Unit 3 - Physical Development

• Agenda


  • Importance of Infancy & Childhood
  • Physical Development
  • Cognitive Development
  • Socio-emotional Development
  • Introduction To Human Attachment Theory
• Why is infancy & childhood crucial to study?

  • Development is rapid when babies are born, they are totally dependent on caregivers
  • When childhood ends, they will be prepared to be independent
  • Childhood has a profound influence on later life
  • In the first few years, the brain develops connections between nerve cells that allow it to think and control the body in certain ways
  • Childhood is the age span ranging from birth to adolescence
  • This field divides up into developmental stages of toddlerhood/early childhood, middle childhood and adolescence
• Developmental milestones


  • Markers of a child's development from infancy on into childhood
  • Help determine if a child is undergoing typical development, meaning more than 75% of children can do them, versus if a child has delays in a given area or over multiple areas
  • Fall into categories: Social & Emotional, Communication, Physical, Cognitive
• Screening tool


  Ages & Stages Questionnaires® (ASQ)
• Infancy


  • Birth to 12 months
• Infants at birth


  • Seem weak and helpless, but are born with a surprising range of abilities
  • Most senses are quite well developed
  • Communicate their needs by crying
• Infancy


  • Characterized by rapid growth, continued brain development, emergence of locomotors skills, and impressive sensory and reflexive capabilities
  • Growth occurs more rapidly during their first year than the rest of their life
• Rapid growth in infants

  1. Weight gain

  2. Height increase

  3. Bigger in shape & size

  4. Development of tissues, bone structure, muscles
• Infant physical development


  • Improved responses to sensory input/output
  • Enhancement of balance
• Ossification


  The process by which cartilage-like tissues gradually harden into bony material as calcium and other minerals are deposited
• Infants at birth


  • Bones are soft, pliable, and difficult to break
  • Too small and flexible to allow newborns to sit up or balance themselves when pulled to a standing position
• Infants


  • Totally dependent on their caregivers
  • Closely bond with them as they begin to develop personalities and attempt their first steps and first words
• Research suggests that, along with being the stage of life when humans make the greatest cognitive steps, infanthood are also probably the happiest days of a person's life
• Domains of infant and toddler development

  • Physical development
  • Cognitive development
  • Social-emotional development
• Physical development


  Changes, growth and skill development of the body, including development of muscles and senses
• When healthy babies are born, their internal systems, such as breathing and eating, are developed and functional
• Infant and toddler physical development

  • Requires responsive care from loving adults, proper nutrition, and appropriately stimulating environments to support the best possible physical development
  • Occurs quickly, and it is essential to understand physical development during various stages
• From birth, infants want to explore their world
• Each child has his/her own schedule for development and mastering new skills, infants are often eager early on to move their mouths, eyes and bodies toward people/objects that comfort or interest them
• Infants continue to practice skills that let them move closer to desired objects
• Ongoing observation and frequent conversations with their families can help you learn what infants and toddlers are able to do, what they are learning to do, and in what areas they could use your support
• Infant physical development


  • Develops from the top down, starting with their heads and necks
• At birth, an infant has a very difficult time holding up his or her head because the neck muscles are not strong enough to provide support
• As infants and toddlers grow, their determination to master movement, balance, and fine- and gross-motor skills remains strong
• Infant physical development milestones

  1. Rolling

  2. Crawling

  3. Grasping and picking up objects with fingers
• Factors influencing early physical growth & development


  • Child's unique characteristics
  • Family's values and culture
  • Available resources
• There is no exact age at which all infants should be able to grasp objects or hold up their heads without support
• Physical development milestones - Infants and Toddlers

  • 2 Months: Holds head up with support, Begins to push up when lying on tummy, Makes smoother movements with arms and legs
  • 4 Months: Holds head steady without support, Pushes down on legs when feet are on a hard surface, Rolls over from tummy to back, Holds and shakes toys, swings at dangling toys, Brings hands to mouth, Pushes up to elbows when lying on tummy
  • 6 Months: Rolls over both from stomach to back and from back to stomach, Begins to sit with support, Supports weight on legs when standing and might bounce, Rocks back and forth, sometimes crawls backward before moving forward
  • 9 Months: Crawls, Sits without support, Moves into sitting position with support, Stands, holding on to adult or furniture for support, Pulls to stand
  • 1 Year: Moves into sitting position without support, Pulls up to stand and walks alone while holding onto furniture, Takes few steps without support of adult or furniture, Stands alone
  • 18 Months: Walks alone, Runs, Pulls toys while walking, Helps undress self, Drinks from a cup, Eats with a spoon
  • 2 Years: Begins to run, Climbs onto and down from furniture without support, Walks up and down starts while holding on for support, Throws ball overhand, Draws or copies straight lines and circles, Stands on tiptoes, Kicks a ball
• The milestones above are simply the average ages at which specific development is observed
• Conditions for infant and toddler growth and development

