Child Development Factors

This assignment examines the different stages of child development across cognitive, social-emotional, and physical domains. It highlights the impact of both biological factors like genetics and nutrition, and environmental factors such as family relationships, learning environments, and socioeconomic conditions on a child's holistic growth.

Assignment

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................3
Task 2.1 Stages and sequences of development from birth to seven years ....................................3
Difference between sequence development and Rate of development .................................3
TASK 2.2 'Holistic' development....................................................................................................5
Task 2.3 : Biological and environmental factors which influence children's development.............5
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES ...............................................................................................................................7
Books and Journals ................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
There are various stages of a newly born baby till he reaches to the childhood age. This
report will identify and describe different development stages of a baby including the holistic
development. The report will also determine various factors that influence children's
development.
Task 2.1 Stages and sequences of development from birth to seven years
There are various stages of development of a child from the birth to his or her childhood.
Difference between sequence development and Rate of development
The sequence development and rate of development are differs form each other. The
sequence of development refers to the expected or normal sequence in which a child learn or
develop various skills. Whereas rate of development refers to the speed in which children
develop and grow. The sequence is generally common in every child but the rate can be
fluctuating.
These stages of development can be learned in various aspects which are as described
below -
0 – 6 months
 During the time of birth, a baby has all the neurons already needed for the entire life but
still their brains are only 25% as compared to the brain of an adult. The soft spots on the
head of the baby known as fontanelles exits because the skull of the child is not fused
properly at the time of birth. For example :- In this case child should be able to feed
himself, use crayons to make fundamental drawings and pull strings things like blocks
and simple puzzles. Straight from birth babies are absorbing, learning and reacting to the
world around them through their senses. Their brains are developing, and they will
rapidly start to show the early signs of communication (through gaze, smiles and noises).
Muscles will be strengthening and will become evident as she starts being able to support
her own head and possibly body towards 6 months
0 to 12 months
 This is the first stage of development in the learning to use language process. A baby use
this stage in order to learn the ways for communicating or interacting with others. In this

stage a baby learn to recognise various tones of voices, gurgles and coos when content.
The baby starts responding others through smiles. During this period, young children's
physical development is very rapid and they gain increasing
control of their muscles. They also develop skills in moving their hands, feet, limbs and head,
quickly
becoming mobile and able to handle and manipulate objects.
They are learning from the moment of birth. Even before their first words they find out a lot
about
language by hearing people talking, and are especially interested when it involves themselves
and
their daily lives.Till the age of 12 months the baby start responding to basic instructions such as
clap etc. for example :- In age group of 0 to 12 months They also develop skills in moving their
hands, feet, limbs and head, quickly becoming mobile and able to handle and manipulate objects.
1-2 years
 In this stage a child learn about the world with the help various senses and manipulation
of different objects. At the age of two the children start learning new words, both
passive and active vocabularies enhanced. The cognitive skills consist of various
elements such as short term memory, attention, visual processing, processing speed,
logic and reasoning etc. As children become mobile new opportunities for exploration
and exercise open up. A safe and
interesting environment, with age-appropriate resources, helps children to develop curiosity,
coordination and physical abilities.
This is a time when children can start to learn the beginnings of self-control and how to relate to
other
people. In this period children can be encouraged to develop their social and mental skills by
people
to whom they have a positive attachment.
Building on their communication skills, children now begin to develop a sense of self and are
more
able to express their needs and feelings. There various stages of development in Cognitive
development as follows -

