{"id":3809,"date":"2018-07-21T20:52:24","date_gmt":"2018-07-22T00:52:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/?p=3809"},"modified":"2019-05-25T22:15:36","modified_gmt":"2019-05-26T02:15:36","slug":"8-physical-development-in-the-preschool-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/child-psychology\/8-physical-development-in-the-preschool-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Physical Development in the Preschool Years"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li>Physical Growth The Growing Body\n<ul>\n<li>Individual Differences in Height and Weight<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Significant differences especially cross culturally. Economically developed countries \u2013 taller and heavier.<\/p>\n<p>Ses in US \u2013 kids in poverty much more likely to be unusually short<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Changes in Body Shape and Structure\n<ul>\n<li>In addition to gaining height and weight, the body of the preschooler undergoes changes in shape and structure.<\/li>\n<li>Becoming more slender overall, strengthening bones and muscles.<\/li>\n<li>By about 6 \u2013 body proportions similar to that of adults.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The Growing Brain\n<ul>\n<li>Brain growth is particularly rapid during the preschool years, with the number of interconnections among cells and the amount of myelin around neurons increasing greatly. By 5 \u2013 brain is 90% of adult weight; total body weight is 30% of adult weight. Malnutrition linked to delays.<\/li>\n<li>Brain Lateralization \u00ad two halves of brain begin to specialize in somewhat different functions. However, despite lateralization, the two hemispheres function as a unit and in fact differ only slightly. Left hemisphere \u2013 verbal processes, sequential things. Right hemisphere \u2013 spatial relations, music, emotional expression. Global thought; intuition\u00adcan connect dif pieces of info<\/li>\n<li>Corpus callosum \u2013 band of nerve fibers connection hemispheres; grows thicker. Grows thicker<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The Links Between Brain Growth and Cognitive Development\n<ul>\n<li>Neuroscientists are just beginning to understand the ways in which brain development is related to cognitive development.<\/li>\n<li>Periods of unusually rapid brain development coincide with cog advances<\/li>\n<li>Unclear if development allows for cog advances or vice versa.<\/li>\n<li>Increases in myelin (faster communication), the protective insulation that surrounds parts of the neuron, may be related to preschooler\u2019s growing cognitive capabilities. Improvements in attention, concentration, memory<\/li>\n<li>Remember\u00admyelin allows messages to pass more quickly through neurons.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Sleep\n<ul>\n<li>Those of you w\/ preschoolers \u2013 do you have difficulty getting them to sleep?<\/li>\n<li>The good news is, most children settle down fairly easily and drift off to sleep; however, for some, sleep presents real problems.<\/li>\n<li>As many as 20 to 30 percent of preschoolers experience difficulties lasting more than an hour getting to sleep. Most wake during night<\/li>\n<li>a) Between 10 and 15 percent of children ages 3 to 5 experience nightmares\u00advivid bad dreams, usu. near morning; more often in boys<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>(1) Concern if they are frequent, or lead to anxiety during day.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>b) 1\u00ad5% Night terrors \u2013intense panic; not easily comforted; can\u2019t explain why.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Health and Wellness<\/li>\n<li>Nutrition: Eating the Right Foods\n<ul>\n<li>Nutritional needs change during preschool years \u2013 don\u2019t need as much food. Picky eaters; meal replacements may help; given a wide variety, most preschoolers make good choices.<\/li>\n<li>Obesity\u00ad weight more than 20% over what is considered normal for their age and height \u2013 is a big problem in the US and other developed nations. It is caused by both genetic and environmental factors. Environment \u2013 parents often encourage kids to eat more \u2013 leads to increased food intake. Give kids opportunity to develop own preferences. Taste buds are more sensitive as kid<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Minor Illnesses of Preschoolers\n<ul>\n<li>The average preschooler has 7 or 8 minor colds and other minor respiratory illnesses in each of the years from age three to five. Touch each other more than adults. Builds up immune system.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Major Illnesses:\n<ul>\n<li>Cancer and AIDS\n<ul>\n<li>Children in the preschool years generally experience only minor illnesses, but they are susceptible to some dangerous diseases, including childhood leukemia and AIDS.<\/li>\n<li>Low SES kids less likely to get health care<\/li>\n<li>Immunization in developed countries largely controlled most lifethreatening illness<\/li>\n<li>The proportion of children immunized in the United States has fallen during some portions of the last two decades.<\/li>\n<li>VACCINES DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM. Rising rates of autism<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>mostly due to better recognition\/diagnosis. Timing of some vaccines coincide with timing of diagnosis in lots of kids w\/ autism.