Childhood
4-9 Year olds
Physical Development
4-9 year olds are growing and changing steadily, and you may find yourself surprised by their different appearance and new skills. Although every child develops at their own pace, many self –care, small motor and athletic abilities are typical at this age. Between the ages of 4 and 9 years, the child may begin to look thinner. This is because their size is increasing, but their fat accumulation is staying relatively the same. They are most likely to experience a growth spurt between ages 6 and 8 years, and you may notice that their hair has becomes darker. Their nutrition intake and genetics are big factors when it comes to their growth at this age.
At the age of 4 and 5, the child starts to develop with hand-eye coordination will allow him to be able to play with toys that have small parts. They are still likely to prefer running and jumping, by 5 years of age they will be able to catch a ball, throw a ball overhand, hop on one foot, walk up and down the stairs alone, draw, and pour water from a pitcher. They may also be able to change their clothes by themselves and will begin to hold a fork with 3 fingers instead of his fist.
Shortly at 5 years of age, the child may be able to skip and walk on their tiptoes. They have the ability to repeatedly bounce a ball and skate, and by the time they are 7 years old they will be able to ride a bike, draw shapes and patterns, use a comb and toothbrush and tie their shoes. They are capable of performing simple household tasks such as making their bed and can play a musical instrument. They will now begin to show a preference for one hand over the other at this age.
Between the ages of 7 and 9, the child may begin to identify himself as athletic or not athletic. This can influence their future involvement in sports and physical activity during free time. They have the capability to roll, bat, kick, and throw, which make them able to play organized sports such as soccer, baseball, and basketball. Their strength will continue to develop with practice.
Intellectual Development
At the age of 4 years old, the children are able to understand opposite analogies, they can follow 3-stage commands, they listen eagerly to stories, they can follow directions with prepositions for e.g. – above, under, on top, below. They can also use expressive language, they use all parts of speech correctly. They can now use colour names, and define words in terms of use, e.g. car, pencil, crayon, train. They ask a lot of questions such as why, what and how. They correct their own errors in pronunciation of new words. They now gain a new sense of humour and they laugh at themselves, they laugh at their surroundings, they laugh quite a lot, they love listening to and hearing silly songs and names, such as smelly, or poopie-pants.They will play on their own and they will make up names, and pretend that bad or good things are happening to their toys. They will enjoy dressing up in fancy dress costumes; they get interested in time such as yesterday, hour, minute, second. They will count to 10, and when they go over it a lot they will start counting and won’t stop.
By the age of five the child should now be able to, listen briefly to what others are saying. They will understand at least 6,000 words. They put words into categories now. They can now guess what object attribute or use of clues for example, “what bounces?” They repeat the days of the week, they can define words and ask for what the meaning of a word is, they act out stories that are being read to them and they can give rhyming words after been given an example.hey now appreciate the past and the present and the future. They can count up to 6 objects when asked “how many are there?” They enjoy being read humorous stories. They state their address, their age, their name and the ages of siblings. They can act out stories that are being read to them. They learn which way is left and which way is right. They match up to about 10-12 colours. They will also predict what will happen next in a story. They will print their first name and simple words. They recognize first names, they read letters in sequence. They can count and point to at least 13 objects.
By the age of 6 children can, use a picture dictionary, they can category labels. They like to use new words, especially big words. Whilst at school you can see that they are improving because, they begin to recognize more words, they can match words, they can identify words by their length or beginning of the sound/letter. They now re-read books many of times. They print first and last name. They can now start to spell. They reverse two digit numbers, for example they would write the number 15 as number 51 instead. At 7 years old they, speak fluently. They start to use slang and clichés. They understand cause-effect relationships. They recite days of the week, and months of the year. At the age of 8, they now easily express and communicate. They now what not to say verbally, they know not to share private information. They like to use big words. By the age of nine they should now be able to, gain proficiency in reading and writing, work and play hard, frequently discus reproduction with friends. They should be associating scary daytime events with frightening dreams. They will be enjoying school and have a favourite teacher. They can describe preferred methods of learning.
