Hello it has been four months since I last blogged. Finally am back in these blogging streets (mood- euphoric)🤩. I hope you are doing well, staying safe and abiding by the Covid-19 measures put in place. Schools are resuming gradually and things have adjusted a bit. I do not know what you have been up to during the quarantine period. Nonetheless,I hope you have been learning a few stuff and relaxing. Living one day at a time and appreciating the little things in life.
We are all evolving and growing, change is inevitable and growth is part of life. Past experience, current knowledge or rather wisdom makes us outgrow different habits and become better humans. The act of learning and unlearning is a continuous process. This is life in a nutshell!
When you know better, do better ~ Maya Angelou
photo by Kirill Sharkovski on unsplash
Lets get to child development, have you ever been in a situation where you want your kids to grow so fast, overcome some habits and be independent? Hence, you do not let them enjoy the moments as they grow and develop. It is prudent for parents/caregivers to encourage and to delight in the moments. They should focus instead in mentoring their children as they hit their various growth and developmental milestones.
Therefore,I am going to discuss holistic child development from birth to early childhood.
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Lets get to learn about the various dimensions in child development:
Physical
Cognitive
Social
1. Physical development
Physical growth is the increase in size and height of a child. It is quantified in terms of weight and height whilst development refers to change in body or behavior within the individual across one’s lifespan as a result of age and experience. Physical development is usually more complex as the children transition from simpler forms to complex forms.
Physical development is divided into two phases:
Fine motor skills
This is the coordination of small muscles in the body like hands,fingers and wrist.Children learn to use, practice and perfect their fine motor skills. These include coloring, eating, dressing up, turning pages and playing with toys. The skills are very crucial for a child to learn at an early stage as they prepare the child to reach the zone of proximal development . As the child grows and develops through scaffolding and reinforcement they are able to master the skills effectively. Therefore, able to do task by themselves with minimal or no assistance. Parents/guardians should earnestly take up their role in nurturing their children.
Gross motor skills
This is the opposite of fine motor skills. It involves coordination of large(core stabilizing) muscles of the body to perform everyday functions such as running, jumping, throwing, catching, swimming, lifting and kicking. Children love to play as it is pleasurable, spontaneous and not forgetting healthy to their bodies. In engaging in play activities they strengthen their gross motor skills. They run, walk, throw and kick the playing materials. This is important as they get to practice and perfect skills that are indispensable in everyday activities.
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The fine and gross motor skills are important in the physical development of a child. It is fundamental for the children to be taught,guided and reinforcement offered to facilitate the development of the two skills.
2. Cognitive development
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Refers to the ability to think, reason, make decisions, be curious, analyze, compare, recognize, making judgement and memorize things. It is also referred to as mental development. A psychologist, Jean Piaget, the proponent of the cognitive development theory accounts for the steps and sequence of the child’s intellect development.
We will focus on the first two stages since this is the formative childhood development stage.
Piaget stages of cognitive development:
a) Sensorimotor stage
This period starts from birth to two years of age, it is the earliest stage of cognitive development. Where children acquire knowledge through sensory experiences and manipulating objects.
Characteristics of this period of development include:
The infant knows the world through their movements and sensations.
They learn the world through basic functions such as sucking,grasping,crawling and gazing.
Infants learn about object permanence / object constancy; that things continue to exist even without them noticing.
They are separate beings from people around them.
Their actions can cause things to happen in the world like when they are crying the caregiver will hold them.
b) The preoperational stage
The period stretches between 2-7 years of age during which children learn language. In this stage the children do not fully comprehend concrete logic, cannot mentally analyze information and are self-centered.
Characteristics marking this stage include:
Children begin to think symbolically and can interpret words and pictures to represent objects.
They are egocentric and struggle to see things from the perspective of others.
As they try to get better with language and thinking,they tend to think of things in concrete terms.
3. Social development
This is also known as psycho-social development, the ability to relate to others and perceive oneself as part of a society. It includes acquisition of norms, values and ability to communicate effectively.
