Unit 1: Learning Aim A

Question 1

What key features of physical development occur at Infancy (0-2 years)?

Answer 1

Rapid growth, reaching half their adult height by 2.
Around 1, infants can walk and by 2 they can run.
12-13 months they can stand alone without help.
6 months they can roll over and sit up for a short time unaided and kick legs when held up.
3 months they can lift their head and chest when lying on their front.
1 month can have some control of the head, lifting chin.

Question 2

What key features of physical development occur at Childhood (3-8 years)?

Answer 2

Children continue to grow at a steady pace.
Continue to develop strength and coordination.
3 years they can pedal a tricycle, run and balance on one foot.
4 years they can kick and throw.
5 years they can hop using each foot separately.
6/7 years they can ride a bike and skip.

Question 3

What key features of physical development occur at Adolescence (9-18 years)?

Answer 3

Growth spurts.
Development of sexual characteristic during puberty.
The menstrual cycle begins with females.
Body fat is redistributed.
Hair growth, voice deepening, breast development.

Question 4

What key features of physical development occur at Early Adulthood (19-45 years)?

Answer 4

Adults reach the peak of their physical fitness.
Full height and strength reached.
Manual dexterity at its peak.
After this, strength and speed begin to deteriorate.

Question 5

What key features of physical development occur at Middle Adulthood (46-65 years)?

Answer 5

The ageing process begins with some loss of strength and stamina.
Women go through the menopause.
‘Middle aged spread’.
Loss of skin elasticity.

Question 6

What key features of physical development occur at Later Adulthood (65+ years)?

Answer 6

Ageing process continues.
Gradual loss of mobility.
Experiencing a loss of height up to a few centimetres.
Disease can occur due to changes in the organ system.
Begin to lose height and weight.

Question 7

What are the principles of development?

Answer 7

From head to toe.
From the inside to the outside.
In the same sequence but at different rates.
Holistically.

Question 8

What are the four main areas of skill acquisition?

Answer 8

Physical.
Social.
Emotional.
Intellectual.

Question 9

What are the principles of growth?

Answer 9

Weight.

Length/ dimensions.

Question 10

What are the gross and fine motor skills at newborn?

Answer 10

Gross: Primitive reflexes (grasp).
Fine: Holds their thumbs tucked into their hands.

Question 11

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 1 month?

Answer 11

Gross: Lifts chin, some control of the head.
Fine: Opens hands to grasp and finger.

Question 12

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 3 months?

Answer 12

Gross: Can lift their head and chest when lying on front.
Fine: Can briefly grasp a rattle.

Question 13

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 6 months?

Answer 13

Gross: Rolls over, sit up for a short time without support, kicks legs when held up.
Fine: Moves objects from hand to hand, can pick up dropped toys if they’re in sight.

Question 14

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 9-10 months?

Answer 14

Gross: Crawls, begins to walk while holding onto objects.
Fine: Uses finger and thumb to hold a small object.

Question 15

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 12-13 months?

Answer 15

Gross: Stands alone, can walk without help.
Fine: Manipulates and places toys.

Question 16

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 18 months?

Answer 16

Gross: Climbs onto furniture.
Fine: Builds a short tower with blocks.

Question 17

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 2 years?

Answer 17

Gross: Propels a sit on toy with their feet, throws a large ball.
Fine: Draws lines and circles, turns a page.

Question 18

What are the gross and fine motor skills at 2 and half years?

Answer 18

Gross: Jumps from a low step, kicks ball.
Fine: Uses a spoon and fork, builds a tower of 7-8 blocks.

Question 19

What are the male and female primary sexual characteristics?

Answer 19

Male: Enlargement of penis and testes, spontaneous erections caused by blood flowing into chambers in the penis, testicles begin to produce spermatozoa, beginning of ejaculation.
Female: The uterus enlarges and the vagina lengthens, ovaries begin to release eggs, menstrual cycle commences.

Question 20

What are the male and female secondary sexual characteristics?

Answer 20

Male: Changes in larynx (Adams apple) causing the voice to deepen, hair growth in armpits and pubic area, facial hair, redistribution of muscle tissue and fat.
Female: Breasts develop and the areola (the area around the nipple) swells and darkens, hair grows in armpits and pubic area, redistribution of body fat, causing hips to widen.

Question 21

What are the key intellectual developments in infancy and early childhood?

