Chapter 9 Flashcards
Height and Weight
**in general, children grow about 2-3 inches each year and approximately double their weight during the years of middle childhood
Dental Health
dental health can be maintained by regular dental care, fluoride in the water, and sealants on chewing surfaces (all of these help prevent cavities in children)
Nutrition
children’s eating habits are influenced by: skipping
breakfast, snacks high in fat & sugar, fast-food consumption, the media. Obesity is a major concern!
Sleep
sleep needs decline to about 9-11 hours during this age.
Sleep quality, sleep duration, and daytime sleepiness all affect
academic performance
Brain Development
many changes in the brain including changes in the brain’s structure & functioning. Brain volume increases, grey matter decreases, and white matter increases. This is a good thing because white matter indicates strong connections, connections are thicker because of myelination, information processed much more rapidly
Motor Development and Physical Activity
fewer than 25% of children get the recommended about of 60 minutes of physical activity per day!
Recess
recess is critically important, yet schools are limiting it due to focus on academics. **Research shows a direct correlation between recess and improved academic performance!
Organized Sports
about 38% of children in this age group play organized sports on a regular basis. **Household income is a major predictor impacting the ability of children to participate. Developmental changes determine what types of organized sports are the most effective
Caused of Overweight and Obesity
obesity can result from inherited tendencies, aggravated by too little exercise and too much or the wrong kinds of foods
Overweight and Obesity Outcomes
**overweight children are 5 times more likely to be obese in
adulthood compared to children who are not overweight! *Childhood obesity may be a stronger predictor of some diseases than adulthood obesity!! (About 70% of obese adults were not obese in
childhood)
Prevention and Treatment
overall lifestyle changes are
recommended – less time in front of TV, changes in food
labels & marketing, healthier school lunches, more time
exercising & in recess. **The most effective changes are
those in which parents are helped to change their own
Concrete Operations
third stage of Piagetian
cognitive development (approximately ages 7 to
12), during which **children develop logical, but not abstract, thinking – this shift from illogical thinking to logical thinking depends on brain development
Executive Function
conscious control of thoughts,
emotions, and actions to accomplish goals or solve
problems. **Children in this age are making steady progress
in regulating & sustaining attention, process and retain information, and plan & monitor their behavior & strategies
Working Memory
this is the short-term storage of
information & efficiency of this increases greatly in middle childhood
The IQ Controversy
IQ test scores are good predictors of school achievement but may underestimate the intelligence of children in poor health or don’t perform well on tests, especially timed tests. Also, IQ test measure what children already know and infer intelligence from that. **Biggest question is “Is intelligence a general ability or are there other types of intelligence that an IQ test doesn’t measure?
