chapter 3 Flashcards
assessing the newborn: apgar’s test
this is a quick assesment of the baby’s physical condition
the baby can score 0-10 based on heart rate, respitory effort, muscle tone, reflex irritability, and color
-the higher the score the better (7 and higher is good, 4-6 is special attention or care, 3 or less is emerg)
newborn: sleeping and waking states: alert inactivity
this is when the baby is calm with its eyes open and attentive, the baby seems to be inspecting the environment
newborn: sleeping and waking states: waking activity
this is when a baby’s eyes are open but they seem unfocused, the arms or legs move in bursts of uncoordinated motion
newborn: sleeping and waking states: crying
this is when a baby cries vigorously, usually accompanied by agitated but uncoordinated motion
newborn: sleeping and waking states: sleeping
this is when the baby alternates from being still and breathing regularly, to moving gently and breathing irregularily, eyes are closed throughout
crying
this occupies about 2-3hr of a newborn’s day
- you should actually respond when the baby is crying because it is the baby’s way of communicating somehting
crying: basic cry
starts softly and gradually becomes more intense: often heard when babies are hungry or tired
crying: mad cry
more intense version of the basic cry
crying: pain cry
begins with a sudden long burst, followed by a long pause and gasping
sleeping:
newborns sleep for about 16-18hr a day
- the pattern is usually:
- 1hr of wakefulness, cycling through alert inactivity, waking activity, and crying several times
- then 3 hr of sleep
sleeping: REM sleep
sleep in which a persons eyes dart around with their eyes closed
sleeping: non-REM sleep
this is sleep in which heart rate, breathing, and brain activity are steady
sudden infant death syndrome
where a healthy baby dies for no reason
- ther is a higher coincidence of this happening amoung economically disadvantaged aboriginal populations
- the exact cause of this is unknown, but smoking and sleeping on your stomach may up the chances
newborn: reflexes
- unlearned responses triggered by specific stimulation
- some reflexes have clear survival or protective value
- some may form the foundation for larger, voluntary movements later
growth of the body: “average” and “normal”
“average”- is often considered the 50th percentile- meaning that the child is longer or heavier than 50% of agemates
“normal”- is considered anything above the 10th percentile and below the 90th percentile
growth of the body: height
this depends heavily on heredity
-the correlation between the average of the two parent’s heights and that of their child at age 2 is .7
infant nutrition: breastmilk
this is considered ideal for the first 6 months in it the baby recieves: -balanced vitamins -protection against illness -psychological benefits for mom and baby
infant nutrition: formula
provides similar nutrients to breastmilk
- however it does not protect against illness
- it is dangerous in developing nations
infant nutrition: solid foods
this should only be added to the diet after about 6 months
- follow the guidelines on the food
- offer only one new food at a time
- expect some decrease in appetite when growth slows in toddlerhood
malnutrition: malnourished
being small for one’s age because of inadequete nutrition
-this is more common in developing countries but it is alos a problem in canada
how does malnutrition affect the child
- affects the growth and development greatly in infancy, including brain development
- by school-age, causes difficulty maintaining attention in school
- children are often listless, inactive, apathetic
neuron
basic cellular unit of the brain and nervous system that specializes in recieving and transmitting information
cell body
this is the centre of the neuron that keepsthe neuron alive
dentrite
end of the neuron that recieves information, it looke like a tree with many branches
axon
tubelike structure that emerges from the cell body and transmits information to other neurons
terminal buttons
small knobs at the end of the axon that release neurotransmitters
neurotransmitters
chemicals released by the terminal buttons that allow neurons to communicate with each other
the emerging nervous system: the brain
contains about 50-100 billion neurons
weighs about 3lb
the emerging nervous system: hemispheres
the right and left halves of the cortex
the emerging nervous system: corpus callosum
thick bundle of neurons that connects the two hemispheres
the emerging nervous system: frontal cortex
brain region that regulates personality and goal directed behaviour
brain development
at birth the brain is about 25% of its adult weight, and 80% at 3 years
emerging brain structure: neural plate
a flat group of cells present in prenatal development that becomes the brain and spinal cord
- it folds to for the neural tube at 4 weeks after conception
- begins producing neurons at about 10 weeks
- neurons migrate to their appropriate positions
the emerging nervous system: myelin
fatty sheath that wraps around neurons to permit them to transmit information more rapidly
-this begins developing on some axons in the 4th prenatal month, but myelination isnt complete until adulthood
the emerging nervous system: synaptic pruning
gradual reduction in the number of synapses, beginning in infancy, and continuing until early adolesence
-we begin with overproduction of dendrites and synapses, and then gradually weed out the ones that are not in use.
