Module 6 Lesson 1 - Lifespan, Physical, And Cognitive Development

Question 1

Order of Prenatal Development

Answer 1

Zygote, Embryo, Fetus

Question 2

Step 1 (Conception and Gestation)

Answer 2

Conception: When the sperm and egg come together.
This produces a Zygote, beginning the germinal stage or first stage.
This is the period of time when the zygote goes through a massive transformation.

Question 3

What is a zygote

Answer 3

A combination of DNA from two partners that contains all the necessary genetic information to develop a new baby.

Question 4

Step 2 (Conception and Gestation)

Answer 4

The zygote enters a two-week period where rapid cell division occurs. Less than half of all zygotes survive past the two-week mark from initial conception.

Question 5

What happens if the zygote survives a two-week period of cell division?

Answer 5

The zygote turns into an embryo, beginning the embryonic stage which lasts from two weeks through two months.

Question 6

Step 3 (Conception and Gestation)

Answer 6

Embryo: In human development, this is the time from the second-to-the-eighth week following fertilization of an egg.

• Here, many of the baby’s vital organs will form and the heart will start beating.
• The developing baby will start to hear and recognize sounds and even respond to light stimuli.
• After the second month (8th week), the embryo enters the fetal period.

Question 7

Step 4 (Fetal Period)

Answer 7

Fetal Period: the period of time from the second month (8th week) until birth.

• The fetus starts to develop fully into his/her organs, develop features, and prepare for birth.
• From conception to birth is usually referred to as the prenatal period.

Question 8

What is the neonatal period?

Answer 8

When a baby is born until one month of age.

Question 9

What is infancy?

Answer 9

When a baby is between one month and two years old.

Question 10

What elements can influence or impact the gestation of a zygote, embryo, and fetus?

Answer 10

Most elements fall under the blanket of teratogens
- Refers to a wide variety of factors or stimuli that can cause potential abnormal fetal development.
- This includes drugs like cocaine or marijuana, exposure to radiation, or contracting viruses/illnesses like measles.
- It can also be a hard fall, being involved in a car crash, etc…

Anything that the mother does or ingests that can harm the development of an unborn baby.

Smoking, which increases the likelihood of miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth, or other complications. It also increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) can occur if the woman drinks alcohol heavily during pregnancy. This increases the likelihood of physical or cognitive abnormalities that can be identified by facial disproportions.

Question 11

X and Y Chromosomes

Answer 11

X chromosomes are always given by a mother. Women have two X chromosomes: one from the mother and the other from the father.
Men possess one X and one Y chromosome. They can pass down either an X or Y chromosome to decide the sex of the baby. Y chromosomes can only be given by fathers.

Question 12

Identical Twins

Answer 12

It’s usually normal to have one child at a time, but twins can occur (when two people originate from one fertilized egg and are born at the same time). The twins will share the same DNA, which is a rare occurrence (1/250 births). This rate is unnaturally increasing due to an increase in fertility treatments.

Question 13

Fraternal Twins

Answer 13

Two people originated from two fertilized eggs and are born at the same time, but do not share the same DNA. Male/Female twins are always fraternal. Same-sex fraternal twins may resemble each other but are not always identical. This rate is unnaturally increasing due to an increase in fertility treatments.

Question 14

Newborn babies are born with…

Answer 14

Primal Survival Skills… they have innate abilities, like seeking nourishment, desiring to interact with others, and attempts to avoid harmful situations.

Question 15

What are the five primary reflexes used by pediatricians to examine a newborn to determine that their nervous system is working properly?

Answer 15

• Grasping
• Startle
• Rooting
• Stepping
• Sucking

Question 16

Grasping reflex (newborn)

Answer 16

When a baby reaches out and grabs something, like mom or dad’s finger.

Question 17

Startle reflex (newborn)

Answer 17

When a baby experiences a sensation and is startled by it causing them to move or react verbally.

Question 18

Rooting reflex (newborn)

Answer 18

When a newborn automatically turns their face towards stimuli and makes sucking motions with their mouth.

Question 19

Stepping reflex (newborn)

Answer 19

When a baby steps (but cannot walk), they are mimicking the action of stepping.

