Theories of Child Development Assignment

Understanding
Child
Development and
Development Theories
By the end of this assignment you will have an understanding of child
development and the theories that underpin the early year’s framework.
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What are main principles of child development?
There are four main principles of child development all of them are as
follows:
 Physical: It is related with the growth and development of body parts,
senses and muscles of children.
 Social: It is based upon the way in which a child talks , relates and
plays with others (Child development principles, 2019).
 Emotional: It is related to the self awareness of children and they way
in which they express their feelings and take care of themselves.
 Cognitive: It relates to the way in which children reason, resolve
issues, use languages, think and understand problems.
What is the sequences of development?
Sequence of development can be defined as a normal series in which a
child try to learn and develop different skills. For children of all the ages it is
very important because it allows them to recognise patterns and make the
world around them more recognisable and predictable (Afolabi, 2014).
How are development and learning inter-connected?
Learning and development are related to each other because for all the
children it is very important to develop specific capabilities so that they can
learn different things. If they are not able to attain development then it will
be very difficult for them to learn new things.
What is rate of development?
The speed in which a child gets developed is known as the rate of
development. With the help of it, it could be determined that where children
need help and are facing risks due to lack of special education.
How is the rate of development different from the sequence of
development?
Rate and sequence of develop both are different from each other. For most
of the children sequence is common but the rate of development vary for all
of them as it depends upon the speed in which they learn. The series refers to
the expected sequence in which a kid can develop different skills which
could be used to learn (Bredekamp, 2014).
How and why do variations occur in rate and sequence of development
and learning?
There are various reasons of variation which takes place between rate
and sequence of development and learning. All of them are as follows:
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 Disabilities which are mental or physical result in variation between
sequence and rate of development as it directly affect the ability of
individuals to learn or adopt something (Carvalho and Goodyear,
2014).
 Health issues are also one of the common causes of difference
between sequence and rate of development because individuals who
are physically challenged may learn things late as compare to others.
What are the potential effects of pre conceptual, pre birth and birth
experiences on development?
There are various factors which may leave negative impact upon
development of children. All of them are pre conceptual, pre birth and birth
experiences. Before a baby is conceived lifestyle of parents may leave
impact upon the development process of a child as their habits may affect. In
order to ignore all the negative impacts they should try to ignore smoking,
alcohol, recreational drugs etc. Birth experiences such as infections,
maternal diet and health also affect the development of a child because all of
them result in physical weakness that impacts sequence and rate of
developing learning abilities.
What is the impact of current research into the development and
learning of babies and young children?
Current research is highly concerned with the rate and sequence of
development which can help individuals to find the ways in which all the
factors which are affecting both of them could be dealt properly. It can help
to find the best ways in which abilities of children could be enhanced to
learn things and adopt skills (Cline, 2018).
Explain how learning takes place in different ways?
There are various ways in which learning can take place. All of them
are as follows:
 With the help of active participation learning could be enhanced.
 Through social interaction learning can be developed as it helps to
increase knowledge.
 Different types of activities such as playing, cutting and mark making
learning could be enhanced because it helps to enhance self awareness
of them.
Explain the Importance of play in children’s development?
For each and every child play is very important because allows them
to think critically and use their own skills of creativity, developing
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imagination, emotional strength etc. With the help of them brain of children
could be developed in healthy manner. Through the plays their abilities of
interacting with world at early age could be enhanced.
There is range of personal and external factors that could influence
child development. Complete the chart below to show positive and
negative factors for the different factors.
Factor Positive Effects Negative Effects
Health If children are having good
health then it can help
them to learn quickly.
Bad or weak health reduce
the abilities of a child to learn
and think.
Disability The children who are free
from physical and mental
disability learn quickly as
compare to others because
they are highly capable to
learn new things (Cook,
Klein and Chen, 2015).
A child who is physically or
mentally challenged may
have very low abilities to
learn as most of senses may
not work.
Sensory
impairment
An individuals who is not
having any sensory
impairment can sense all
the things easily.
The child who is having
sensory impairment may face
difficulties while sensing
anything.
Learning
difficulties
Children who are able to
learn properly and do not
face any difficulty while
learning is a positive sign
for them that they gets
developed quickly.
The children who are having
difficulties in learning may
leave negative impact upon
their ability to learn and
compete with others of their
age.
Genetic
inheritance
Some of the genetic
inheritance such as good
mathematics helps
The serious genetic issues
such as heart disease of
children may affect their
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individuals to learn quickly
and resolve the issues
properly.
abilities to learn and perform
different tasks like other
children.