growth of a specialized brain: electroencephalogram (EEG)
pattern of brain waves recorded from electrodes that are placed on the scalp
growth of a specialized brain: functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
this is a method of studying brain activity by using magnetic fields to track blood flow in the brain
growth of a specialized brain: neuroplacticity
the extent to which a brain organization is flexible
-plasticity is greater in infancy, and thus infants recover functions more easily than to older children or adults after many forms of brain damage
motor skills:
these are the coordinated movements of muscles and limbs
early motor skills: locomotion
to move around in the world
- 5 months: roll from back to front; sit upright with support
- 7 months: sit alone
- 10 months: creep
- 14 months: stand alone briefly and walk with assistance
early motor skills: fine motor skills
motor skills associated with grasping, holding, and manipulating objects
early motor skills: locomotion: dynamic systems theory
the theory that views motor development as involving many distinct skills organized and reorganized over time to meet needs
- motivation is important
- children combine the skills they already mastered to form new skills
posture and balance
- upright posture is impossible for infants (they are top-heavy, and they -need more leg muscles)
- once they can stand upright, they use visual cues and an inner-ear mechanism to adjust posture
- balance must be re-learned in different postures
stepping
most infants dont make a spontaneous step until about 10 months, however thelen and ulrich found that 6-7 month olds will often step if they are being held upright
coordinating skills: differentiation
being able to distinguish between, and mastering individual motions
-needs practice to be good
coordinating skills: integration
combining intricate motions in proper sequence into a coherent working whole
-needs practice to be good
reaching and grasping: ulnar grasp
this is almost a clawlike grasp
reaching and grasping
they use the thumb at about 5-6m
reaching and grasping: pincer grasp
occurs when the thumb s used in opposition to the fingers
- achieved by the end of the first year
- this greatly improves manipulative skills
which hand does the child use
they dont ususally show a clear sign of which they will use until like age 1
-the preference becomes stronger and more consisten during early childhood
perception
process by which the brain recieves, selects, modifies, and organizes incoming nerve impulses that are the resut of physical stimulation
smell, taste and touch: newborns (smell and taste)
- they have a keen sense of smell
- they like good smells, and things hat are familiar (moms breast, perfume)
- they can distinguish tastes (they prefer sweet)
- they react to changes in the taste of breastmilk, they like it if you eat sweet stuff
smell, taste and touch: newborns (touch)
- newborns exhibit reflexive reactions to toch of cheek, mouth, hand, or foot
- skin to skin contact positively influences growth in preterm infants
- newborns react intensely and negatively to painful stimuli such as inoculations and circumcisions
hearing for newborns
- the acuity in what they hear is not as great as it would be in adults
- can tell if a song is nice vs if its not
- they can discriminate different rhythmic structures
visual acuity
smallest pattern that one can distinguish reliably
colour: cones
specialized neurons in the back of the eye that sense colour
- each person is more sensitive to different colours
- newborns cant distinguish many colours, but colour vision is adultlike by about 3-4 months
depth: visual cliff
this is a glass covered platform that appears to have a “shalow side” and a “deep side”, it was used to see if the infants had depth perception because one side looked a lot further down
depth: kinetic clues
when motion is used to estimate depth
depth: kinetic clues: visual expansion
as an object moves closer it fills an even greater proportion of the retina
depth: kinetic clues: motion paralax
nearby moving objects move across our visual field faster than those at a distance
depth: retinal disparity
a way to infer depth based on differences in the retinal images in the left and right eyes (emerges in about 4 months)
depth: pictorial depth cues
these are cues that depend on the arrangement of objects in the environment (this is used by 7 months)
depth: pictorial depth cues: linear perspective
parallel lines come together at a single point in the distance
depth: pictorial depth cues: texture gradient
this is the texture of objects that changes from coarse and distinct for nearby objects to finer and less distinct for distant objects
object unity is based on
colour, texture, aligned edges
the devolopment of how babies percieve objects
- newborns track faces and facelike stimuli more than other stimuli
- by 4 weeks, they track all moving objects equally
- until 6 months, infants percieve human and nonhuman faces in much the same way
- after 6 months infants become better at distinguishing among different human faces and nonhuman faces
- by 9 months theyre better at distinguishing faces of their own race than of other races
integrating sensory information: intersensory redundancy
infants sensory systems are attuned to information presented simultaneously to different sensory modes (hearing and seeing someone clap)
-infants prefer stimuli in which the different modes “match”
jean piaget
suggested that children are actively trying to understand their world
-they form theories about how the world works, like little scientists trying and experimenting with things
jean piaget: schemes
according to piaget, mental structures that organize information and regulate behaviour
jean piaget: assimilation:
according to piaget, taking in information that is compatible with what one already knows
jean piaget: accommodation
according to piaget changing existing knowledge based on new knowledge
jean piaget: equilibrium in relation to cognitive development
according to piaget, a process by which children reorganize their schemes to return to a state of equilibrium when disequilibrium occurs
- equilibrium quantitatively changes our thinking, moving us to a new period of cognitive development
