Republic of the Philippines

Pangasinan State University

Sta. Maria Campus
Sta. Maria, Pangasinan

PHYSICAL AND COGNITIVE

DEVELOPMENT IN EARLY
CHILDHOOD

ProfEd 105:
Foundation of Special and Inclusive Education

Submitted by:
BSE ENGLISH II A
Group 2
Rabilas, Rachel
Signey, Luke Perry
Soriano, Kristel
Tulagan, Mary Jane P.
Valdez, Jennelyn
Valdez, Rocel
Velasco, Ariel
Ventura, Sheena Irish
Vigilia, Rhea Mae
Nandin, Joanna

Submitted to:

Mr. Marleo Montenegro

Instructor

Date of Submission

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 I. Introduction

In early childhood, our greatest untold poem was being only 4 years old. We
skipped and ran and played all the sun long, never in our lives so busy, busy
being something we had not quite grasped yet. Who knew our thoughts, which
we worked up into small mythologies all our own? Our thoughts and images and
drawings took wings. The blossoms of our heart, no wind could touch. Our small
world widened as we discovered new refuges and new people. When we said,
“I,” we meant something totally unique, not to be confused with any other.
Section 4 consists of two chapters: “Physical and Cognitive Development in Early
Childhood” (Chapter 7) and “Socioemotional Development in Early Childhood”
Chapter 8).

II. Discussion

PHYSICAL CHANGES
- Identify physical changes in Early Childhood
Early childhood Physical Change
- Children begin to lose their baby fats or chubbiness around age of 3. The
child’s trunk and limbs grow longer, and abdominal muscles form,
tightening the appearance of the stomach.
- Physical Change can be divided into 3:
BODY GROWTH, CHANGE HEIGHT AND WEIGHT THE BRAIN
Motor Development
- refers to the development of a child bones muscles and ability to move
around to manipulate child’s development.
- Motor Development can be divided into 2:
- Fine motor skill- is the coordination of small muscles
- Gross motor skill- developing these skills to do more complex skills.

SLEEP

 Experts recommend that young children get 11 to 13 hours of sleep each

night. Most young children sleep through the night and have one daytime
nap. Helping the young child slow down before bedtime often leads to less
resistance in going to bed. Sleep problems in young children are linked to
other problems, such as being overweight and being depressed.
Disruptions in sleep in early childhood are related to less optimal
adjustment in preschool.

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NUTRITION AND EXERCISE

 Eating habits are important aspects of development during early childhood

(Schiff, 2011; Wardlaw & Smith, 2011). What children eat affects their
skeletal growth, body shape, and susceptibility to disease. Exercise and
physical activity also are very important aspects of young children’s lives
(Lumpkin, 2011).
 Too many young children in the United States are being raised on diets
that are too high in fat. The child’s life should be centered on activities,
not meals. Other nutritional concerns include malnutrition in early
childhood and the inadequate diets of many children living in poverty.
Young children are not getting nearly as much exercise as they need.

Overweight Young Children

- Most children like to eat sweets (candies) and process foods that most
probably the cost of overweight in children. Young children’s eating
behavior is strongly influenced by their caregivers’ behavior (Black &
Hurley,2007;Ventura, Gromis, & Lohse, 2010). Young children’s eating
behavior improves when caregivers eat with children on a predictable
schedule, model eating healthy food, make mealtimes pleasant occasions,
and engage in certain feeding styles. Distractions from television, family
arguments, and competing activities should be minimized so that children
can focus on eating. A sensitive/responsive caregiver feeding style, in
which the caregiver is nurturant, provides clear information about what is
expected, and appropriately responds to children’s cues, is recommended
(Black & Lozoff, 2008). Forceful and restrictive caregiver behaviors are
not recommended. For example, a restrictive feeding style is linked to
children being overweight.