Emotional and Social Development
Social - At 4 years of age the children should be, playing and interacting with other children, they should be improving in turn-taking and co-operating, they are spurred on by rivalry in activity, they start to show interest in exploring sex differences, they develop self-responsibility, they play outside with little supervision, because they like to show that they can be trusted, they have a sense of property developing, they still like to be home and mother oriented. They prefer to play with adults, they have dramatic play closer to reality, and they like to play dress up because their very imaginative with self and others, they love adventure and anything new that comes their way, they love playing in groups of 2-5 children. Imaginary fears may start to develop, such as the dark and having an injury.
Emotional – At 4 years age, they start to exhibit define personality, they can show concern and sympathy, they are calm, secure and balanced. They love adventure, excitement and anything new. They start to exaggerate and boast, boast and criticize. They extreme in behaviour – love and hate. They may lie and use profanity. They have romantic attachment to a parent of the opposite sex. They start to feel responsibility and guilt towards things that they have done.
Emotional – At five years of age, they want to do what is expected of them, they respect reasonable authority, and they are willing to play with most of the other children in their class. They engage with other children in co-operative play, they play fairly, they also engage with other children in role play. At this age they start to choose their own friends, and friendship changes fast, they also have one or two best friends of the same sex. They can now play simple table games such as snakes and ladders, or do jigsaw puzzles, but they start to be competitive with games that they play, if they lose they will start to go in a mood and pout because they lost. They play in small groups of around 3 – 4 because to many can confuse them with the games that they play. At the ages of 4 and through, they will start to enjoy life, because this is the age where you can actually remember parts of your childhood when you grow up. They feel secure, safe and happy. They start to express feelings more, and they are clear to them. They start to understand fully, the difference between sad, happy and angry. They will quarrel with children of their age, but they will soon forget about it and move on. They will have anger outbursts frequently and they will disobey. They will see what buttons they can press with you. They will understand the feeling of jealousy, and they will be jealous of classmates or other family members that are getting their parents attention, and they will do anything to get the attention on to themselves. They like to have independence, they will show their parents that they can do things for themselves; they won’t like it when other people try doing things for them.
Adolescence
10-18 Year olds
Physical Development
Puberty in girls often starts between the ages of 11 and 13, although it may begin earlier in some girls. Girls generally start puberty before 13 years of age, but boys generally start puberty later on, which is often between the ages of 13 and 15 years of age. Puberty is a development stage which prepares the body for sexual reproduction. It is triggered by the action of hormones that control sexual development. Both boys and girls may start to grow taller at a fast rate than what they were before, you would realise this in a couple of days, this is called a Growth Spurt. Girls’ sexual development during puberty includes the enlargement of breasts, the development of pubic hair, increased fat layers under their skin, and their menstrual cycle will start. Boys will experience the enlargement of their testes and penis, the development of pubic and facial hair and increased muscle strength. Boy’s voices will also start to deepen and break. This is also known as ‘dropping’ or ‘breaking’. These major changes mean that adolescents look and behave very differently from children.
Middle adolescence is a time of blossoming development. The insecure, inwardly focused 13 year old becomes a cheerful, charming 16-year-old looking towards the future. During this time their thinking skills take an adult turn, their body matures and social network outside the family become increasingly important. Now is when you can see that they are no longer a child, they are turning in to a young adult. Boys and girls will exhibit markedly different levels of physical maturity as they enter middle adolescence. Girls’ rapid growth is generally tapering off, while many boys have yet to see the beginning of their much anticipated growth spurt. By the end of this period most girls will be near their adult height and boys may continue to grow until the age of 18 or 19.
The physical developments of girls are that their height continues, but at a slower pace than before and the adult height is reached by the age of 16 or 17. Breast development continues. Pubic hair will start to thicken, darken and grow in an adult triangular pattern. Also, their underarm hair thickens. Their hips will start to widen, fat will deposit in the bum, legs and stomach increase. The menstrual cycle will start to become more regular, and at this age pregnancy will now become possible.