- (dissequilibruim is when too many of our schemes are inadequate for understanding the world)
jean piaget: periods of development
sensorimotor
preoperational
concrete operational
formal operational
jean piaget: sensorimotor period
the first stage of piaget’s four stages of cognitive development, which lasts from birth to approximately 2 years
jean piaget: adapting to and exploring the environment: 1-4m
infants begin modifying their reflexes in response to experience
-so like if a baby ususally puts his thumb in his mouth reflexively, they will do it with a purpose now
jean piaget: adapting to and exploring the environment: 8m
we see truly intentional behaviour, with the goal in mind before the actions take place
-were an infant may deliberately move a barrier that is blocking a toy he wants
jean piaget:adapting to and exploring the environment: 12m
this is when the infants begin to actively experiment
jean piaget: object permanence:
this is the understanding that children get that the object is still there even when they cannot see it
- at 8 months the child will search for the hidden object (however it is not complete, if you move the object after hiding it in the same place for a while they will still look in the initial place)
- at 12m still not complete
- at 18m there is complete object permanence
jean piaget: some criticisms to her theory
- underestimates competence in infants and young children
- overestimates competence in adolesence
- describes too vaguely how change occurs
- defines assimilation and accommodation too vaguely to test scientifically
core knowledge hypothesis
infants are born with rudimentary knowledge of the world, which is elaborated based on experiences
naive physics: renee baillargeon
has shown that infants have some understanding of physical properties, such as object permanence, earlier than piaget suggested
(at 4 1/2m old)
(there are other studies that also show similar to what renee showed)
naive biology
infants and toddlers use motion to distinguish animate from inanimate objects
-by about 12-15m they know that animate objects are: self propeled, can move in irregular paths, and act to achieve goals
information processing: attention
process that determine which informaiton will be processed further by an individual
information processing: orienting response
individual fixes eyes on a strong or unfamiliar stimulus and changes in heart rate and brainwave activity occur
information processing: habituation
becoming unresponsice to a stimulus that is presented repeatedly
types of learning in infants and toddlers (3)
classical conditioning
operant conditioning
imitation
learning: classical conditioning
a form of learning that involves pairing a neutral stimulus and a response originally produced by another
-so you pair the neutral and something that elicits a response, then eventually the neutral gets the same response
learning: operant conditioning
this occurs when a child learns to expect certain consequences for certain actions
-if rewarded the actioon will increase, if punished it will decrease
learning: imitation
so they imitate others, they see the repsonse that others recieve and go based on that
memory: rovee-collier
learned that 2 and 3m olds can remember things for several days if not longer, but after a few weeks things are different
memory: development
we see increases in how much can be remembered and how long it can be remembered
-this is probably cause the physical brain is growing
memory: hippocampus and amygdala
these are necessary for storing information, they develop by 6m
memory: frontal cortex
necessary for retrieval, this develops much later
understanding numbers
many 5 month olds can:
distinguish sets of 2 objects from sets of 3 objects
-and perform very simple addition and subtraction
language: development
- most kids say their first word by about 1yr
- they communicate in other ways for some time
- they understand at lease some of their parents speech for months
road to speech: first form of communication
- this is crying
- parents typically respond readily, trying to figure out exactly what their infant is trying to tell them
- parental responses are often a mix of verbal and non verbal behaviour
perceiving speech: phonemes
unique speech sounds that can be used to create words
- infants can usually distinguish between different phonemes, even ones from different languages
- recognizing ones from different languages declines after about age 1
perceiving speech: infants distinguishing words
- syllables that occur together are often a single word
- a stressed syllable is usually a word or the start of a word in english
- certain sounds dont go together in a word so they mean the end of one word and the beggining of another
perceiving speech: infant-directed speech (baby talk)
a ways of speaking where adults speak slowly and with exaggerated changes in pitch and loudness
- this actually seems to work
- seems to help infants to segment words
perceiving speech: steps to speech: cooing
early vowel-like sounds that babies produce
-usually about 2m
perceiving speech: steps to speech: babbling
speechlike sounds that consist of vowel-consonant combination
- usually at about 6m
- babbling eventually begins to take on the intonation of the language the child is learning
perceiving speech: steps to speech: intonation
pattern of rising and falling pith that appears around the age of 7m in infants babbling
first words
- children understand many words before speaking
- first spoken words often include terms for parents, ect
- a typical 2yr old has a vocabulary of a few hundred words
- a typical 6yr old has a vocabulary of more than 10,000
words as symbols
- infants must realize that words are symbols
- piaget believed that this is impossible until about 18m
- but its actually somewhat possible at 12m
fast mapping of words
at about 18m children learn about 10 words a week (this can happen from 14m-22m)
- fast mapping is the fact that children make connections between new words and references so quickly that they cant be considering all possible meanings
- the normal vocabulary for an 18m old ranges from 25-250 words
first attempts at communication
this begins at about 10m
- starts by touching or pointing
- then the parents add words to the pointing
