Young children’s development can be conceptualized in four main areas: physical, intellectual, emotional, and social.
Understanding how children develop is important to ensure healthy developmental progression.
While there are many commonalities, there are also individual and cultural differences in development such that development is not identical for each child.
High-quality classroom settings and practices should support individual and cultural developmental needs.
Terminology Found Throughout this Chapter
Atypical development:
When a child does not develop in the way that is congruent with averages for a given age, causing a disturbance to everyday activities.
Child development:
The pattern of change that begins at conception and continues through adolescence.
Culturally relevant pedagogy
: The practice of including ideas and artifacts that refer to a child’s individual culture.
Developmentally appropriate practice:
Methods that promote each child’s optimal development and learning through a strengths-based, play-based approach to joyful, engaged learning.
Developmental domains:
Specific areas in which growth occurs – Physical, Cognitive, Emotional, and Social.
Differentiation
: The thoughtful practice of tailoring activities to meet children’s individual needs.
Early childhood period:
Ages birth through age eight.
Executive function:
Collection of processes that encompass attention, working memory, and inhibition.
Fine motor skills:
Movement related to small muscle groups in the body.
Gross motor skills:
Movement related to the large muscle groups in the body.
Joint attention:
The action of a child and a caregiver focusing on the same object or concept at the same time.
Metacognition:
Self-reflection; an ability to think about one’s own thoughts.
Open-ended questions:
Questions that do not have a yes or no answer.
Separation anxiety:
A fear of being separated from their primary caregiver.
Temperament:
An infant’s regular way of reacting with their environment.
Toxic stress:
Physical or emotional abuse, neglect, witnessing of physical or emotional abuse of another person, or extreme poverty.
Typical development
: When a child develops in the way that is congruent with averages for a given age.