Health Promotion of School-Aged Children (6-12 years) Flashcards
Weight
School aged children will gain about 2-3kg per year
Height
School aged children will grow about 5cm per year
Prepubescence
Preadolescence is typically when prepubescence occurs.
Onset of physiologic changes begins around the age of 9 years, particularly in girls.
Rapid growth in height and weight occurs.
Differences in rate of growth and maturation between boys and girls becomes apparent.
visible sexual maturation is minimal in boys during preadolescence.
Permanent teeth eruption.
Bladder capacity differs, but remains greater in girls than boys.
Immune system improves.
Bones continue to ossify.
Piaget
Cognitive Development
Concrete Operation
Transitions form perceptual to conceptual thinking.
Masters the concept of conservation:
- conservation of mass is understood first, followed by weight, and then volume.
Learns to tell time.
Classifies more complex information.
Able to see the perspective of others.
Able to solve problems.
Industry v Inferiority
A sense of industry is achieved through the development of skills and knowledge that allows the child to provide meaningful contributions to society.
A sense of accomplishment is gained through the ability to cooperate and compete with others.
Children should be challenged with tasks that need to be accomplished, and be allowed to work though individual differences in order to complete the task.
Creating systems that reward successful mastery of skills and tasks can create a sense of inferiority in children unable to complete the tasks or acquire skills.
Children should be taught that not everyone will master every skill.
Moral Development of Early School Age Years
Do not understand the reasoning behind rules and expectations for behavior.
Believe what they thing is wrong, and what others tell them is right.
Judgement is guided by reward and punishment.
Sometimes interpret accidents as punishment.
Moral Development of Later School Age Years
Able to judge the intentions of an act rather than just its consequences.
Understand different points of view instead of just whether or not an act is right or wrong.
Conceptualized treating others as they like to be treated.
Self Concept Development
School age children develop an awareness of themselves in relation to others, as well as an understanding of personal values, abilities, and physical characteristics.
Confidence is gained through establishing a positive self-concept, which leads to feelings of worthiness and the ability to provide significant contributions.
Parents continue to influence the school-age childs self-ideals, but by middle childhood the opinions of peers and teachers become more valuable.
Body Image Changes
Solidification of body image occurs.
Curiosity about sexuality should be addressed with education regarding sexual development and the reproductive process.
School-age children are more than preschoolers and place more emphasis on privacy issues.
Social Development
Peer groups plat an important part in social development. Peer pressure begins to take effect.
Clubs and best friends are popular.
Bullying actions are intended to cause harm or to control someone, and are sometimes attributed to poor relationships with peers and difficulty identifying with a group.
Children prefer the company of the same gender companions, but begin developing an interest in opposite sex toward the end of the school age years.
More relationships come from school associations.
Conformity becomes evident.
Age Appropriate Activities (General)
competitive and cooperative plat is predominant.
Age Appropriate Activities for 6-9 year olds
Playing simple board and number games. Play hopscotch. Jump rope. Collect rocks, stamps, cards, or stuffed animals. Ride bicycles. Building simple models. Join organized sports (skill building).
Age Appropriate Activities for 9-12 year olds
Make crafts. Build models. Collect things/engage in hobbies. Solve jigsaw puzzels. Play board and card games. Join organized competitive sports.
Immunizations
If not given between 4-5 years old, children should receive the following by 6 years of age: DTaP, MMR, and varicella.
Yearly seasonal influenza vaccinations
11-12 years old: Tdap, HPV2 or HPV4 in 3 doses for females and HPV4 for males, and MCV4 (meningococcal)
Scoliosis
School aged children should be screened for scoliosis by examining for lateral curvature of the spine before and during growth spurts. Screening can take place at schools or at health care facilities.
Nutrition
By the end of the school age years, children should eat adult portions of food. They need quality nutritious snacks.
Obesity is an increasing concern for this age group that predisposes children to low self esteem, diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Advise patients to:
Avoid using food as a reward.
Emphasize physical activity.
Ensure that a balanced diet is consumed by following the USDAs healthy diet recommendations.
Teach children to make healthy food selections for meals and snacks.
Avoid eating fast-food frequently.
Avoid skipping meals.
Model healthy behaviors.
Sleep and Rest
Required sleep is highly valuable in the school-age years and is dependent on the following:
-age
-levels of activity
-health status
Approximately 9 hours of sleep is needed each night at the age of 11 years.
Resistance to bedtime is sometimes experienced around the age of 8-9 years, and again around the age of 11 years, but is typically resolved by the age of 12 years.
Dental Health
The fist permanent teeth erupt around 6 years of age.
Children should brush after meals and snacks, and at bedtime.
Children should floss daily.
Children should have regular checkups.
If necessary, children should have regular fluoride treatments.
Bodily Harm
Keep firearms in locked cabinets or boxes.
Identify safe play areas.
Teach stranger safety to children.
Teach children to wear helmets and.or pads when roller skating, skateboarding, bicycling, riding scooters, skiing, and snowboarding.
Burns
Teach fire safety and potential burn hazards.
Keep working smoke detectors in the home.
Children should use sunscreen when outside.
Encourage breaks to prevent children from becoming over-tired.
Motor Vehicle Injures
Children should use an approved car restraint system until they achieve the height of 145cm.
Teach children appropriate seat belt use when no longer using car restraint system or booster seat.
Safest area for children is in the back seat of a car.
Never let children ride in the bed of a pick up truck.
Reinforce safe pedestrian behaviors.
Drowning
Children should be supervised when swimming or when near a body of water.
Children should be taught to swim.
Check depth of water before allowing children to dive.
Encourage breaks to precent children from becoming over tired.
Poisoning/Substance Abuse
Cleaners and chemicals should be kept in locked cabinets or out of reach of younger children.
Children should be taught to say “no” to substance abuse.