Question 20

Sucking reflex (newborn)

Answer 20

When a baby puts an object in their mouth and sucks on it, like their mom or dad’s finger.

Question 21

Timeline for Motor Development

Answer 21

1. Grasping or reaching for objects
2. Manipulating objects
3. Sitting up
4. Crawling
5. Walking
6. Running

Question 22

What are the two primary motor development principles?

Answer 22

Cephalocaudal Trend and Proximodistal Trend

Question 23

What is the Cephalocaudal Trend?

Answer 23

This states that development tends to start at the head and end at the foot, meaning that babies gain control of the upper part of their body first in development.

Question 24

What is the Proximodistal Trend?

Answer 24

Postulates on a center-outward direction of development, meaning that babies first gain control of their torso (center of the body) before gaining control of the extremities (arms and legs).

Question 25

What are the two differing types of growth in babies?

Answer 25

Continuous growth and Episodic growth

Question 26

What is continuous growth in babies?

Answer 26

It is when babies constantly add new lessons and skills on top of existing lessons and skills. This means that they grow at a steady, uniform pace. Usually, this type of development is less noticeable on a day-to-day basis.

Question 27

What is episodic growth in babies?

Answer 27

It is when babies seem to develop chunks of abilities at once and seem to experience differing milestone events at certain times in life. This means that they tend to grow in spurts and this type of development is more noticeable on a day-to-day basis.

Question 28

What is universal about the growth of the brain in a child?

Answer 28

Despite how a child develops, the growth of the brain triples in weight from birth to the age of three as new dendrites, axon terminals, and synaptic connections grow.

During this growth, synaptic pruning occurs in which unused synaptic connections and nerve cells are cleared in order to provide room for functional connections and cells. This means a massive amount of learning occurs during the first three years of life.

Question 29

Gross Motor Skills vs. Fine Motor Skills

Answer 29

Gross motor skills - Skills that require larger muscles (arms and legs)
e.g. Sitting up or walking

Fine motor skills - Skills that require smaller muscles (fingers)
e.g. Cutting with scissors or coloring a picture

Question 30

What is nature vs. nurture?

Answer 30

What is the primary influencer of a person… and how much weight does each contribute and how do they interact?

Question 31

What does nature calculate in nature vs. nurture?

Answer 31

Nature calculates the effects of heredity, i.e. what you receive from your parents genetically.

Question 32

What does nurture refer to in nature vs. nurture?

Answer 32

Nurture refers to the influence of environment, i.e., what you are exposed to and absorb.

Question 33

So how is nature vs. nurture studied?

Answer 33

There are two rather effective approaches to studying nature vs. nurture.

1. By studying identical twins and fraternal twins due to the similarities in genetics.
2. By studying adoptions and looking at similarities. In this case, if a child has similarities with their biological family, this tend to support nature, while similarities with the adoptive family tend to support nurture.

Question 34

What are some environmental influences concerning nurture?

Answer 34

Parents - How much praise or blame do parents deserve for how a child “turns out?” How much do children learn from their parents? What role does a parent have in the development of their child?

Prenatal - If a baby at the prenatal stage is given stimulating care, they tend to score better on intelligence tests compared to their peers.

Experience - Do we learn from our mistakes? Or what take-a-ways or lessons do we learn from our mistakes? WHat experiences most influence us? Are some actions motivated by trying to recreate past actions?

Peer Influence - How do our peers influence us? Are our peers positive or negative influences? Do we follow the “selection effect” in which we are more comfortable with people that have similar interests?

Culture - What behaviors, attitudes, traditions, customs, etc… have been passed down that are now being taught/exposed to me? What is considered normal behavior?

Gender - What roles are expected of me as a boy or as a girl? How do we determine what makes us a male or a female? People tend to identify their gender through gender typing where we acquire our gender identity and then start to act as our gender.

Question 35

What is the selection effect?

Answer 35

We are more comfortable with people that have similar interests.

Question 36

What is gender typing?

Answer 36

When we acquire our gender identity and then try to act as our gender.

Question 37

What are the two learning theories on gender typing?

