Childhood Development Stages and the Impact of Influences

This report provides a comprehensive overview of child development, from conception to adulthood, emphasizing the critical role of early childhood in shaping future abilities. It details the stages of childhood development, including infancy (birth to 18 months), toddlerhood (18 months to 2 years), the preschool years (3 to 5 years), and school age (6 to 17 years), outlining the cognitive, social, emotional, and physical milestones characteristic of each stage. The report highlights the significance of both biological and social influences on a child's development, including nutrition, genetics, hormone levels, and the impact of the social environment, such as parental care, social interactions, and gender socialization. It underscores the importance of these factors in fostering healthy relationships, emotional competencies, and overall well-being, concluding that parents play a crucial role in providing effective care and promoting positive development.

Development Stages of
Childhood

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
Development stage of childhood.................................................................................................3
Importance of biological and social influences during development period...............................8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Child development is defined as the process in which a child changes over time as it covers
the whole period from conception to becoming a fully functional adult. It is considered as the
journey from total dependence to full independence. The early years of the life of children are
very important for their health and development as they depict the suitable abilities of children
by undertaking there is special Health Care requirements by which they can grow up including
the social-emotional and educational requirements (Kay, 2017). Along with this child
development include the physical growth like intellectual language emotional and social
development of children that leads to influence the others as well. The report leads to cover
details regarding the development of childhood and concerning stages by discussing the
significance of biological and social influence over the development period.
MAIN BODY
Development stage of childhood
Child development refers to the suitable sequence of the development of language
emotional changes physical appearance and thoughts that occur inner child from their birth to
adulthood. It is the process of signed progress from their dependency to independence as this
process is influenced by the genetic factors and events during prenatal life (Balswick, King and
Reimer, 2016). Regarding the development of a child proper observing and monitoring is
important to make sure that children meet their development milestones which are useful
regarding the guideline of Ideal development.
Apart from this, there are various problems within the development of a child that arise
because of the prenatal circumstances, Genetics, and the presence of particular diagnosis and
medical factors. For this helps provide suitable clarity regarding the development of the child
and formulate a plan to overcome the challenges (De Onis, 2017). While the development of the
child the developmental milestones are considered as these are the things in which children
develop their skills and abilities at a certain age and these things vary from child to child.
Developmental Milestones
Every child develops and grows at their pace and for this, some of the common
milestones for each age period is discussed below:
Birth to 18 months

In this period the development and growth of babies change rapidly and for this, doctors
recommend that the parents speak to their babies during these phases because hearing their voice
will help the baby to develop communication skills (Vladoiu and et. al., 2019). For instance, a
short period of tummy time reaches to enhance the neck and back muscles of the baby. Parents
also need to respond immediately when their baby cries by picking up and comforting them as it
leads to developing strong bond among them.
Developmental
factors
1-3 Months 4-6 Months 5-9 Months 9-12
Months
12-18
Months
Cognitive Depict
suitable
interest in
the human
faces and
objects and
also get
bored with
the
repetitive
activities.
Prominently
identify
some alien
faces
analyze
music and
respond
towards day
signs of
affection
and love.
Passes things
from one to
another hand
and bring
hands to the
mouth.
Curiously
look for the
hidden
things.
Point out
the body
parts and
also learn
the use of
some basic
things like
Pan spoon
and so on.
Social and
Emotional
Start
smiling at
the people.
Respond
towards tea
expressions
and
different
voices and
tones.
Enjoy
playing with
Mirrors and
know the
strange faces.
Always
prefer
familiar
faces and
people.
Cry around
the
strangers
and have
tantrums as
well.
Language Begins to
make vocal
sounds and
cries over
different
Begins to
imitate
sounds and
laughs.
Communicate
with gestures
and respond
towards
hearing their
Point out
things and
understand
the meaning
of “no”.
Starts
saying “no”
and several
words like
bye-bye.