Motivation The children who are
having high level of
motivation to learn help
them to get developed
easily and take challenges.
If children are not having
motivation of their parents or
other individuals then it can
affect their ability to learn as
they will not have any person
who can support them.
Adult
Expectations
Some of the parents have
expectations from their
kids that they should learn
properly so that they can
grow easily. For this
purpose they try to support
them and play with them it
helps the kids to develop
properly (Graham, 2015).
Most of the parents expect
too much from their children
and they engage them in
different activities such as
language, dance, music,
swimming. All of them may
leave negative impact upon
child development.
Financial
factors
Children whose parents are
having sufficient financial
resource are able to learn
specifically and quickly as
they can buy different tools
for them which can help
them to learn easily.
If the children whose parents
are not having sufficient
resources may face
difficulties in the stage of
learning due to lack of tools
which can help them to learn
easily.
Cultural factors In some of the countries it
is necessary for parents to
send their kids to kinder
garden and then primary
school. This culture helps
them to learn quickly in a
proper manner.
The countries where culture
regarding primary education
of children is not followed
there it may leave negative
impact upon their abilities to
learn and get developed.
Environmental
factors
The countries where
environment is very good
and there is greenery all
around here children can
learn properly as
environment leaves impact
upon their capabilities.
If the environment where
children are learning is not
good then it may leave
negative impact upon their
activities.
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Communication
needs
High level of
communication helps helps
individuals to enhance
their learning skills as it
helps them to clear all their
doubts.
For all the children it is very
important to communicate
with others if they are not
able to interact with others
then it may leave negative
impact upon their learning.
Physical Development
Describe the development of Gross Motor Skills in the different age ranges
below: include development of locomotion, balance and co-ordination:
0-3 years
Children below the age of 0 to 3 years starts to kick legs in womb which
states their development of locomotion. The kinds between the age group
of 0 – 3 starts to learn walking at this stage. They try to balance them
selves so that they can walk properly. At this stage parents are required to
coordinate with them so that they can learn different things (Gurney,
2018).
3-5 years
Children between the age of 3 to 5 starts to walk properly and they try to
run and balance themselves. In order to run appropriately they require
guidance of parents so that they can help to balance while running.
5-8 years
Kids between the age of 5 to 8 years can run properly and at this stage they
require proper coordination with their parents as they may have various
questions for which they need an answer. If their mother and father are
supporting them then it can help them to learn properly and quickly.
Onset of Puberty and adolescence
The children between the age of 8 to 14 are considered as the part of this
group. This stage of age is very critical where communication between
parents and kids is very important. The children who are at this stage need
support of their mother and father as they can guide them to differentiate
between right and wrong things.
Physical Development
Describe the development of Fine Motor Skills in the different age ranges
below: include infant reflexes, hand eye co-ordination, manipulation skills:
0-3 years
The children between the age of 0 to 3 starts to learn different reflexes
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which are crawling, grasping finger, tonic neck and learning to take step.
All these reflexes are beneficial for them because with the help of all of
them they get developed properly.
3-5 years
Kids at the age of 3 to 5 years starts to make hand and eye coordination
while moving. It is one of the main stage of child development where they
can learn and grasp things very quickly.
5-8 years
At the stage of 5 to 8 years the skills of children for manipulation get
developed. They get to know that if they cry for a thing then they can get it
from their parents. In order to fulfil all their demands they start to
manipulate their parents.
Emotional Development
Describe emotional development in the different age ranges below:
0-3 years
Children who are at primary stage are mostly attached to their care giver and
their mother as they spend most of the time with them. They are not highly
emotionally developed at this age but they want that they should be with
someone with whom they feel comfortable (Kennedy and Heineke, 2014).
3- 5 years
Kids between the age group of 3 to 5 years starts to get attached with other
family members such as their father, brother and others. They may have
strong bond with these people with whom they develop emotional relations.
5-8 years
Children at this age group starts to explore and establish emotional
relationships with their friends and other people with whom they meet. All
the kids who are are at this age group require moral support of their parents
so that they can get proper guidance.
Onset of puberty and adolescence
All the kids who are between the age of 8 to 14 have high level of emotional
development because the require a person who can help them to resolve their
curiosities. At this stage they develop emotional relations with their siblings
and other people of their age who can understand properly.