The physical developments in boys are that they have rapid growth in their height and their weight. Their muscles will full out and strength increases dramatically, their voice will now start to deepen. Pubic hair and underarm hair will start to become more obvious and will thicken. All body hair will start to increase such as facial hair, chest hair and leg hair. The penis, scrotum and testes enlarge, and also ejaculation and nocturnal emissions occur.
Physical Development in both boys and girls, are that, they will be hungry constantly, because their appetite is great. Their need for sleep increases, they might sleep in late on weekends. They will start to have oily skin and may have acne, sweating starts to increase. Rapid growth may cause clumsiness and lack of co-ordination. Sexual desires and fantasies will increase.
Intellectual Development
Between 13 and 16 years of age, teenagers will start to think differently about themselves, others and the world, but on an adult level. They enter the middle adolescence with a focus on things that they can experience ‘here and now’, and moves to being able to imagine the range of possibilities that life holds.
These changes are based on a progression of development rather than an age-based milestone. These changes that occur are, that arguing skills WILL improve and are demonstrated often and with great passion, their reasoning skills improve, they will begin the ability to apply concepts to specific examples. They learn to use deductive reasoning and make educated guesses. They learn to reason through problems even in the absence of concrete events or examples. They become able to construct hypothetical solutions to a problem and evaluate which is best. They focus on the future develops, they begin with a present focus, mixed with some fantasy. Learn to recognise that current actions can have an effect on the future. They start to set personal goals from themselves and may reject goals set by others. Their decision-skills improve; they begin to independently differentiate right from wrong and develop a conscience. They learn to distinguish fact from opinion. They learn to evaluate the credibility of various sources of information. They become able to anticipate the consequences of different options. They may challenge the assumptions and solutions presented by adults.
Emotional and Social Development
During this period, they will continue to be an emotional pendulum, happy and at ease one year and then troubled by self-doubts the next. These mood swings will smooth out as the teenager approaches the end of school or college and gain more confidence in their own independence.
With 13 year olds, will be uncertain, unhappy and sensitive. They will be withdrawn, spend a lot of time alone, and will need a lot of privacy. They are convinced that everyone is watching them and judging them. They will be very concerned with body image; they will get self-esteem at low ebb. They will be sociable with adults, their friendships tend to be group-focused, more squabbling than what their would have been a year ago.
14 year olds generally are happy and easy going, they recognize their own weaknesses and strengths, they find many faults with, and embarrassed by both parents. They like to be busy and involved in many activities. They have a social circle which is large and varied; they include friends of both sexes, they are very anxious to be liked. And interest in the opposite sex is very strong.
15 year olds may be quarrelsome and reluctant to communicate, and they have strong desire for independence, they want to be free of family. Their relationships with siblings may be better than what they have with their parents, friends are very important to them, they may have one or two “best friends”, dating and romantic relationships are commonplace.
16 year olds, relationships with their family is easy and giving. They feel comfortable in their own skin, secure sense of self. They start to view parents as people, rather than rule-makers. Friendships are very important, most have many friends of both sexes with shared interests, and their relationships can be quite intense.
Adolescents are between childhood and adulthood. This is the period during which people reach physical and sexual maturity, but during which most people do not yet have adult responsibilities or the emotional resources of adulthood. The influence of parents remains strong, but is increasingly replaced by input from peers and other adults (teachers, coaches, etc.). Stereotypically, there is substantial strife between adolescents and their parents, but if the pre-adolescent relationship was good, the parent-child relationship usually continues to be healthy during this period. Peer pressure is not necessarily bad, again assuming that parents set good examples before adolescence. Most teenagers select friends who are like themselves, including having the same values, goals, morals and so forth.
Identify formation; adolescence is a period critical to the formation of identity and self-concept. Adolescents begin to have the cognitive skills to view themselves in more abstract and idealized ways.
There are signs of emotional disturbance in teenagers, and these disturbances are:
that they have no friends, they are frequently getting into fights, they will be cruel to siblings, animals or others, they run away from home of play truant regularly, they are often angry and depressed, they will drink too much or drink regularly, they lose or gain weight suddenly, they talk about suicide or begin to harm themselves.
