Extra urban is the name of the areas between the inner city and the rural areas, often known as the ‘fringes’. In relation to transport, the ‘fringes’ are the best places to live as there is less congestion unlike the inner city but there are more sufficient roads and transport facilities than the rural areas. Although this, the ‘fringes’ have less of a community spirit than in rural areas where communities are more close-knit.
Safety is an issue affecting the development of a child or infant. In outdoor areas, there are many things causing a safety issue, e.g. dogs which may attack children, children needing protection from traffic on the road and also unsafe equipment and surfaces in play areas. All of these factors may cause harm to a child’s development.
There are schemes currently set up to help calm traffic which causes a hazard to young children playing near that area. These schemes are aimed to reduce the speed of traffic and prevent accidents, creating a ‘child safe zone’. Other schemes include the Green Cross Code, lollypop men/ladies, zebra crossings and pelican crossings. A safety precaution taught to children at a young age is not to talk to strangers and to avoid contact with paedophiles and other dangers to children.
There are many factors within the home which could affect a child’s development including toys, television, avoiding infection, flooring and health and general safety in the home. Toys are often used a learning aids. The learning aids must be specified to certain age groups as at different ages as infants clearly have limited knowledge. Also toys have to be tested for safety reasons, as infants could harm themselves on small detachable or sharp objects. The learning aids provide infants with activities in which the infants are intellectually challenged, increasing their skills.
The IQ levels of the infants could be increased through the use of game consoles e.g. Playstation games as some games provide players with intellectual knowledge through challenges. Self discipline could be developed through toys, as by encouraging to store the toys after playing, the child would be rewarded leading to repetition of the self discipline behaviour.
Avoiding infection in the home with a small child around could prove to be difficult. Bacteria must be reduced in main areas of the house where bacteria normally develops and spreads e.g. work surfaces, door handles and toilet seats. Overall personal hygiene is also essential to teach the infant, as bad personal hygiene could cause many infectious diseases and illnesses. Bacteria on work surfaces could easily be avoided by using anti-bacterial spray. Door handles and light switches are the most common ways in which illness and bacteria spreads through the home, as all house members use them. Toilet seats need regular cleaning, as this is an easy way for bacteria to spread, and also infants can reach the toilet seat with their hands which may cause illness.
Health and safety within the home is essential for the positive growth and development of a child. Factors such as the kitchen, furniture, the stairs and fire safety are to be closely reserved at all times. Within the kitchen there are many safety hazards such as hot pans and handles, which could harm the infant if contact was made. As mentioned before, the cleanliness of the kitchen is essential and also to prevent harm, high cupboards and lock are recommended.
The furniture could endanger a child’s safety more than realised by many. Glass and sharp corners could result in fatal injury. A way in which to prevent this is safety or toughened glass in furniture, so even if an accident was to occur, injury could be prevented. Parents are advised to use stair gates, as the child is at a great risk of falling. To protect against fires, safety precautions such as installing home smoke alarms and extinguishers are advised, as a fire could extremely damage the growth and development of a child.
Location and pollution are closely linked, as there is a higher level of pollution in inner cities than rural areas, leading to a higher number of respiratory problems suffered within the inner city. Pollution effects almost everybody as it is a world wide growing concern. In developed countries such as the U.K. and U.S.A, the growing levels of pollution is leading to more and more people (including children) developing asthma.
As the population grows traffic also becomes more congested creating further air pollution. Factors that do not help the situation include smoking, as it is a growing habit due to this, children’s asthma becomes worse through passive smoking. Buildings producing large amounts of pollution e.g. Rugby cement works, increase the chances of locals developing asthmatic symptoms.
The diet of an individual largely affects their growth and development. The type of environment in which they are raised affects the consistency of someone’s diet. An example of this is people living inner city areas have easier access to fast food restaurants than people in rural areas, meaning people living in inner city areas are more likely to have an unhealthy diet. People living in rural areas are more likely to have balanced diets due to greater availability of fresh fruit and vegetables.