Erik Erickson a German psychologist came up with the eight stages theory of psycho-social development. It describes social interactions and conflicts that arise during the various stages of development.
We will focus on the first four stages since they deal with the early years experiences.
Trust vs mistrust
This is the first stage of psycho-social development that happens between birth to one year. It is the most fundamental stage in the life of a child because the child entirely depends on the parents or caregivers. Developing trust depends so much on the dependability and quality of the child's caregiver.
If the caregiver fails to provide love, care, kindness and warmth to the child. The child will feel his/her needs are not met and therefore cannot rely on the adults in his/her life.
If a child develops trust it brings a sense of security to him/her and feels secure as they grow up even when threatened. Caregivers who are inconsistent, emotionally unavailable or insensitive brings the feelings of mistrust to the child under care. This then leads a child to believe the world is tough and unpredictable. The child then develops feelings of mistrust, suspicion and anxiety. The child will lack confidence in the world and hamper their abilities to influence events.
If a child develops trust they acquire the virtue of hope and when they develop mistrust acquire fear of the unknown.
Autonomy vs shame and doubt
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This is the second stage that stretches from 2-3 years of age. In this phase a child yearns to make their own decisions and choices and develops personal control around his/her environment.
Children learn to perform basic activities by themselves like choosing clothes to wear among others. By allowing the children to make their own choices about what they prefer they gain control. This gives them the confidence to do even better and with reinforcement and minimal assistance they learn to accomplish the simpler tasks. However, minimal supervision is necessary to assist the children and ensure they don’t hurt themselves.
Toilet training is essential in this stage. In the sense that learning to control ones bodily functions leads to a feeling of control and sense of independence.
Children who successfully complete this stage acquire the virtue of will which is the belief children can act with intent, reason and limits, such children feel secure and confident. Unlike those who do not are left with a feeling of low self- esteem and self-doubt.
Initiative vs guilt
This is the third stage and it begins from 4-5 years of age. It is marked by children directing play and social interactions. Play is spontaneous and children come up with play ideas naturally. The children begin to plan and initiate activities with others. This helps a child develop a feeling of initiative and feel secure in the ability to lead others and make decisions. Those who are unable are left with a feeling of guilt and lack of initiative this may be caused by criticism or control when the child is planning play activities.
In this stage children are usually inquisitive and when the adults around them ignore and label them as a nuisance they shy away and feel guilt within. Guilt usually inhibits creativity to plan and organize various activities.
When an ideal balance of individual initiative and a willingness to work with others is achieved, the ego quality that emerges is called purpose.
Industry vs inferiority
This stage begins from 5-11 years of age. Children at this age are able to read and write and do stuff by themselves. In this stage children love peer interaction they love validation and affirmation which becomes a major source of self-esteem. The child feels the need to demonstrate specific competencies that are highly esteemed by society. They begin to develop a sense of pride in their accomplishment and abilities. Children who are encouraged and commended by parents/guardians, peers and teachers develop a feeling of competency in their skills. Those who receive little or no encouragement doubt their abilities to succeed, feel inferior and not realizing their full potential.
Successfully finding a balance at this stage leads to a strength known as competence in which children develop a belief in their abilities to handle tasks well.
REFERENCES
www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erickson.html#trust
CONCLUSION
Children grow and develop at different rates depending on many factors such as biological factors,gender, genes and age among others. However children should be monitored as they develop to avoid developmental lags and ensure every stage is achieved successively.
Our children are also in the process of becoming. It is the duty of parents/guardians/caregivers and teachers ensure that children have transitioned through these stages with proper guidance.
We should not pressure our children to go through some stages so fast but let them grow, develop and evolve at their own pace.
Parents should be available for their kids every single moment of their life. Cause time and life is never promised, it just flies by and some moments may never come back.
Appreciate their little milestones, enjoy the moment and savor the experiences. Let them develop at their own pace from the tantrums to the night cries. Eventually they will outlast the season. ❣️
Because ain't all of us a work in progress :)
See you soon!