needs. name.
Movement/
Physical
Turn by
hearing
sounds and
follow the
objects with
Eyes.
Able to roll
over and
push up
with arms
on tummy.
Rolls in both
directions
and sit
without any
support.
Crawl and
pull up into
the standing
position.
Start
drinking
from a cup
and stand
alone.
18 months to 2 years
It is the toddler year in which children need to continue with a lot of sleep good nutrition
and close relationship with parents and caregivers (Korevaar and et. al., 2016). For this, doctors
recommend that parents need to create a predictable routine to keep their child feeling secure and
also watch their child regarding the Vamp and reliability of all the caregivers.
Developmental factors 18 Months 2 Years
Cognitive Starts identifying the familiar
things from the books and
start following single step
request life “please stand up”
and “sit down”.
Starts following simple two-
part instructions and play
pretend games.
Social and Emotional Helping with task like putting
away toys and recognizing
itself in mirror and starts
making faces.
Play with other children and
also defy directions like
“come back here and sit
down”.
Language Follow simple directions and
like hearing short stories and
songs.
Starts asking simple questions
and say the names of familiar
people.
Movement/Physical Begins to run, eat with spoon,
dances and drink properly
from the cup.
Starts climbing stairs using
railing to hold on and can
draw lines and shapes.
3 to 5 years old

It is the pre School year age in which children grow towards dependency and become
capable to perform their simple tasks (Lloyd and et. al., 2016). At this stage, this starts making
new friends and game new experiences. At this stage, doctors recommend that parents need to be
clear and consistent towards the behaviour of the child and speak in the age-appropriate
language.
Developmental
factors
3 Years 4 Years 5 Years
Cognitive Can use boys who
have buttons and
moving parts and also
starts turning the
pages of books.
Able to count and
draw figures.
Children are also able
to make predictions
regarding the story
and can name the few
colors, capital letters
and numbers.
Can copy the letters
and simple shapes
and also starts
understanding the
order of simple
process.
Social and
Emotional
Can get upset if the
routines will change
and also show
sympathy towards the
hurt and crying
children.
Starts playing with
other kids and talks
about their likes and
dislikes.
Develop the
knowledge regarding
the gender and also
switches among
complaint and being
defiant.
Language Starts talking by
using 2 to 3 sentences
which can be
understood by the
family members.
Talk about the
happenings of
daycare and starts
saying first and last
name.
Able to answer
simple questions
regarding the story
and number names
and letters.
Movement/Physical Starts walking up and
down steps with one
foot on each stair and
jumping and running.
Climb stairs
confidently and walk
backwards.
Stands on one foot
for about 10 seconds
and also starts getting
swing set.

School age development
At this age, children gain competence and Independence quickly and friends become
more important and influential for them. It is considered as the challenging stage for parents
because to keep their child safe parents start enforcing rules and also allowed them to make some
decisions (Newman, Rowe and Ratner, 2016). For this, doctors recommend that parents need to
make sure that their children get enough sleep and also do regular exercise for the growth of their
body.
Developmental
factors
6-8 Years 9-11 Years 12-14 Years 15-17 Years
Cognitive Completing
their
instructions
with 3 and more
steps.
Start using
common
devices like
mobile phones
game stations
and tablets.
Able to think
logically and
also developed
views that are
differ from their
parents.
Starts
developing
perspective
which are
different from
their parents
and internalize
work and study
habits.
Social and
Emotional
Co-operate and
plays with
others and also
mimic the
behavior of
adults.
Starts analysing
things from the
perspective of
individual and
also experience
more fear
pressure.
Become more
independent
from their
parents and also
need some
privacy.
Start spending
more time with
friends and
increase their
interest in
dating.
Language Start reading
books at the
great level.
Make opinions
based on their
hearing and
listen things for
this specific
reason.
Start using tone
of voice to
communicate
intentions like
sarcasm.
Can have
complex
conversations
and write
fluently.