Explain the Development of attachments:
Attachment can be defined as a primary caregiver for the individuals
in the foundation of the relationships. There are various stages of it which
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are pre attachments, attachment in making, clear cut and formation of
reciprocal relationship. Children may get attached to a person who
understand their feelings and guide them to deal with all the problems which
could be faced by them in future. If it is highly secured then it could be an
advantage for along term in life. For example, establishing attachments with
parents helps children to feel safe and secure.
Multiple attachments: These are the set of different attachments which are
established with two or more people. Most of the children are not able to do
the same and some of them make their specific connection with the care
giver (Ma and Lai, 2014).
Self-concept and personal identity: Own concept, views and beliefs of an
individual for others are known as the part of this factor. According to this
element all the children should be self aware about the things which are
required by them from their life.
Explain the different theories of development below and how these
affect the framework and practice.
Bowlby’s attachment theory: This theory was developed by John Bowlby
who was a psychoanalyst. It was introduced by keeping in mind that
behavioural problems and mental health could be attributed to early
childhood. This theory states that children come to the world for the purpose
of forming attachments with other people because with the help of it they
can survive in the real world. There are various points which are majorly
focused by Bowlby. All of them are as follows:
 Children have an inborn need to get attached to one main attachment
which is mono-trophy.
 It is a right of all the children to receive continuous care for al least
two years of birth.
 All the long term consequences of deprivation of mother should be
focused with reduced intelligence, depression, increased aggression
etc.
 Bowlby has stated that a short term separation from a mother may
lead to distress for the children.
 If children are getting attached in a specific relationship with their
primary caregiver than it may lead to the development of an of
internal working model of them (Macintyre, 2014).
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Skinner: This theory was developed by B. F. Skinner who was a
behavioural psychologist. According to Skinner in order to understand
behaviour of an individuals it is very important to look at the causes of an
action and the consequences which may take place due to them. There are
two main types of behaviours that are explained under this theory. All of
them are as follows:
Operant behaviour and conditioning: According to Skinner, all the
things which requires conscious control are treated by this type of behaviour.
There are various aspects such as responding to problems etc. which requires
proper control. All these types of situations could be dealt with the help of
this behaviour and it plays an important role in the process of learning
because it can guide kids to reduce the possibility of taking wrong actions.
Respondent behaviour: All the activities which are performed by
children automatically are related to this behaviour. For example, the kids
between 0 to 3 years pee and poop in their pants which is uncontrollable by
them. Such behaviours are not learned as they may occur involuntarily.
Freud:
Oral stage: This is the first age and children belonging to age group 0
to 1 fall under same. Their sexual desires are fulfilled through their mouth.
Sucking, breastfeeding and swallowing are the most common practices
which are performed by them in order to get the satisfaction (Mensah and
Badu-Shayar, 2016).
Anal stage: The satisfaction level in this stage is dependent upon anus
and children between the age of 1 to 3 get pleasure by defecating. Parents
provide proper training to their kids regarding the place and time when and
where they can poop. Early training of it may develop a behaviour of a child
who do not like to mess defecate at right time and place.
Phallic: This stage is related to the awareness of a child between the
age of 3 to 6 regarding anatomical sex differences. It sets in the motion the
conflict between jealousy, erotic attraction, rivalry, fear etc. and all of them
are known as Freud.
Latent: This stage is related to the age group of year 6 to puberty in
which no psychosexual development takes place in human body. At this
stage all the energy is of children is invested by them in developing new
skills and enhancing knowledge.
Genital: It is the last stage of this theory which range between
puberty and adulation. At this stage they become aware of all the mediums
which can provide pleasure to the children. These are kissing, oral sex etc.
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Maslow: It is a theory which was developed by Maslow in 1943 in order to
facilitate individuals to understand different stages of needs. There are five
different elements of it which are as follows:
Physiological needs: It is the first stage of Maslow's hierarchy which
is mainly related to basic requirements of an individual. These are rest, food,
water, shelter. All of them are the major needs of children which are fulfilled
by parents at initial level.
Safety needs: When all the basic needs are fulfilled then such
requirements takes place in which children require safety, security, freedom
from fear and stability.
Belongingness and love needs: It is third level of human needs which
develop with age and also known as social needs. At this stage children
needs for interpersonal relationships gets developed which motivates
behaviour. Their requirements at this stage are trust, acceptance, affection,
love and friendship (Sukkar, Dunst and Kirkby, 2016).
Esteem needs: All the needs which are developed at late adult age are
known as such requirements. The things which are required by individuals at
this stage are status, prestige, achievement, mastery, interdependence, etc.
