MT_LESSON 1 DEVPSYCH

• Cephalocaudal principle


  Development proceeds in a head-to-tail direction—upper parts of the body develop before lower parts of the trunk
• Sensory and motor development

  Proceed according to the cephalocaudal principle: infants learn to use the upper parts of the body before the lower parts
• Proximodistal principle


  Development proceeds from the parts of the body near the center before the extremities
• In the womb, the head and trunk develop before the arms and legs, then the hands and feet, and then the fingers and toes
• During infancy and early childhood, the limbs continue to grow faster than the hands and feet–children first develop the ability to use their upper arms and upper legs, then their forearms and forelegs, then hands and feet, and finally, fingers and toes
• Children grow faster during the first 3 years, especially during the first few months
• Teething


  1. Begins around age 3 or 4 mos.–infants begin grabbing almost everything in sight to put into their mouth

  2. During the first birthday, babies gradually have 6-8 teeth

  3. At age 3, teeth are in place and children can chew any food
• Genes


  Have a strong influence on whether child will be tall/short, thin/stocky, etc
• Genetic influence


  Interacts with such environmental influences as nutrition and living conditions
• Feeding


  An emotional as well as a physical act
• Warm contact with the mother's body

  Fosters emotional linkage between mother and baby, such bonding can take place through either breast-feeding or bottle-feeding and through many other caregiving activities, most of which can be performed by fathers as well as mothers
• Provision of abundant affection and cuddling is as important as the feeding method
• Breast-feeding is almost always best for infants—and mothers
• Recommended breast-feeding duration


  • Exclusively for 6 months
  • Continue for at least one year, longer if mother and baby wish
• Acceptable alternative to breast milk

  Iron-fortified formula that is based on either cow's milk or soy protein and contains supplemental vitamins and minerals
• Infants weaned during the first year should receive iron-fortified formula
• Situations where breastfeeding is inadvisable


  • Mother is infected with AIDS virus
  • Mother has untreated active TB
  • Mother is exposed to radiation
  • Mother is taking drug not safe for baby
• Breast milk has been called the "ultimate health food" which offers so many benefits to babies—physical, cognitive, and emotional
• Introduction of solid foods

  Iron-enriched solid foods (eggs, beans, leaf vegetables, fish) as well as fruit juice are gradually introduced during the second half of the first year
• Children under age 3 with an obese parent is likely to become obese as an adult, regardless of child's own weight
• Central nervous system


  The brain and spinal cord (a bundle of nerves running through the backbone) allows the sensory messages to travel to the brain and motor commands travel back
• Peripheral nervous system


  Carrying messages back and forth between the CNS and the muscles, organs, and senses in the periphery of the body

  
• The brain at birth is only about one-fourth to one-third of its eventual adult volume

  
• By age 6, the brain is almost adult size; but specific parts of the brain continue to grow and develop functionally into adulthood

  
• The brain's growth occurs in fits and starts called brain growth spurts, different parts of the brain grow more rapidly at different times

  
• Spinal cord and brain stem


  The part of the brain responsible for such basic bodily functions as breathing, heart rate, body temperature, and the sleep-wake cycle
• Cerebellum


  Part of the brain that maintains balance and motor coordination, grows fastest during the first year of life
• Cerebrum


  The largest part of the brain, is divided into right and left halves, or hemispheres, each with specialized functions, this specialization of hemispheres is called lateralization

  
• Left hemisphere


  Concerned with language and logical thinking
• Right hemisphere


  Concerned with visual and spatial functions (such as map reading and drawing)
• Corpus callosum


  A tough band of tissue that joins the two hemispheres and allows them to share information and coordinate commands
• Cerebral lobes


  • Occipital for visual information
  • Temporal for hearing, language, memory
  • Parietal for touch and sensations
  • Frontal for higher-level speech and reasoning

  
• Regions of cerebral cortex that govern vision, hearing, and other sensory information grow rapidly in the first few months after birth and are mature by age 6 months but the areas of the frontal cortex responsible for abstract thought, mental associations, remembering, and deliberate motor responses grow very little during this period and remain immature for several years

  
• Cell death/pruning


  A process that begins during the prenatal period and continues after birth which helps to achieve more efficient functioning
• Only half the neurons originally survive and function in adulthood
• Glial cells


  Coat the neural pathways with a fatty substance called myelin, enabling signals to travel faster and more smoothly, permitting the achievement of mature functioning
• Pathways related to the sense of touch—the first sense to develop—are myelinated by birth
• Myelination of visual pathways begins at birth and continues during the first five months of life
• Pathways related to hearing may begin to be myelinated as early as the fifth month of gestation, but the process is not complete until about age 4
• Parts of the cortex that control attention and memory are not fully myelinated until young adulthood