  • Food (nutritious and age-appropriate)
  • Shelter (protection from harm)
  • Warmth
  • Clean air and environment
  • Health and dental care
  • Activity and rest
• Other influences on infant and toddler physical growth and development

  • Prenatal care and development, including genetic inheritance, family patterns, exposure to drugs and alcohol; birth experience
  • Prematurity (birth before the 38th week of development) and low birth weight may bring respiration difficulties, vision problems, feeding and digestive problems
  • Temperament, or the ways an infant or toddler approaches his or her world
  • Family's composition, lifestyle, level of education and housing
  • Maturation is the sequence of biological elements that reflect a pattern of growth and development
  • Developmental delays or disabilities, including health concerns
• Supporting physical development


  • Dependent upon nutrition, brain development, the central nervous system, muscles, bones and the interactions and experiences that are offered to infants and toddlers
  • By recognizing developmental delays during infancy or toddlerhood, early intervention may be more effective than if the delays were not acknowledged until childhood
• Signs of impaired physical development - Infants & Toddlers

  • By 12 months: Not pointing to communicate needs or ideas, Not crawling or sitting on own, Not picking up small objects
  • By 18 months: Not imitating, Not playing with toys, Not scribbling or picking up objects to, for example, put in a container, Not self-feeding
  • By 24 months: Not physically active, Not scribbling or stacking blocks, Not showing interest in playing with toys, Extra sensitive to or avoiding a variety of textures
  • By 36 months: Clumsy or inactive, Not feeding self, Not helping dress or undress self, Not interested in playing with a variety of toys
• Providing support for physical development

  1. Offer "tummy time" when infant is awake and active

  2. Hold an infant or dance with a toddler to music

  3. Offer fingerplays and other movement experiences

  4. Use colorful mobiles over infants' cribs

  5. Have toddlers experience kicking, catching, rolling, and bouncing balls
• Social-emotional development in infancy

  • Certain reflexes are present in the human body from birth
  • A lot of habits that we develop are a result of observing others and understanding how to process what we feel
  • This, at the very core, is the foundation of emotional development
  • We may continue to learn these things throughout our lives, but the very basics are picked up in the infancy
  • Not only does it affect the mental health, it also brings about a different perspective in learning and exploring new things
• Emotional development of infants

  Unlocks social skills and makes them understand the different cues of communication and expression in a better way
• Emotions demonstrated by infants

  • Positive: Smiling, laughing, showing joy and excitement
  • Negative: Crying, showing anger, becoming anxious
• Riding Support


  1. When an infant is awake and active, offer "tummy time" — lay the baby on the floor on his or her tummy

  2. Hold an infant or dance with a toddler to music — toddlers can swing colorful scarves in the air or jump on bubble wrap while the music is playing

  3. Offer fingerplays and other movement experiences in which mobile infants and toddlers can use their bodies

  4. Use colorful mobiles over infants' cribs so that they can try to reach and grasp or kick with their feet

  5. Have toddlers experience kicking, catching, rolling, and bouncing balls
• Social-Emotional Development


  • Certain reflexes are present in the human body from birth
  • But a lot of habits that we develop are a result of observing others and understanding how to process what we feel
  • This, at the very core, is the foundation of emotional development
  • We may continue to learn these things throughout our lives, but the very basics are picked up in the infancy
  • Not only does it affect the mental health, it also brings about a different perspective in learning and exploring new things
• Social-Emotional Development


  • The emotional development of infants in the early stages of their lives is what unlocks that social skills and makes them understand the different cues of communication and expression in a better way
  • In general, infants can demonstrate a range of positive and negative emotions
  • Positive emotions include smiling, laughing, showing joy and excitement
  • Negative emotions are crying, showing anger, becoming anxious, feeling guilty or sad and becoming withdrawn