PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Physical growth increases during the years from 3 to 6, but more slowly than during infancy and toddler hood.

Boys are on average slightly taller, heavier, and more muscular than girls. 

SLEEP PATTERNS

Sleep patterns change during early childhood, as they do throughout life, and are affected by cultural expectations.

(Noah versus Sebastian).

Children in Kenya or Zuni’s in New Mexico have no regular bedtime:  children are allowed to stay up watching adult activities until they are sleepy.

Young children in the US go through  elaborate routines to put off sleep.

Children may want the light left on, or a transitional object, blanket, favorite toy, stuffed animal  to fall asleep with.

Handedness is usually evident by age 3, reflecting dominance by one hemisphere of the brain.

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Young children are naturally venturesome and often unaware of dangers.  Bumps, scrapes are usually “kissed away” and quickly forgotten.

However, some injuries can be in serious. Touching unsafe objects, electrical outlets, poisons, etc. sometime can cause deaths.

Health risks other than common colds and respiratory problems are rare at this stage due to the widespread use of  immunizations.  

Environmental factors  such as exposure  to stress, (moves, job change, divorce, death, entry into daycare) smoking, poverty, and homelessness increase the risks of illness or injury.

43% of the 3 million homeless in US are families with Children.

LANGUAGE

(Cognitive)

During early childhood, vocabulary increased greatly.  Children become more competent as they engage in social speech.

Grammar and Syntax:  At around 3, children generally know the difference between, I, You, We, however, they still make errors ( Noah, I want to Hold You).

Private speech (talking aloud to oneself with no intent of communicating) is normal and common; it usually disappears by age 10.

MEMORY

At all ages, recognition is better than recall, but both increases during early childhood.

Children are more likely to remember unusual activities that they actively participate in.  The way adults talk with children about events influence memory formation.

A good example of memory formation and to demonstrate how we influence What and how our children think and act, consider the following:

HOW DO YOU SUPPOSE THE FOLLOWING PREFERENCES WERE ESTABLISHED?

CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING

TASTE PREFERENCES

Would you eat of drink the following?

A washed, dead grasshopper

A piece of chocolate in the shape of feces

A glass of milk after the removal of a dead, sterilized fly

A glass of punch that contains a plastic cockroach

Spaghetti served in a thoroughly washed dog dish

Soup that has been stirred by a clean never used fly swatter.

A glass of water that contains some of your own saliva.

 Where do you suppose you preferences concerning the above statements come from?

INTELLIGENCE

The two most commonly used psychometric intelligence tests for young children are the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale and the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence test.

Intelligence test scores may be influenced by social and emotional functioning, as well as by parent-child interaction and socioeconomic factors.  The family environment seems to have its greatest impact in early childhood.

If this is true, it gives much greater significance to the need for families to stay together and my well explain how or why so many of our youth today seem to have lost it way. (Do you think the high Divorce rate, and the large number of single parent homes contributes to the growing  population of wayward Youth in today’s society?)