Answer 21

Stages of rapid intellectual development.

Question 22

What are the key intellectual developments in adolescence to early adulthood?

Answer 22

Development of logical thought, problem solving and memory recall skills.

Question 23

What are the key intellectual developments in middle adulthood?

Answer 23

Can think through problems and make sound judgements using life experiences.

Question 24

What are the key intellectual developments in later adulthood?

Answer 24

Changes in the brain can cause short term memory decline and slower thought processes and reaction times.

Question 25

What are the key features of language development at 3 months?

Answer 25

Infants begin to make babbling noises as they learn to control the muscles associated with speech.

Question 26

What are the key features of language development at 12 months?

Answer 26

Infants begin to imitate sounds made by carers such as ‘da da’.
This develops into using single words.

Question 27

What are the key features of language development at 2 years?

Answer 27

Infants begin to make 2 word sentences, such as ‘cat goed’.

The infant begins to build their vocabulary.

Question 28

What are the key features of language development at 3 years?

Answer 28

Children begin to make simple sentences, such as ‘I want drink’.
This develops into the ability to ask questions, ‘when we go?’.
Knowledge of words grows very rapidly.

Question 29

What are the key features of language development at 4 years?

Answer 29

Children begin to use clear sentences that can be understood by strangers.
Children can be expected to make some mistakes with grammar, ‘we met lots of peoples at the shops today’.

Question 30

What are the key features of language development at 5 years?

Answer 30

Children can speak using full adult grammar.
Although vocabulary will continue to grow and formal grammar will continue to improve, most children can be expected to use language effectively by the age of 5.

Question 31

What occurs in the sensorimotor stage (2 years)?

Answer 31

Infants think by interacting with the world using their eyes, ears, hands and mouth.
As a result, the infant invents ways of solving problems such as pulling a lever to hear the sound of a music box, finding hidden toys and putting objects into and taking them out of containers.
Piaget believed that a baby would not have a way of remembering and thinking about the world until they were about 18 months old.

Question 32

What occurs at the preoperational stage (2-7 years)?

Answer 32

Children use symbols to represent their earlier sensorimotor discoveries.
Development of language and make believe play takes place.
Piaget believed that children at this stage cannot properly understand how ideas like number, mass and volume really work.

Question 33

What occurs at the concrete operational stage (7-11 years)?

Answer 33

Children’s reasoning becomes logical providing the issues are concrete.
In the concrete operational stage, children may be able to understand simple logical principles.

Question 34

What occurs at the formal operational stage (11-18 years)?

Answer 34

This is when the capacity for abstract thinking allows adolescents to reason through symbols that do not refer to objects in the real world, as is required in advanced mathematics.
Young people can also think of possible outcomes of a scientific problem, not just the obvious ones.
Abstract thinking enables individuals to think through complicated ideas in their heads without having to see the concrete image.

Question 35

What are the key features of emotional development at infancy?

Answer 35

Attachment: Bowlby argued that infants have an inbuilt need to form an attachment with a carer. Ainsworth argued that the quality of emotional development for the rest of their life can be affected by early attachments.

Question 36

What are the key features of emotional development at early childhood?

Answer 36

Understanding of self and others: Children use their imagination to begin to understand the social roles that other people play. Children begin to imagine a ‘me’, an idea of self or self concept. Relationships with other family members may influence whether a child feels valued or has a sense of self worth. The way a child gets on with teachers and friends may influence their self confidence. The child might develop a permanent sense of self confidence or a sense of failure and inferiority.

Question 37

What are the key features of emotional development at adolescence?

Answer 37

Identity: During adolescence, this sense of self continues to develop. An adolescent needs to develop a secure self concept. A person needs a clear understand of identity in order to feel secure when working with other people or in order to make a loving sexual attachment. This may be a stressful time as self esteem may depend on developing identity.

Question 38

What are the key features of emotional development at early and middle adulthood?

Answer 38

Intimacy: In adulthood, an individual’s self esteem is influenced by lifestyle such as their job or marital status. Self image is affected by personal appearance and how others see you. Individuals need to learn to cope with emotional attachment to a sexual partner. This may involve not being too self centred or defensive and not becoming emotionally isolated.

Question 39

What are the key features of emotional development at later adulthood?

Answer 39

Making sense of your life: Older people need a secure sense of self to enable them to cope with the physical changes associated with ageing and death. People who fail to make sense of their lives might experience emotional despair.

