCrawling to walkingBeing fed to feeding themselvesNappies to potty trainedUnaware to aware of self.

Aside from the growth spurt that occurs at this time for both sexes, girls will have their first period, and boys experience their first ‘wet dream’ (nighttime emission) and voice breaking etc. Less physical changes are the physiological, behavioural and relationships. The enormity of these changes may be overwhelming for a child who feels that there is something actually wrong with them but they are too afraid to ask anyone. The stress adolescents feel during these times of change can lead them to try drink or drugs as a coping strategy. Others may experiment with substance abuse or engage in risky sexual behaviour.