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The most frequent major illness to strike preschoolers is cancer, particularly leukemia \u2013 bone marry overproduces white blood cells \u2013 anemia, death but now there is over 70% survival rate<\/li>\n<li>One childhood disease that presents a far more discouraging picture is childhood AIDS \u2013 FATAL.<\/li>\n<li>Drug therapies only extend life expectancy; expensive; don\u2019t work for everyone. Social shunning, which is ridiculous; usu. Contract it from mom \u2013 parental illness\/death.<\/li>\n<li># of cases declining \u2013 drugs can prevent prenatal transmission.<\/li>\n<li>Reactions to Hospitalizations<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>For ill preschoolers who must spend time in the hospital, the experience may be quite difficult. 2\u00ad4 yr old \u2013 separation anxiety<\/li>\n<li>Older preschoolers may feel deserted. Can reduce anxiety by having parents stay with child.<\/li>\n<li>Emotional Illness<\/li>\n<li>a) An increasing number of children are being treated with drugs for emotional disorders. Possibly a quick fix for normal behaviors<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Injuries: Playing It Safe\n<ul>\n<li>Preschool children at greater risk from accidents than from illness\/nutritional problems, in part from children\u2019s high levels of physical activity.\n<ul>\n<li>Children have twice the likelihood of dying from an injury than from illnesses before the age of 10.<\/li>\n<li>Some children are more apt to take risks than others; boys more so<\/li>\n<li>Ethnic differences \u2013 differing norms on supervision. Asian kids more strictly supervised \u2013 lowest accident rates.<\/li>\n<li>SES \u2013 kids in poverty exposed to more hazards. 2x more likely to die on injuries than rich kids.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Lead Poisoning Risk\n<ul>\n<li>14 million children are at risk for lead poisoning due to exposure to potentially toxic levels of lead. Main sources of lead contamination include lead\u00adbased paint (taste sweet), auto exhaust pollution<\/li>\n<li>Poor children are particularly susceptible to lead poisoning, and the results of poisoning tend to be worse for them than for children from more affluent families. Live in older housing, urban areas.<\/li>\n<li>Even tiny amounts of lead can permanently harm children. Small amounts \u2013 lower IQ, problems with verbal auditory processing, hyperactivity\/distractibility<\/li>\n<li>High levels \u2013 antisocial behaviors\/aggression, delinquency, illness, death<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Child Abuse and Psychological Maltreatment<\/li>\n<li>In the United States, at least five children are killed by their parents or caretakers every day, and 140,000 others are physically injured every year.<\/li>\n<li>a) Child abuse \u2013 psychical\/psychological maltreatment\/neglect of children<\/li>\n<li>Physical Abuse<\/li>\n<li>a) The cycle\u00adof\u00adviolence hypothesis argues that the abuse and neglect children suffer predisposes them as adults to be abusive. Majority of abused kids do NOT abuse their own kids.<\/li>\n<li>Psychological Maltreatment\n<ul>\n<li>Psychological maltreatment \u00ad parents\/caregivers harm the kids\u2019 behavioral, cognitive, emotional, physical functioning.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>May involve neglect, emotional abuse, intimidation\/humiliation, unrealistic demands\/expectations<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ignoring kids, emotionally unresponsive<\/li>\n<li>Child abuse may cause lasting damage.\n<ul>\n<li>Low self\u00adesteem, lying, misbehavior, underachievement<\/li>\n<li>In extreme cases \u2013 criminal behaviors, aggression, murder<\/li>\n<li>Depression and suicide<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Resilience: Overcoming the Odds\n<ul>\n<li>Resilience refers to the ability to overcome circumstances that place a child at high risk for psychological or physical damage.<\/li>\n<li>some kids of abuse grow into psychologically healthy adults<\/li>\n<li>resilient kids \u2013 affectionate, easy\u00adgoing, good communicators, intelligent<\/li>\n<li>elicit positive responses from others<\/li>\n<li>at least one unrelated adult that takes an interest\/ makes a difference for that kid.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Physical Growth The Growing Body Individual Differences in Height and Weight Significant differences especially cross culturally. Economically developed countries \u2013 taller and heavier. Ses in US \u2013 kids in&hellip; <a class=\"continue\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/child-psychology\/8-physical-development-in-the-preschool-years\/\">Continue Reading<span> Physical Development in the Preschool Years<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[97],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3809"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3809"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3809\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4775,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3809\/revisions\/4775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3809"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyork.ca\/academic\/zz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}