Question 40

What are Schaffer and Emerson’s sequence of attachment for up to 3 months?

Answer 40

Most babies respond indiscriminately to any caregiver.

Question 41

What are Schaffer and Emerson’s sequence of attachment for 3-7 months?

Answer 41

Infants can distinguish the difference between their main caregiver and other people.
The infant will accept care from other people.

Question 42

What are Schaffer and Emerson’s sequence of attachment for 7-9 months?

Answer 42

This is when the infant looks to particular people for security comfort and protection.
The baby shows fear of strangers and unhappiness when separated from their main caregiver.
Some infants are more likely to display fear of strangers and stranger anxiety than others.

Question 43

What are Schaffer and Emerson’s sequence of attachment for 9+ months?

Answer 43

The baby starts to become more independent and forms several attachments, referred to as multiple attachments.

Question 44

What are the developments of self esteem at 0-18 months?

Answer 44

During infancy, babies start to build self esteem by having their basic needs met (closeness, love, comfort).
Babies gradually become aware that they are loved as their primary caregivers provide these needs.
This shows the infant that they are important, as well as safe and secure.

Question 45

What are the developments of self esteem at 18 months-2 years?

Answer 45

Although infants have not yet developed a clear understanding of self esteem, every time they learn a new skill they begin to realise what they can achieve and begin to learn about themselves.
If infants are shown love by their primary caregivers and treated as special, this impacts on their self esteem.
Infants who feel unloved find it more difficult to develop a sense of self worth and to value themselves.

Question 46

What are the description of play at the solo stage (0-1 year)?

Answer 46

Looks at adults closely, puts things into mouth and touches things with hands.
Plays alone with toys.
Gradually begins to play simple games.

Question 47

What are the description of play at the solo stage (12-18 months)?

Answer 47

Begins to play and talk alone, repeats actions and starts to play with adults, notices other children.

Question 48

What are the description of play at the parallel stage (18 months-2 years)?

Answer 48

Begins to enjoy repetitive actions, such as putting objects into and taking them out of boxes.
Begins to copy other children and adults.
Enjoys playing with adults as well as alone.
Learns to complete tasks through trial and error.

Question 49

What are the description of play at the associative stage (3-4 years)?

Answer 49

Begins to play cooperatively with other children and starts to show reasoning skills by questions.
They join in pretend and fantasy games negotiating and taking on roles.

Question 50

What are the description of play at the cooperative stage (4-6 years)?

Answer 50

Begins to use simple rules in games.

Plays cooperatively towards a shared goal and takes turns when playing table top games with other children.

Question 51

What are the description of play at the cooperative stage (6-8 years)?

Answer 51

Begins to enjoy playing in small groups, making up own games and rules.
Enjoys understanding and using rules, but does not usually cope well with losing.

Question 52

What are the features of social development at infancy?

Answer 52

Interacting with carers: Infants appear to have an inbuilt tendency to interact with carers.
By 2 months, they may start to smile at human faces.
At 3 months, they will respond when adults talk.
At 5 months, infants can distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar people.
Infants make they first relationships as they form an emotional attachment to carers.

Question 53

What are the features of social development at childhood?

Answer 53

First social learning: Young children are emotionally attached and dependent on the adults that care for them.
Children begin to learn social roles and behaviour within their family context, providing a ‘safe base’ to explore social relationships with other children through play.
As they grow older they become increasingly independent and begin to form friendships based on a sense of mutual trust.
Children begin to form social networks (circles) of friends who like and agree with each other.

Question 54

What are the features of social development at adolescence?

Answer 54

Secondary social learning: A person’s self worth may be more influenced by their peers that by their family.
They copy styles of dress, beliefs, cultural values and behaviours of their networks of friends.

Question 55

What are the features of social development at adulthood?

Answer 55

Maturity: During early adulthood, friendship networks continue to be very important.
Early adulthood is dominated by forming intimate partnerships and the need to find employment.
In middle adulthood individuals experience time pressures that may limit their social activity.
Mature adults may have to split their time between work, family and friends.

Question 56

What are the features of social development at older adulthood?

Answer 56

Following retirement, older adults have more free time to develop friendships through taking up new hobbies, pastimes and travel.
Others may choose to increase their involvement with close friends and family rather than extend their network of social contacts.