School Aged Children Flashcards
Cite major changes in motor development and play during middle childhood.
better coordination, speed and agility
gains in strength and size
fine motor skill gains in writing and drawing
more efficient info processing and reaction times
Two ways of describing intelligence
Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences and Sternberg’s triarchic theory (analytical, creative, practical)
Describe changes in moral understanding during middle childhood, including children’s understanding of diversity and inequality.
have a more complex understanding of inequality,
more flexible moral rules
better understanding of varied reasons for deception
linking of moral imperatives and social conventions
favoring in-group emerges
Describe major categories of peer acceptance and ways to help rejected children.
Popular – many positive votes, popular pro and anti social
rejected – many negative votes
rejected aggressive – bullies
rejected withdrawn – often victimized
controversial – mix of liked and disliked
neglected – seldom mentioned positively or negatively
average – average number of votes, about ⅓ of classroom total
What changes in gender-stereotyped beliefs and gender identity occur during middle childhood?
stereotypes extend to personality traits and school subjects, become aware of society’s preference for “masculine” traits
3rd -6th grade
boy’s masculine identity emerges
girls become more androgynous and explore more options
How do parent–child communication and sibling relationships change in middle childhood?
parent child – coregulation, gradually shift towards child
siblings: rivalry (parental comparisons contribute), companionship and support, parental encouragement of warm sibling ties is vital
Physical changes in middle (school age) childhood
slow, regular pace including both bones and muscles
girls shorter and lighter until age 9
permanent teeth appear
lower body grows faster
BMI percentiles in children and BMI parameters in adults
kids: greater than 20% increase over healthy body weight
overweight: above 85th percentile
obese: above 95th percentile
Adults
overweight: >25 BMI
obese: > 30 BMI
What is the most common chronic illness in school-aged children
Asthma
Concrete operational thought
conversation
decentration focus on several aspects of a problem and relating them
reversibility – ability to think through a series of thoughts and mentally reverse them
Classification
pass inclusion problems (red flowers vs flowers)
focus on multiple category relations all at once
Limitations:
only applied to info kids can perceive directly, works poorly with abstract ideas
Seriation
ability to put things into a series (order in a quantitative dimension)
Transitive inference – requires integrating 3 or more relationships(ex billy is taller than suzie and suzie is taller than johnny so billy is taller than johnny), efficient around 6 or 7
Map-making ability in children
8-10 can give clear directions, give landmarks of large scale places and along an organized route
end of middle childhood: overview a large scale space and understand scale
Executive function and memory in school age children
increase short term/working memory capacity and efficiency (except in poverty)
increased inhibition
planning and strategic thinking improve
self-monitoring and self-correction
attention becomes more selective, flexible and adaptable
ADHD
boys more likely to be diagnosed, girls are often overlooked
impulsivity, inattention, excessive motor activity, difficulty managing emotions
academic and social problems
caused by differences in executive functioning
associated with: prenatal teratogens, parents w/ psych disorders, high stress families
Language development in elementary school
4x increase in vocabulary, now with more precise use, appreciation of double meanings and metaphors
mastery of grammatical structures
narratives more organized, detailed and expressive (improved memory, perspective taking, and conversations with adults)
Erikson’s industry vs. inferiority
industry: sense of competence → positive but realistic self-concept, pride in accomplishment, moral responsibility, cooperative participation with agemates (attributes success to self)
inferiority: pessimism and lack of confidence, others negative responses can contribute (attributes success to external factors)
Self-concept and self-esteem in school age children
Self concept:
emphasizes competencies
trait-based self descriptions
social comparison
frequent reference to social groups
Self esteem
influenced by: culture, gender, ethnicity, child rearing practices, supported by representation
Attributes: mastery oriented vs learned helplessness
process praise vs person praise
Ways to reduce prejudice in school age children
more exposure to all types of people – activities and mentors of all types, outside of community if necessary
working towards a common goal with a diverse set of peers
fostering belief in the changeability of human traits
volunteering
Friendships in middle childhood
At this age, friendships are predominantly based on similarities (and proximity), and friendships tend to last short in girls.
united by personal qualities, trust becomes important
more selective in choosing friends – want similar friends
fairly stable friendships
type of friends affects development and behavior
How to reduce bullying
give more attention to the victimized child
help victimized children form friendships
community codes against bullying
teaching child bystanders to intervene
Gender-atypical children in middle childhood
girls tend to experiment with more behavior not considered typically feminine
gender-atypical children often are outcast and face a lot of distress
it is important for parents to accept and support their gender atypical children and gender atypical behaviors
How to help children adjust to divorce
openly talk about it
tell them it wasn’t their fault
shield from conflict
authoritative parenting
promote contact with non-custodial parent
parents working together