Exercise

- Routine physical activity should be a daily occurrence for young children

(Dowda & others, 2009; Jago & others, 2010). Guidelines recommend
that preschool children engage in two hours of physical activity per day,
divided into one hour of structured activity and one hour of unstructured
free play (National Association for Sport and Physical Education, 2002).
The child’s life should be centered around activities, not meals (Fahey,
Insel, & Roth, 2011; Graham, Holt/Hale, & Parker, 2010). Following are
some recent research studies that examine young children’s exercise and
activities:
- Observations of 3- to 5-year-old children during outdoor play at
preschools revealed that the preschool children were mainly sedentary

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 even when participating in outdoor play (Brown & others, 2009). In this
study throughout the day the preschoolers were sedentary 89 percent of
the time, engaged in light activity 8 percent of the time, and participated
in moderate to vigorous physical activity only 3 percent of the time.
- Preschool children’s physical activity was enhanced by family members
engaging in sports together and by parents’ perception that it was safe
for their children to play outside (Beets & Foley, 2008).
- Incorporation of a “move and learn” physical activity curriculum increased
the activity level of 3- to 5-year-old children in a half-day preschool
program (Trost, Fees, & Dzewaltowski, 2008).

Malnutrition in Young Children From Low-Income Families

- Malnutrition is very common in young children from low income families.

Their Parents couldn't afford to buy the right amount of healthy food that
the children should intake thats why they become malnourished. To avoid
this malnutrition in young children the government should implement laws
to help the family or the children to avail proper nutrition.

ILLNESS AND DEATH

 In recent decades, vaccines have virtually eradicated many diseases that

once resulted in the deaths of many young children. The disorders still
most likely to be fatal for young children in the United States are cancer
and cardiovascular disease, but accidents are the leading cause of death
in young children. A special concern is the poor health status of many
young children in low-income families. There has been a dramatic
increase in HIV/AIDS in young children in developing countries in the last
decades.

Reported by: Jennylyn

Valdez

COGNITIVE CHANGES
- Describe three views of the cognitive changes that occur in early
childhood.

The Preoperational Stage of Cognitive Development

The preoperational stage is the second stage in Piaget's theory of

cognitive development. This stage begins around age two and last until

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approximately age seven. During this period, children are thinking at a symbolic
level but are not yet using cognitive operations

The key features of the preoperational stage include:

1. Egocentrism
Childrens' thoughts and communications are typically egocentric (i.e.
about themselves). Egocentrism refers to the child's inability to see a situation
from another person's point of view.
2. Animism
This is the belief that inanimate objects (such as toys and teddy
bears) have human feelings and intentions. By animism Piaget (1929) meant that
for the pre-operational child the world of nature is alive, conscious and has a
purpose.
Piaget has identified four stages of animism:
• Up to the ages 4 or 5 years, the child believes that almost everything is
alive and has a purpose.
• During the second stage (5-7 years) only objects that move have a
purpose.
• In the next stage (7-9 years), only objects that move spontaneously are
thought to be alive.
• In the last stage (9-12 years), the child understands that only plants and
animals are alive.
3. Symbolic Representation
 The early preoperational period (ages 2-3) is marked by a dramatic
increase in children’s use of the symbolic function.
 This is the ability to make one thing - a word or an object - stand for
something other than itself. Language is perhaps the most obvious form
of symbolism that young children display.
4. Intuitive Thought Substage
 Piaget’s second substage of preoperational thought, in which children
begin to use primitive reasoning and want to know the answers to all
sorts of questions (between 4 and 7 years of age).
5. Centration and the Limits of Preoperational Thought
 One limitation of preoperational thought is centration , a centering of
attention on one characteristic to the exclusion of all others. Centration is
most clearly evidenced in young children’s lack of conservation , the
awareness that altering an object’s or a substance’s appearance does not
change its basic properties.
 For example, to adults, it is obvious that a certain amount of liquid stays
the same, regardless of a container’s shape. But this is not at all obvious

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 to young children. Instead, they are struck by the height of the liquid in
the container; they focus on that characteristic to the exclusion of others.
 Centration
- The focusing of attention on one characteristic to the exclusion of all
others.

 Conservation
- In Piaget’s theory, awareness that altering an object’s or a substance’s
appearance does not change its basic properties.

Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory of Cognitive Development

 The main assertion of the Vygotsky theory is that the cognitive

development of children is advanced through social interaction with other
people, particularly those who are more skilled. In other words, Vygotsky
believed that social learning comes before cognitive development, and
that children construct knowledge actively.

Zone of Proximal Development

 Pertaining to the learning process of children. According to the Vygotsky
theory, children who are in the zone of proximal development for a
particular task can almost perform the task independently, but not quite
there yet. They need some help in order to perform the task successfully.

 For example, a five-year-old child knows how to ride a tricycle. However,

she can’t ride a bicycle (with two wheels) without his grandfather holding
onto the back of her bike. With his grandfather’s help, this little girl learns
to balance her bike. With some more practice, she can ride the bike on
her own. In this scenario, we can say that the child is in the zone of
proximal development for riding a bike.

More Knowledgeable Other

 According to Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development, children learn
through social interaction that include collaborative and cooperative
dialogue with someone who is more skilled in tasks they’re trying to learn.
Vygotsky called these people with higher skill level the More
Knowledgeable Other (MKO). They could be teachers, parents, tutors and
even peers.

Scaffolding
- Vygotsky’s concept of scaffolding is closely related to the concept of
the Zone of Proximal Development. Scaffolding refers to the temporary

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 support given to a child by a More Knowledgeable Other that enables
the child to perform a task until such time that the child can perform
this task independently.
Language and Thought
- The use of dialogue as a tool for scaffolding is only one example of the
important role of language in a child’s development. According to
Vygotsky, children use speech not only to communicate socially but
also to help them solve tasks. Vygotsky (1962) further believed that
young children use language to plan, guide, and monitor their
behavior. This use of language for self-regulation is called private
speech.
- For Piaget, private speech is egocentric and immature, but for
Vygotsky it is an important tool of thought during the early childhood
years (JohnSteiner, 2007).
Teaching Strategies
- Vygotsky’s theory has been embraced by many teachers and has been
successfully applied to education (Daniels, 2007; Holzman, 2009). Here
are some ways Vygotsky’s theory can be incorporated in classrooms:
1. Assess the child’s ZPD
- Like Piaget, Vygotsky did not recommend formal, standardized tests as
the best way to assess children’s learning. Rather, Vygotsky argued
that assessment should focus on determining the child’s zone of
proximal development. The skilled helper presents the child with tasks
of varying diffi culty to determine the best level at which to begin
instruction.
2. Use the child’s ZPD in teaching.
- Teaching should begin toward the zone’s upper limit, so that the child
can reach the goal with help and move to a higher level of skill and
knowledge. Offer just enough assistance. You might ask, “What can I
do to help you?” Or simply observe the child’s intentions and attempts
and provide support when it is needed. When the child hesitates, offer
encouragement. And encourage the child to practice the skill. You may
watch and appreciate the child’s practice or offer support when the
child forgets what to do.
3. Use more-skilled peers as teachers.
- Remember that it is not just adults who are important in helping
children learn. Children also benefi t from the support and guidance of
more-skilled children.
4. Place instruction in a meaningful context.
- Educators today are moving away from abstract presentations of
material; instead, they provide students with opportunities to
experience learning in real-world settings. For example, rather than
just memorizing math formulas, students work on math problems with
real-world implications.
5. Transform the classroom with Vygotskian ideas.
- What does a Vygotskian classroom look like? The Kamehameha
Elementary Education Program (KEEP) in Hawaii is based on
Vygotsky’s theory (Tharp, 1994). The ZPD is the key element of

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 instruction in this program. Children might read a story and then
interpret its meaning. Many of the learning activities take place in
small groups. All children spend at least 20 minutes each morning in a
setting called “Center One.” In this context, scaffolding is used to
improve children’s literary skills. The instructor asks questions,
responds to students’ queries, and builds on the ideas that students
generate.

Social Constructivist Approach

- An approach that emphasizes the social contexts of learning and that
knowledge is mutually built and constructed. Vygotsky’s theory reflects
this approach.