All of them are very important to develop self esteem.
Self actualisation needs: At this stage individuals understand their
personal potential and they try for self fulfilment and getting peak
experiences.
Bandura: A social learning theory was developed by Albert Bandura that
defines that individuals specially children learn from each other via
modelling, observing and imitating. It is also considered as the bridge
between motivation, attention and memory. The mind of kids gets developed
at early stage so the parents should pay attention towards their actions as the
child will observe and learn them. If mother and father of a kid are fighting
then it may leave negative impact upon the behaviour. Different aspects
which are focused by this theory are attention, motivation, reproduction and
retention.
Watson: This theory was developed by John Watson in year 1913 which is
mainly related to behaviourism. According to the theory it can be defined as
a school which is based upon psychology and emphasises on objective and
scientific method of inquiry. Some of the basic assumptions of this theory
are as follows:
 the behaviour of a children is shaped, learned and formed by the
surroundings.
 Stimulus response results in behaviour of an individual.
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 Human and animal learning are very similar to each other.
Social Development
Describe social development in the different age ranges below:
0-3 years
Social development in children of 0 to 3 years depends upon the care giver.
They should stay close during play groups, ignore forcing them to share,
helping them to wait and let them deciding how long their turn lasts.
3-5 years
At this stage kids learn to become self sufficient and they try to interact with
peers and relate with them by themselves. Kids of year 3 to 5 try to become
somewhat independent as they start to go pre school at this age. They also
learn for sharing their things by themselves.
5-8 years
Preferences of children changes at this stage as they start to liking to be
around their peers because they can relate with them. They are also able to
communicate with others without help of their parents.
Onset of puberty and adolescence
It is considered as the most complex and fascinating stage of life that drives
various aspects of development and growth of children. All the kids at this
age become mature and they can take decision by themselves.
Explain prosocial behaviour: It is a type of behaviour that provides benefit
to society and other people. The activities which are related to it are sharing,
cooperating, helping, volunteering and donating.
Explain moral development: The process which is pays attention towards
change, understanding and emergence of morality from a kid to adult is
known as moral development.
Explain the development of friendships: With the help of social
development friendship is developed by individuals in which they can share
all the feelings of them with others.
Explain the development of aggression: Genetic and environment
components contribute in the development of aggressive behaviour. It
develops with age and includes impulsivity, language delays and emotion
dysregulation.
Explain managing unwanted behaviour, make sure you include
conditioning, reinforcement, social learning and role models:
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For all the individual it is very important to manage unwanted
behaviour by paying attention towards conditioning, reinforcement, social
learning and role models.
Intellectual development
Describe intellectual development in the different age ranges below:
0-3 years
In this age group the intellectual development of children is very low as they
are not able to think properly and they are guided by their parents or
caregivers.
3-5 years
Intellectual development of children of this age group is moderate as kids at
this stage starts to think properly about what they want to eat and drink.
5-8 years
Children in the age of 5 to 8 years have higher intellectual development as
compare to the age group of 3 to 5 because some of their decisions are taken
by themselves such as interacting with other people.
Onset of puberty and adolescence
Children at this stage of age have highly developed intellectual skills as they
think about each and every aspect before taking a step. They also think
before communicating with other people (Waite, 2017).
Explain the theories of development and frameworks affecting practice
for:
Nature V Nurture: It is a psychological theory which is mainly developed
for the purpose of determining the conflict of nature and nurture in detail.
Nature is pre wiring element which is influenced by biological factors on the
other hand nurture is totally dependent upon external factors such as life
experienced and learning. Nature of a child depends upon the family
members and nurture is dependent upon learning experiences and product of
exposure.
Cognitive/Constructivist: It is one of the main theory which is followed in
schools by teachers and educators. It was mainly used in 1930 and 40s. As
teachers are considered as the facilitators for students as they guide them to
learn and get educated. This theory was developed by Jean Piaget in which it
has been demonstrated that children can't be given information that could be
understood by them immediately. Instead of this all the learners should
construct their own knowledge themselves.
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Piaget e.g. learner centred educational philosophy and learning through
play: Piaget has also introduced the concept of learner centred educational
philosophy and learning through play. Both the aspects are focused for the
purpose of developing learning capabilities of individuals.
Chomsky’s theory of language development: This theory is based upon
the way in which kids acquire and learn languages. It states that a child have
inherited skills to pick and learn languages . With the help of all the qualities
they also learn to walk.
