ATI: School-age Children Flashcards
What is the age group for school-aged children?
6 to 12 years
Weight
gain about 4 to 7 pounds per year
Height
grow about 5 cm (2 in) per year
Gross Motor and Fine Motor Development
coordination continues to improve and movements become more refined
- females can exceed the height and weight of males near the end of school-age years
- permanent teeth erupt
- visual acuity improves to 20/20
- auditory acuity and sense of touch fully develop
Changes Related to Puberty: Females
- budding of breasts
- appearance of pubic hair
- menarche (period)
Changes Related to Puberty: Male
- enlargement of testicles with changes in the scrotum
- appearance of pubic hair
Cognitive Development: Piaget
Concrete Operational
- see weight and volume as unchanging
- understand simple analogies and relationships between things and ideas
- understand time (days, seasons)
- classify more complex information
- understand various emotions
- become self-motivated
- solve problems and understand cause and effect
Language Development
- define many words and understands rules of grammar
- understand that a word can have multiple meanings
- increased ability to connect words into phrases
- reason about a word’s meaning rather than the literal translation
- understand jokes and riddles
Psychosocial Development: Erikson
Industry vs Inferiority
- develop a sense of industry through advances in learning
- tasks that increase self-worth motivate them
- stress is common from parental ad peer expectations, their environment, or observed violence
- fears of ridicule by peers and teachers over school-related issues are common
- some manifest nervous behavior to deal with stress (nail biting)
Moral Development
- early on, school-aged children might not understand the reasoning behind many rules and will ty to find ways around them
- instrumental exchange is in place (“ill help you if you help me”); they want to make the best deal and do not consider elements of loyalty, gratitude, or justice when making decisions
- in latter part of school years, they move into law-and-order orientation, placing more emphasis on justice
Self-Concept Development
- strive to develop healthy self-respect by finding out in what areas they excel
- need parents to encourage them in educational or extracurricular success
- self-esteem developed based on interactions with peers and perceived self-concept
Body-Image Changes
- body image solidifies
- education should address curiosity about sexuality, sexual development, and the reproductive process
- more modest than preschoolers and place more emphasis on privacy
- develop concern about appearance and hygiene
Social Development
- social environment can expand to include school, community, and church
- peer groups play an important part; peer pressure begins to take effect
- friendships begin to form among same-gender peers; clubs and best friends are popular
- relationships come from school associations
- can rival the same-gender parent
- conformity becomes evident
- become more independent from parents
Competitive and Cooperative Play
6 to 9 year olds:
- play board games, video games, and number games
- play hopscotch
- jump rope
- collect rocks, stamps, cards, coins, or stuffed animals
- ride bicycles
- build simple models
- artistic activities (painting and drawing)
- play team sports: skill building
9 to 12 year olds:
- make crafts
- read books
- build models
- develop in hobbies
- assemble jigsaw puzzles
- play video games
- play team sports
- musical instrument
Immunizations
-diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (DTap), human papillomavirus, hepatitis A and B, measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), seasonal influenza, polio, pneumococcal infections
Health Screenings
-scoliosis: lateral curvature of the spine
Nutrition
- by the end of the school-age stage, children eat adult servings of food
- need nutritious snacks
- obesity predisposes school-aged children to low-self esteem, diabetes mellitus, heart disease, and high blood pressure
Obesity
predisposed to low-self esteem, diabetes mellitus, heart disease, and high blood pressure
>advise parents to:
-not use food as a reward
-emphasize physical activity
-provide balanced diet
-teach children to make healthy food selections for meals and snacks
-avoid eating meals at fast-food restaurants
-avoid skipping meals
Dental Health
- brush and floss daily
- get regular check-ups
Prevention of Bodily Harm
- keep firearms in a locked cabinet or box
- assist with identifying safe play areas
- teach stranger safety
- wear helmets and pads when roller skating, skateboarding, bicycling, riding scooters, skiing, and during any activities that increase injury risk
- wear light reflective clothing at night
Prevention of burns
- teach fire safety and elimination of potential burn hazards
- have working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in the home
- promote sunscreen use
Prevention of Drowning
- supervise when swimming or near a body of water
- teach swimming skills and safety
Prevention of Motor-Vehicle Injury
- use a car booster seat until adult seat belt fits correctly
- children under 13 are safest in the back seat
Substance abuse/Poisoning prevention
- keep cleaners and chemicals in locked cabinets or out of reach
- teach children to say “no” to use of illicit drugs, alcohol, or other addictive substances
- teach about dangers of smoking