Reported by: Rocel Valdez and Rachel Rabilas

Information Processing
- How Children process information during the preschool years ( Galotti,
2010).
Attention
- Focuses of mental resources on select information.
Two Aspect of Attention Executive Attention
- involves action planning, allocating attention to goals, error detection
and compensation, monitoring progress on task, and dealing with
novel or difficult circumstances.
Sustained Attention
- focused and engagement with an object, task, event, or other aspects
of the environment.
- Preschool child's control of attention is still deficient;
Salient versus Relevant dimension
- Preschool children are likely to pay attention to stimuli that stand out,
or are salient, even when those stimuli are not relevant to solving a
problem or performing a task.
Planfulness
- Preschool children tend to use a haphazard comparison strategy, not
examining all of the details before making a judgement.
Memory
- Central process in children's cognitive development.

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Short-Term Memory
- individuals retain information for up to 30 seconds, assuming there is
no rehearsal of the information.
Strategies
- Deliberate mental activities to improve the processing information.
Theory of Minds
- The awareness of one's own mental processes and the mental
processes of others.
Developmental Changes
- Children's theory of mind changes as they develop through childhood (
Gelman, 2009; Lagattuta, Nucci & Busacki 2010) From 18 months to 3
years of age, children began to understand three mental state:
- Perceptions - By 2 years of age, a childs recognize that another
person will see what's infrony of her own eyes instead of what imfront
the child's eyes, and by 3 years of agethe child realize that looking
leads to knowing whats inside the container.
- Emotions - The child can distinguish between positive and negative
emotions.
- Desires - Two -to three -year - olds understand the way that desires
are related to a tions and to simple emotions.

Reported by: Ariel S.

Velasco

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
- how language develops in early childhood.
UNDERSTANDING PHONOLOGY AND MORPHOLOGY
 At 3 years of age they can produce all the vowel sound and most of the
consonant sounds.
 Children more beyond two-word utterances.
 Demonstrate a knowledge of morphology rules.
 Begin using the plural and possessive form of noun (such as dogs and
dog’s)
CHANGES IN SYNTAX AND SEMANTICS
 Preschool children also learn and apply the rules of syntax.
 They show growing mastery of complex rules for how words should be
ordered.
 Some experts have concluded that between 18months and 6 years of age,
young children learn about one new word every waking hour.
 When they enter first grade, it is estimated that children learn about 14,
000 words.
ADVANCES IN PRAGMATICS

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  Young children begin to engage in extended discourse.
 As children get older, they become increasingly able to talk about things
that are not here.
 Around 4 to 5 years of age, children learn to change their speech style
that suit to the situation.
YOUNG CHILDREN LITERACY
 Parents and teachers need to provide young children a supportive
environment for them to develop literacy skills.
 The following three, longitudinal studies indicate the importance of early
language skills and children’s school readiness:
- PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS -letter name, and sound knowledge.
- Children’s early home environment influenced their early language
skills.
- The number of letters children know in kindergarten was highly
correlated with their reading achievement in high school.

Reported by: Mary Jane P. Tulagan

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

- Evaluate different approaches to early childhood education.
VARIATIONS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
1. The Child-Centered Kindergarten
- -education that involves the whole child by considering both the
child's physical, cognitive, and socioemotional development and the
child's needs, interests, and learning styles.

2. The Montessori approach

- an educational philosophy in which children are given considerable
freedom and spontaneity in choosing activities and are allowed to
move from one activity to another as they desire.

3. Developmentally appropriate and Inappropriate education

- also known as Developmentally Appropriate Practice
- Education that focuses on the typical developmental patterns of
children (age-appropriateness) and the uniqueness of each child
(individual appropriateness)
- Reported by : Kristel Soriano

