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EX:NO:
10
Date :
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To create educational blogs for
individual/group Students for sharing and learning articles/class notes/assignments
and participating in active blogging community.
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STAGES AND DIMENSIONS OF DEVELOPMENT
Objectives:
After completion of the unit, the learners will be able to:
1. know the various stages of child development
2. understand the periods of pregnancy and
3. understand the physical, cognitive and social and emotional development of the child
from infancy to adolescent.
Introduction
Birth is not beginning of life. Instead, it is merely an interruption in the developmental
pattern that began at the time of conception. It is the time when the individual must make a
transition from the internal environment of the mother’s uterus to the world outside the
mother’s body.
The time when the transition is being made – the prenatal experience – and thenecessary
adjustments to it are known as ‘infancy’ – a term suggesting complete helplessness.
Infancy is divided in two periods.
Period of partunate → the time when the birth process is actually taking place.
Period of neonate → derived from the Greek word, ‘neos’, meaning ‘new’ and the past participle of the Latin verb, ‘nascor’ meaning ‘born’.Period of the partunate: The period covers the first 15 to 30 minutes after birth
Period of the neonate: The period covers the remainder of the infancy period.
According to the medical criteria, it ends with the falling off of the umbilical cord, about
2 weeks after birth.
According to the psychological criteria, it ends with the regaining of lost birth weight and
indications of resumption of development.
Stages of Growth and Development
Researchers usually use the following age periods, as each brings new capacities and social
expectations that serve as important transitions in major theories.
1. The prenatal period: From conception to birth. In this 9 month period, the most rapid time
of change, a one-celled organism is transformed into a human baby with remarkable
capacities for adjusting to life in the surrounding world.
Neonate – Birth to end of 1 month
2. Infancy
Infancy – 1 month to end of 1 year
Toddler 1 to 3 Years
3. Early childhood
Preschool 3 to 6 Years
4. Middle childhood – school age 6 to 12 Years.
5. Late childhood – Adolescent – 13 Years to approximately 18 Years.
1. Prenatal Period
With conception, the story of prenatal development begins to unfold. The vast changes
that take place during the 38 weeks of pregnancy are usually divided into three period.
a) The period of zygote
b) The period of embryo and
c) The period of the fetus
a. The Period of Zygote
The period of zygote last about two weeks, from fertilization until the tiny mass of cells
drifts down and out of the fallopian tube and attaches itself to the wall of the uterus. The zygotes
first cell duplication is long and drawn out; it is not complete until about 30 hours after
conception. Gradually, new cells are added at faster rate. By the fourth day, 60 to 70 cells existthat form a hollow, fluid-filled ball called a blastocyst. The cells on the inside of the blastocyst
called the embryonic disk, will become the new organism; the thin outer ring of cells, termed the
trophoblast, will become the structures that provide protective curing and nourishment.
b. Period of Embryo
The period of the embryo lasts from implantation through the eighth week of pregnancy. In
the first week, the embryonic disks forms three layers of cells.
a) The ectoderm, which will become the nervous system and skin
b) The mesoderm, which will develop the muscles, skeleton and circulating system.
c) The endoderm, which will become the digestive system, lungs, urinary tract and glands.
At 3 ½ weeks, the top swells to form the brain. At the end of first month the curled embryo -
only ¼ inch long - consists of millions of organized group of cells with specific functions.
In the second month, eyes, ears, nose, jaw and neck form. At 7 weeks, production of neurons
begins deep inside the neural tube at the astounding pace of more than 250000 per minute. At the
end of this period, the embryo about 1 inch long and 1/7 ounce in weight.
c. Period of the Fetus
The period of the fetus, from the ninth week to the end of pregnancy, is the longest
prenatal period. In the third month, the organs, muscles, and nervous system start to become
organized and connected.
Prenatal development is sometimes divided into trimesters or three equal time periods.
At the end of third month, the first trimester is complete.
By the middle of the second trimester, between 17and 20 weeks, the new being has
grown large enough that the mother can feel its movements. At the end of the second trimester,
many organs are well – developed. Brain weight increases tenfold from the twentieth week until
birth.
During the final trimester, a fetus born early has a chance of survival. The brain continues
to make great strides. The fetus gains move than 5 pounds and grows 7 inches.