Vygotsky’s theory: It is considered as one of the main foundations of
constructivism as it asserts three major types of themes. All of them are
related to social interaction, zone of proximal development and more
knowledgeable. By paying attention towards all of them an individual can
learn properly (Wang and Degol, 2014).
Explain the four approaches to studying language development.
Normative, behaviourist approaches, nature and social constructivist
theories:
 Normative: This approach is related to the understanding of political
theory. It is mainly based upon logical thinking that covers maths,
logic and rationality.
 Behaviourist: It is a psychological approach that depends upon
behaviour of an individual that changes with time. The main
consideration of it is observable stimulus response behaviours.
 Nature: This was developed by Tracy Terrel which is mainly used for
the purpose of developing learning abilities of individuals. It states
that learning process is a reproduction of the way in which people
acquire the language naturally.
 Social: This approach depends upon the social context that covers
friends, family and society. It is focused with the public behaviour of
individuals.
Explain the factors to consider when communicating using Argyle’s
stages of communication:
There are various types of factors which should be considered by
individuals while communicating. All of them could be understood with the
help of 6 stages of Argyle's stages of communication. All of them are idea
occurrence, message coding inaccurate or vague, message sent, message
received, decoding of message and misunderstanding of message. While
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communicating all these elements are required to be focused while
communicating.
Complete the chart below:
Age range Speech, language and
communication
development
Activities to support
0-3 years The level of speech,
language and
communication
development is very
low.
 Playing games
 Conducting
interactive
activities
3-5 years This age group have a
slight high level of
speech, language and
communication
development.
 Communicating
with kids
 Appraising their
work.
5-8 years Children who are at
this stage of age have a
high level of speech,
language and
communication.
 Conducting
language classes
 Interacting with
them and asking
for issues.
Onset of puberty and
adolescence
These kids have
highest level of all the
aspects.
 Focusing on their
activities and
trying to support
their efforts.
How do speech, language and communication skills support children’s
learning?
Speech, language and communication skills support learning of
children because with the help of all of them they will be able to learn
quickly. All these elements help to develop capabilities of observing,
understanding etc.
What are the potential impacts of speech, language and communication
difficulties on the overall development of a child, both currently and in
the longer term?
There are various potential impacts of speech, language and
communication difficulties for a child. All of them are as follows:
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 It will directly affect development of children by creating issues for
them while interacting with others.
 All the difficulties will also create issues for children in loner term
because they may get failed to achieve their carer goals if they face
issues while communicating and delivering speech.
Describe ways in which adults can effectively support and extend the
speech, language and communication development of children during
early years:
There are various ways in which adults can effectively support and
extend the speech, language and communication development of children
during early years. All of them are as follows:
 Adults can provide moral support to children by guiding them for the
wrong and right things to do.
 They can motivate them to deal with all the challenges by themselves
and in proper manner (Webster, 2017).
What are the positive effects of adult support for children and their
carers?
Adult support for children and their carers is very important because it
can help them to get developed easily and resolve all their issues properly.
With the help of it all the queries which comes to the mind of kids may get
resolved effectively which will enhance their confidence and skills of
communication.
How do levels of speech and language development vary between
children entering an early year’s provision and the range of needs that
need to be taken into account during the settling in period and
planning:
Levels of speech and language development vary between early year's
provision and settling in period because the kids have different needs in both
the stages. At early stage they will be able to interact with others properly
which can help them to deliver proper speech. In settling in period they may
not be able to deliver a speech because they will not have skills for the same.
Evaluate the effectiveness of speech, language and communication
support for children in own setting:
Speech, language and communication support are very important for
children own setting because with the help of all these elements they will be
able to make others understand about the things which are communicated by
them. If a child is not having proper knowledge of language and
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communication then it may affect ability of delivering speech and setting a
good image among others.
What is the importance of the environment in supporting speech,
language and communication development?
Environment supports speech, language and communication
development because a good environment directly leaves impact upon
behaviour of individuals. If a person is not having a good environment to
deliver a speech then it may affect the way in which speech is delivered
(Woodhead, 2015).
Review evidence about the key factors that provide a supportive speech,
language and communication environment:
There are various factors which are supportive for speech, language
and communication environment. All of them are support from adults,
taking part in interactive activities, family support etc.
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Cline, T., 2018. The Assessment of Special Educational Needs: International
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Waite, S. ed., 2017. Children learning outside the classroom: From birth to
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