Answer 37

Social Learning Theory
Gender Schema Theory

Question 38

Social Learning Theory (for gender typing)?

Answer 38

This theory is based around the idea of rewards and punishments concerning gender.

Ex. If Bill’s dad plays football and Bill plays football because he is imitating his dad, Bill’s dad rewards Bill. BUT, if Bill imitates his mom and puts on makeup, Bill’s dad punishes Bill. So, why would Bill be punished in one scenario and rewarded in the other? Because of the idea that certain genders have prescribed roles and the breaking of those roles is unacceptable to some.

Question 39

Gender Schema Theory

Answer 39

This theory is based around how we organize information and develop what is and what is not acceptable behavior or actions for certain genders. This influences our worldview concerning gender.

Question 40

Who came up with the Cognitive Development Theory?

Answer 40

Jean Piaget

Question 41

What is Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory based on?

Answer 41

Schemas or mental structures that help to guide thinking, acting as building blocks of development.
Assimilation and accommodation.
Stages of cognitive development

Question 42

What are schemas like in Piaget’s theory?

Answer 42

Schemas can be fluid and form change as we develop and organize our knowledge in response to new experiences or situations.

Question 43

What is Assimilation?

Answer 43

According to Piaget, this is when a person experiences new information and then incorporates that new information into existing ideas.

Question 44

What is Accommodation?

Answer 44

According to Piaget, this is when a person experiences new information that causes a person to modify or change their existing ideas.

Question 45

What are the stages of cognitive development?

Answer 45

1. Sensorimotor Stage Birth …
2. Preoperational Stage
3. Concrete Operational Stage
4. Formal Operational

Question 46

Describe the Sensorimotor Stage.

Answer 46

Birth to the age of two:
- When a child uses their senses and motor abilities to interact with their environment.
- They rely on their reflexive responses which typically requires little thinking.
- Stranger anxiety is common at this stage.
- By the end of this stage, children will take a mental leap forward and acquire the ability to make mental images of an object (mental representation).
By the end of this stage, they may also acquire object permanence (when a child knows something exists even when it’s out of sight).

Question 47

What is mental representation?

Answer 47

This is the ability to make mental images of an object. This leap comes at the end of the sensorimotor stage and is a building block of a child being able to independently problem-solve.

Question 48

What is object permanence?

Answer 48

When young children (at the end of the sensorimotor stage) realizes that an object exists even if it is out of sight.

Question 49

What is the preoperational stage?

Answer 49

Age two to six/seven:
- Characteristics of this stage include improved mental and language abilities.
- Generally have a sense of right and wrong but lack a logical approach to problem-solving.
- Learn to use symbols to represent things; “pretend-play”

Key features of this stage include:
- Egocentrism
- Animistic thinking
- Centration
- Irreversibility
- Artificialism

Question 50

What is the Concrete Operational Stage?

Answer 50

Age seven to eleven:

• Characteristics of this stage include the ability to ask questions and use rational thought to answer them.
• They acquire the ability to complete mental operations (manipulate images in their mind) as well as conservation in which the quantity of, say a liquid, stays the same despite changes in the shape of the container.

Question 51

What are mental operations and what is conservation in the Concrete Operational Stage?

Answer 51

Mental operations - manipulating images in the mind
Conservation - Quantity can stay the same even when it changes shape.

If a tall, skinny glass of water is compared to a fat, short glass of water, kids that recognize conservation will say both glasses of water have the same amount.

Question 52

What is the Formal Operational Stage?

Answer 52

Age twelve to adulthood:
- Characteristics of this stage consist of being able to understand abstract issues.
- More likely to be accepted more by peers

Four defining structural properties:
- Analogical/Abstract reasoning
- Deductive reasoning
- Hypothetical reasoning
- Reflective abilities

Question 53

What theories were developed by Jean Piaget?

Answer 53

The Cognitive Development Theory and the Theory of the Mind.

Question 54

What is the Theory of the Mind?

Answer 54

Developed by Jean Piaget, this states that a person develops the ability to understand that other people have desires, beliefs, perspectives, and intentions that differ from their own (meaning that a child begins to understand the mental states of others).