Adulthood
19 – 65
Physical Development
In between the ages of 19 and 65, there is little further growth in their height; their muscle building continues through increased work and leisure pursuits. From the mid 20’s onwards, there Is weight gain because there Is less strenuous activity and more sedentary work patterns. This is dictated by the lifestyle that they have. For a man, in between the ages of 20 and 50 there is a male menopause which is reduction in production of testosterone. For a female in between the ages of 45-55 the menopause happens, this is where there is a decline in fertility resulting in complete cessation, this causes night sweats, bloatedness, anxiety, tiredness, confusion and weepiness. There is also generic physical changes in these ages. These changes are, hair loss in males, grey hair will start, their eye sight degenerates, they start to have hearing loss, their skin starts to go elastic – wrinkles, they start to have brittle bones, they start to have arthritis, they are less active so there is a chance of weight gain.
Intellectual Development
At this age they now become more mature and handle more mature responsibilities. They may now start to go on to higher education after college or they may go to university, then they will find a job, but some may go straight into a job at a supermarket or something. When they start working they then have to pay bills, they will move out and have to start paying either rent or their mortgage, they will have to pay electric bills, gas bills, water bills etc. as they grow older it is then their turn to take care of the family, the young ones, the old ones. They will be looking after family and making sure their family is safe and secure and that everyone in the household is happy. The mothers may have two jobs, one being a job outside of the home, and the other being inside the home that when they come home from work they will be looking after their children, by making them food, putting them in the bath, helping them with homework also. This can be very stressful for some mothers. Because some mothers are single mothers and have no husband or fiancé or boyfriend to give a hand and help out, she has to do everything by herself, but this can also be for a father, there are some single fathers that have no wife, fiancé or even a girlfriend and have to provide for their family all by themselves. This can be a struggle to some. After the age of 60 it is said that they are starting to decline in logic, math, memory and spatial tasks. The decline can be caused by lack of practice and could be minimized by mental exercise.
Emotional and Social Development
When they get to the age of around 27, they won’t share their feelings with anyone because they don’t want anyone to feel sorry for them. For example when a person in their family dies they cannot share information with their children because it might affect them in a way or they might get nightmares. But this can also affect the person who may have to tell the child. They won’t want to share anything with anyone because it will make them feel rubbish and upset, but then they won’t want to get upset because they don’t want people to feel sorry for them and want people to put all their attention on to them, because they may feel at the age of 27 that they are too old to be having attention and that they have family too look out for, and be more concerned about them than being worried about themselves. Some people between the ages of 19-65 may be having financial problems and won’t want to show anyone that they do have problems. For a person of this age, by asking someone to lend them money just until pay day, can be a massive ego downfall, because they may have a job but they have a lot of bills to pay and by the time they have paid these off it leaves them with no money. This can affect people of this age tremendously because they feel that they have let their families down by asking for money of other members of the family or close friends, but then if they get a loan for money, then this will get them into more debt because they cannot pay it off, this is the worst thing that could happen to a person of this age. Some people may even be going through a marriage crisis, where things aren’t looking good and they want a divorce or they might be splitting up for a while and then getting back together, for a person of 50 years old this could affect them tremendously where their emotional needs are concerned, because they could have been married to this person for 25-30 years, and all of a sudden things aren’t working out. This isn’t a good thing to have in your life. Everyone no matter how old they are needs the companionship and emotional support that close relationships can bring. Inevitably, many elderly people live alone, due to the death of a long term partner or because they never got married. For those elderly people whose partners are still alive, it may be very important to them to continue to have a sexual relationship. Some elderly people find that their sex life improve as they get older due to greater familiarity and increased confidence. If the health of one of the couples declines it is common for the other person to become the prime carer.