Movement/
Physical
Starts practicing
the physical
skills in order to
get better for
them.
Increased the
level of skills
within the
physical and
sports activities.
Most of the
females will
have started
periods and
height or weight
may change
quickly.
Continuous to
mature
physically like
changes in
voice.
Importance of biological and social influences during development period
Both the biological and social factors play an important role in early development as both
factors tend to impact the development of the child in both positive and negative manner. As the
biological factors influence the individual life-course trajectories and shape educational
attainments (Arnett, Chapin and Brownlow, 2018). The social and physical environment is the
feedback from the biological process as it measures and adds the important dimensions for the
evaluation of social policies.
Biological influence
The development of the child is influenced by a wide variety of biological factors that
plays an important role in early development. Biological factors include hormone levels nutrition
gender genetic influence and brain chemistry. Proper nutrition is the critical factor in the overall
development of children as the diet of the mother and health play an important role. For instance,
intake of Folic acid of 400 micrograms daily food three months before conception and the during
early pregnancy leads to a decrease in the risk of a defect in the birth of baby, brain, and spine as
well (Attanasio, Meghir and Nix, 2020). Therefore, these birth defects arise in the first few
weeks of the pregnancy and due to this, it is important for women in the childbearing years to
make sure that they get at least 400 micrograms of Folic acid on regular basis.
The physical body of a child has distinctive reproductive organs which are differentiated
as the special hormones that make gender differences. As males tend to produce more androgens
whereas females produce Estrogens. Therefore, gender socialization is the process by which
children learn regarding the social Expectations behaviour, and attitudes which are associated
with both boys and girls as the socialization process is the factor that influences gender
development among children.

Social influence
Various factors impact the expression of children that relies upon under the social skills
and emotional competencies which is being acquired by the children from their Guardians and
parents. Living in a healthy social environment enhances the likelihood that will help the child to
develop positive social relationships. Besides this, social behaviour and the overall ability also
enhances the positive relationship with other individuals (Julvez and et. al., 2016). The social
environment impacts the quality of relationships and nature in which parents and children
engage.
Developing positive social relationships is fundamental to healthy life considering
psychological health as well. Besides this people who have healthy relationships tend to develop
a sense of belongingness from the other members of the social network which is useful for them
to cope up with stress and difficult times. Social factors are important for the development of
children as it helps them in making friends deal with this agreement and develop the ability to
interact with others. Children with strong social skills tend to find an effective relationship with
others that positively impact their wellbeing and develop empathy among them.
CONCLUSION
By considering the above discussion, it has been analysed that for the overall growth and
development of children parents play an important role as some of them develop positive
parenting practices that work across diverse families by providing effective care regarding the
needs of a healthy child. It has been analysed that the development of the child is depending on
the cognitive skills as this child acquires knowledge and interacts with the surrounding
environment. In relation to this child need cognitive activities for their development in the areas
of attention concentration memory and so on that include various ways like identifying noises,
practicing counting, offer choices, ask questions, play with everyday items, and so on.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Arnett, J., Chapin, L. and Brownlow, C., 2018. Human development: A cultural approach.
Pearson Australia.
Attanasio, O., Meghir, C. and Nix, E., 2020. Human capital development and parental
investment in India. The Review of Economic Studies, 87(6), pp.2511-2541.
Balswick, J.O., King, P.E. and Reimer, K.S., 2016. The reciprocating self: Human development
in theological perspective. InterVarsity Press.
De Onis, M., 2017. Child growth and development. Nutrition and health in a developing world,
pp.119-141.
Julvez, J and et. al., 2016. Maternal consumption of seafood in pregnancy and child
neuropsychological development: a longitudinal study based on a population with high
consumption levels. American journal of epidemiology, 183(3), pp.169-182.
Kay, W., 2017. Moral development: A psychological study of moral growth from childhood to
adolescence. Routledge.
Korevaar, T.I and et. al., 2016. Association of maternal thyroid function during early pregnancy
with offspring IQ and brain morphology in childhood: a population-based prospective
cohort study. The lancet Diabetes & endocrinology, 4(1), pp.35-43.
Lloyd, R.S and et. al., 2016. National Strength and Conditioning Association position statement
on long-term athletic development. Journal of strength and conditioning
research, 30(6), pp.1491-1509.
Newman, R.S., Rowe, M.L. and Ratner, N.B., 2016. Input and uptake at 7 months predicts
toddler vocabulary: The role of child-directed speech and infant processing skills in
language development. Journal of child language, 43(5), pp.1158-1173.
Vladoiu, M.C and et. al., 2019. Childhood cerebellar tumours mirror conserved fetal
transcriptional programs. Nature, 572(7767), pp.67-73.