Chapter 7 Flashcards
obesity
a body weight more than 20 percent higher than the
average weight for a person of a given age and height.
What is the greatest risk during the preschool years?
Injury; children during that age are twice as likely to die from injury than from illnesses
lateralization
the process in which certain
cognitive functions are located
more in one hemisphere of the
brain than in the other
myelination
a brain maturation process where axonal bundles are wrapped by myelin sheaths, a process that is essential for proper functioning of the nervous system
reticular formation
an
area of the brain associated with attention and concentration
When is the myelination of the reticular formation completed?
By the time children are about five
Gross motor skills at age 3
Able to walk up
stairs, alternating
feet
Unable to stop or
turn suddenly
Able to jump a length
of 15–24 inches
Gross motor skills at age 4
Able to walk down a
long staircase, alternating
feet, with assistance
Have some control in starting,
stopping, and turning
Length of jump
increases to 24–33 inches
Gross motor skills at age 5
Able to walk down a
long staircase, alternating
feet
Capable of starting, stopping,
and turning in games
Able to make a running
jump of 28–36 inches
Guidelines of the American Academy of Pediatric on when children are ready for toilet training (echoing Brazelton)
staying dry for at least two hours at a time during the day or waking up dry after naps
regular and predictable bowel movement
indication, through facial expressions or words, that urination or bowel movement is about to occur
the ability to follow simple directions
the ability to get to the bathroom and undress alone
discomfort with soiled diapers
asking to use the toilet or potty chair
the desire to wear underwear
handedness
the preference of using one hand
over another
preoperational stage
according to Piaget, the stage from
approximately age two to age
seven in which children’s use of
symbolic thinking grows, mental
reasoning emerges, and the use of
concepts increases
operations
organized, formal, logical mental
processes
What ages fall into the preoperational stage?
two years until seven years
symbolic function
the
ability to use a mental symbol, a word, or an object to stand for or represent something that
is not physically present
centration
the process of concentrating on
one limited aspect of a stimulus
and ignoring other aspects
conservation
the knowledge that quantity is
unrelated to the arrangement and
physical appearance of objects
transformation
the process in which one state is
changed into another
egocentric thought
thinking that does not take into
account the viewpoints of others
intuitive thought
thinking that reflects preschoolers’
use of primitive reasoning and
their avid acquisition of knowledge
about the world
functionality
the idea that actions, events, and outcomes are related to
one another in fixed patterns.
Identity
the understanding that certain things
stay the same, regardless of changes in shape, size, and appearance
autobiographical memory
memory of particular events from
one’s own life
scripts
broad representations in memory
of events and the order in which
they occur
zone of proximal development
(ZPD)
according to Vygotsky, the level
at which a child can almost,
but not fully, perform a task
independently, but can do so with
the assistance of someone more
competent
scaffolding
the support for learning and
problem solving that encourages
independence and growth
syntax
the way in which an individual
combines words and phrases to
form sentences
fast mapping
a process in which new words are
associated with their meaning
after only a brief encounter
grammar
the system of rules that
determines how our thoughts can
be expressed
private speech
speech by children that is spoken
and directed to themselves
pragmatics
the aspect of language that relates
to communicating effectively and
appropriately with others
social speech
speech directed toward another
person and meant to be
understood by that person
Child-care
centers
provide care for children outside the home while their
parents are at work
family child-care
centers
small operations run in
private
homes
Preschools
explicitly designed to provide intellectual and social experiences for
children. They tend to be more limited in their schedules than family child-care
centers,
typically providing care for only three to five hours per day
School child care
provided by some local school systems in the United States. Almost
half the states in the United States fund prekindergarten programs for four-year-
olds,
often aimed at disadvantaged children. Because they typically are staffed by better-trained
teachers than less-regulated
child-care
centers, school child-care
programs are
often of higher quality than other early education alternatives
program
quality
High-quality
care provides intellectual and social benefits, while low-quality
care
not only is unlikely to furnish benefits but actually may harm children
Characteristics of high quality care
The care providers are well trained, preferably with bachelor’s degrees.
* The child-care
center has an appropriate overall size and ratio of care providers to
children. Single groups should not have many more than 14 to 20 children, and there
should be no more than 5 to 10 three-year-
olds
per caregiver, or 7 to 10 four- or five-year-
olds
per caregiver.
* The child–teacher ratio should be 10:1 or better.
* The curriculum of a child-care
facility is carefully planned out and coordinated
among the teachers.
* The language environment is rich, with a great deal of conversation.
* The caregivers are sensitive to children’s emotional and social needs, and they know
when and when not to intervene.
* Materials and activities are age appropriate.
* Basic health and safety standards are followed.
* Children should be screened for vision, hearing, and health problems.
* At least one meal a day should be served.
* The facility should provide at least one family support service.
developmentally appropriate
educational practice
education that is based on both
typical development and the
unique characteristics of a given
child