At around the ages of 30 they might spend more times with their families than their friends because they have more responsibilities than what they had before, because family is your priority when you have one, you need to make sure that they are all ok, and that they are all healthy and safe. They may have truly close friends, and for them to spend a lot of time together that person has to become a member of their family. Adults often interact within their romantic relationships in manner similar to how their parents interacted with each other, because as children they observed these. These past experiences also influence parenting behaviour. Elderly people tend to enjoy going to a local club and go for a game of bingo or even a game of darts, when they are in these places, they get to see friends and they have a social life with these people but when you’re young, you have a job and you have a social life inside and outside of work, in work you talk to all your colleagues and outside you talk to family and friends, so this is gaining social development.
Later Adulthood
65+
Physical Development
In later adulthood, they all start to grow more frail, they start to have arthritis, they will get really frustrated because they cannot do much anymore, they will be in a lot of pain by this age, they have a need for manageable exercise and they live in safe environment. There is primary aging, or inevitable changed in the body, occurs regardless of human behaviour. Grey hair, wrinkles, visible blood vessels on the skin, an fat deposits on your chin or abdomen affect those in this age group. Also, diminished eyesight and hearing, to some extent, affects all older adults. And some in their 70’s will lose a significant portion of their taste and smell senses. All the major organs and bodily systems slow down – cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive and renal/urinary. In most cases, primary aging alone will not cause organ failure. Bone mass diminishes, especially among women, leading to bone density disorders such as arthritis. Muscles become weaker unless exercise programs are followed. The skin dries and becomes less flexible. Hair loss becomes obvious in both genders. There is also decreased sensitivity in all of the sensory modalities, including, taste, touch, hearing and vision. Its secondary aging – unhealthy behaviours such as smoking, obesity or drug use – in combination with primary aging that causes the illnesses that typically affect older adults, it mainly affect later adulthood.
Intellectual Development
They will now start to get dementia, and maybe have short term memory loss, they have a need for understanding others, they want respect and they have a lot of knowledge and wisdom. Working memory temporarily stores incoming information and processes it using advanced reasoning skills. In general, those in later adulthood are less to assimilate multiple forms of data at once and simultaneously perform advanced analysis. However, if the person slows down the rate of incoming data and the processing, they are able to focus better and perform as well on certain tasks as they did in earlier adult years. At this age they are more likely to get heart disease and strokes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and low level of the vitamin foliate, a water-soluble B vitamin, may increase the risk of the most common form of dementia which is Alzheimer’s disease. They go through retirement at the age of around 65 this is around the conventional choice for many people although some people may work until later on in their life. Elderly people have been found to be happier in retirement if they are not forced to retire before they feel that they are ready and if they have enough income to maintain an adequate living standard. Chronic health problems will start to increase with the quality of life for most of the individuals as they age. They will now find that they will soon become a widow, it is more likely for women to be left the widow because some marry men older than them, ad on average, live 5-7 years longer than men. Widowhood is stressful if the death of the man or wife occurs in their earlier life stage, to make them feel safe and secure they need to have a close support of friends, particularly other widows so they share the same emotions. This can be very helpful.
Emotional and Social Development
Seeing others becoming ill, or die, they will now have a fear of becoming ill or even dying. They will soon lose their partner and they will feel lonely, even if they have family around them, they will still feel lonely because they have to have their wife or husband around them, they need to have contact with people or they will become bored and this can lead them to illness. They should also be mixing with young people to keep stop them from feeling that they cannot do things when they can, and having a lot of elderly people around them isn’t any good, they should have young spirit around them also. Older people need to develop a secure sense of self that enables them to cope with the physical changes associated with ageing and death. People who fail to make sense of their life might experience emotional despair. They can become isolated due to mobility because they can’t drive because of age or because of a particular reason, which means that they cannot get anywhere. They need to have contacts around them that they enjoy the company of because otherwise they will feel that they have to talk to this person just to keep people happy when they may not like that person. The only social life that they will actually have is to family that visit them or even friends, if their wife or husband passes away then they will have no one so this can get lonely for them. Following retirement, older adults have more free time. However, many older adults may choose to increase their involvement with close friends and family rather than extend their network of social contacts.