EDUCATION FOR YOUNG CHILDREN WHO ARE DISADVANTAGED

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  For many years, U.S. children from low-income families did not receive
any education before they entered the first grade. Often, they began first
grade already several steps behind their classmates in their readiness to
learn.
Core Considerations In Developmentally Appropriate Practice
1. knowledge to Consider in Making Decisions
- In all aspects of working with children, early childhood practitioners need
to consider these three areas of knowledge: 1) What is known about child
development and learning, especially age-related characteristics; 2) What
is known about each child as an individual; and 3) What is known about
the social and cultural contexts in which children live.
2. Challenging and Achievable Goals
- Keeping in mind desired goals and what is known about the children as
a group and individually, teachers plan experiences to promote
children’s learning and development.
Principles of Child Development and Learning That Inform Practice
1. All the domains of development and learning physical, cognitive, and
social—are important, and they are linked.
2. Many aspects of children’s learning and development follow well
documented sequences, with later abilities, skills, and knowledge building
on those already acquired.
3. Development and learning proceed at varying rates from child to child,
and at uneven rates across different areas of a child’s individual
functioning.
4. Development and learning result from the interaction of biology and
experience.
5. Early experiences have strong effects—both cumulative and delayed— on
children’s development and learning; optimal periods exist for certain
types of development and learning.
6. Development proceeds toward greater complexity, self-regulation, and
symbolic or representational capacities.
7. Children develop best when they have secure, consistent relationships
with responsive adults and opportunities for positive peer relations.
8. Development and learning occur in and are influenced by multiple social
and cultural contexts.
9. Always mentally active in seeking to understand the world around them,
children learn in a variety of ways; a wide range of teaching strategies can
be effective in guiding children’s learning.
10.Play is an important context for developing self-regulation and for
promoting language, cognition, and competence.
11.Development and learning advance when children are challenged to
achieve at a level just beyond their current mastery and when they are
given opportunities to practice newly acquired skills.
12.Children‘s experiences shape their motivation and approaches to learning,
such as persistence, initiative, and flexibility; in turn, these characteristics
influence their learning and development.
Reported by: Luke Perry Signey

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DEVELEPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE PRACTICES (DAP)
Creating A Caring Community Of Learners
- each member of the community should be valued by the other’s
relationships are an important context through which children learn;
practitioners ensure that members of the community feel
psychologically safe.
Teaching To Enhance Development And Learning
- the teacher takes responsibility for stimulating, directing, and
supporting children’s learning by providing the experiences that each
child needs.
Planning Curriculum To Achieve Important Goals
- the curriculum is planned to help to children achieve goals that are
developmentally appropriate and educationally significant.
Assessing Children’s Development And Learning
- in developmentally appropriate practice, assessments are linked to the
program’s goals for children.
Establishing Reciprocal Relationships With Families
- a positive partnership between teachers and families benefits children’s
learning development.
Project Head Start
- A government-funded program that is designed to provide children
from low-income families with the opportunity to acquire the skills and
experiences important for school success.

Reported by: Joanna Nandin

CONTROVERSIES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

The two current Controversies in Early Childhood Education are;
 Curriculum Controversy
- this current controversy in early childhood education involves what
should be the curriculum. On one side are those who advocate a child-
centered and constructivists approach much like that emphasized by the
NAEYC or the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
And the other side are those who advocate an academic and direct-
instruction approach. In reality, many high quality in Early childhood
education programs include both academic and constructivists
approaches. Many education experts like Lilian katz(1999) worry about
academic approaches that place too much pressure on young children to
achieve and don’t provide any opportunities to actively construct
knowledge. Competent in early childhood programs also should focus on

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 cognitive development and socioemotional development not exclusively on
cognitive development.

 Universal Preschool Education

- is a program that is open for all children turning 4 before a certain date
in academic calendar. According to NAEYC says that “universal preschool
education means that preschool program is available to any child in a
given state, regardless of family income, children’s abilities or other
factors”. And also Edward Zigler and his colleagues (2006) recently
argued that the United States should have Universal preschool education.
They emphasized that quality preschool prepare the children for school
readiness and academic success. And also universal preschool bring
considerable cost savings. But critics of universal preschool education
argue that the gains attributed to preschool and kindergarten education
are often overstated. They specially stress that research has not proven
that non-disadvantaged children improve as a result of attending a
preschool. Thus, they say it is more important to improve is the young
children who are disadvantaged.

Reported by: Rhea Mae Vigilia

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