Sensorimotor stage
Birth through 2 years
 In this stage a child learn about the world with the help various senses and manipulation
of different objects. In this stage a child learn about the world with the help various
senses and manipulation of different objects. During the age of 15 months the children
learn around 10 words which are sued by the care givers and these are understood by the
carers. For example :- Building on their human action skills, children now begin to
create a sense of self and are more able to expressed their inevitably and consciousness.
2-4 years -
 Pre operational Stage: Ages 2 through 7 – Within this stage, children develop imagination
and memory. In this age they are capable of understanding things symbolically, to realize
the future and past ideas(Crnic,2017). At the age of three years the child's brain develop
nearly 80% a compared to the brain of an adult. At this age a child walks and jumps,
Learn to kick a ball and run or dodge. For example :- Children's fine efferent skills
continue to germinate and they enjoy fashioning marks, using a variety of physical,
looking at picture books and hearing to stories, crucial steps in accomplishment.
Children's fine motor skills continue to develop and they enjoy making marks, using
a variety of
materials, looking at picture books and listening to stories, important steps in literacy.
Self-help and independence soon emerge if adults support and encourage children in areas
such as
eating, dressing and toileting. Praise for new achievements helps to build their self-esteem.
In this
phase, children's language is developing rapidly and many are beginning to put sentences
together.
Joining in conversations with children is an important way for children to learn new
things and to begin
to think about past, present and future.

4-7 years
 Till the age of seven a child brain can store information, learn through numbers, symbols
and expressions. Till the age of seven a normal child understand around 20000 – 25000
words. During this age a child learn to run well and skip unevenly, increase endurance in
playing, starts showing awareness of various things in an environment. During this age a
child develops coordination for throwing and catching, child can participate in active
games with specific rules at this age. Till the age of 7 children start developing feelings,
motives, desires and gets emotionally attached to their beloved ones. For example :-
Children are basic cognitive process to treasure the value of social concept and impost, to
show perceptive and endurance of others, and to learn how to be more contained in their
own behaviour.
TASK 2.2 'Holistic' development
The Holistic development refers to the overall development of a child, The holistic
approach to children's development refers to learn about the emotional, physical, spiritual,
relational and intellectual aspects of children's lives(Moore,2017). The significant of holistic
development is that it helps to learn about various elements at different stages of a child's life.
The Holistic development focus on physical, social, emotional growth of a child which is useful
for rest of the life. There are various factors such as environment, parental education, care,
nutrition etc which affects the overall or holistic development of a child.
Task 2.3 : Biological and environmental factors which influence children's
development
Children's development is very much important so that they can perform various essential
activities of their whole lives. There are various Biological and Environmental factors that have a
great impact on a child's development(Greenfield,2014).
 Biological factors – The biological factors such as nutrition, genetic make up, brain and
thinking development are very important and influence the overall development of a
child. The family environment also affects the development of a child which is

considered as a biological factor. The parenting style is also a major factor have a great
impact on children's development. There are various biological factors as follows -
Physical disabilities, Parental characteristics etc which influence the growth of children.
 Environmental factors – Environmental factors refers to the surrounding in which
children grows or develop. The environment plays an important role in the development
of a child as the children learns what they see, hear and observe. There are many
environmental factors that affects the development of a child as described below -
 Emotional bond within family, school etc – The children learn form family, school etc,
The emotional bond or connection plays an important role in the development of the child
 The relationship of the parents – The children also observe the relationship among their
parents, It has a great impact on a child in his development stage.
 Financial health of the family – Financial condition of the family has a great effect on
the development or upbringing of the child.
 Learning environment – Learning environment refers to the place and area in which a
child learn develop various skills
There are many factors such
 Diets
 Exercise
 Education
 Living environment
 Home environment
These factors affect the growth and development of a child. Healthy diet and exercise helps in
physical growth of a child. Education plays an important in developing the knowledge of a child
to sustain in competitive world. The surroundings also plays an important role in the
development of a child as he or she learns form the environment.
CONCLUSION
The report effectively described that there are various stages or sequences of
development at different ages in a child's life. The report identifies the stages of development in
various area such as brain development, cognition, personal social and emotional etc.
Furthermore, The report includes an effective description of holistic development of children.
The various biological and environmental factors are also identified and determined in the report.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Greenfield, P.M., 2014. Cross-cultural roots of minority child development. Psychology Press.
Moore, R.C., 2017. Childhood's domain: Play and place in child development (Vol. 6).
Routledge.
Crnic, K.A., Neece, C.L., McIntyre, L.L., Blacher, J. and Baker, B.L., 2017. Intellectual
Disability and Developmental Risk: Promoting Intervention to Improve Child and Family
Well‐Being. Child Development, 88(2), pp.436-445.