Understanding Child Development

Human development is influenced by, but not entirely determined by, our parents and our genes.
Children may have very different personalities, and different strengths and weaknesses, than the
generation that preceded them. Caregivers should pay attention to their children's distinct traits
and the pace of their development, and not assume that the approach to parenting that worked for
their mothers and fathers will be equally successful in their own families. Parents, and the home
environments they create, can also have an important influence on a child's development; in fact,
a child's home environment can affect the ways that certain genetic traits express themselves, or
if they will at all. Caregivers who have a consistent approach, who are warm, and who can give
children a sense of security, generally have the most positive influence on a child's development;
meeting a child's physical and dietary needs are also essential as research finds that childhood
neglect can disrupt development, perhaps even more than abuse does. But parents are far from
the only influencers in a child's life: Siblings, grandparents, neighbors, peers, celebrities, and
policymakers all may contribute to who a young person becomes as well.

Healthy development can be upended by abuse and neglect, which may disrupt cognitive and
language development and socialization and particularly hamper a child's ability to develop trust
or self-esteem, or to form healthy relationships with others. The effects of abuse or neglect often
linger for years, but they alone do not determine a child's future. Many children raised in difficult
environments develop resilience and grow to thrive as adults.

Ages and Stages of Childhood

The speedy physical and psychological changes that children undergo from birth
through adolescence can leave parents and caregivers wondering how best to support them. The
process of child development includes everything from sensory awareness and fine motor skills
to language acquisition and socialization. Parents and medical professionals typically rely on
developmental milestones, such as when a child learns to speak or read, to track their growth
relative to their peers. These milestones are important markers but parents must keep in mind
that every child develops at their own pace, and while one may take their first steps earlier than
most, or say their first words later than most, neither is likely to affect their ultimate capabilities.
However, when the benchmarks suggest that a child may be significantly delayed, it is important
to consult a doctor who can identify developmental disorders and begin treatment as early as
possible.
It is widely believed that a child's personality and intelligence are "locked in" by age 3, but there
is no deadline for human social or cognitive development and the brain develops throughout
one's life. But decades of research in developmental psychology, pediatrics,
and neuroscience have converged on the conclusion that the first five years are especially
critical. During these years, children begin to explore their environment, learn verbal and
reasoning skills, socialize with others, and, eventually, take steps toward asserting independence
from their family. Other research has led to expert guidance on how parents and caregivers can
manage a child's expectations, and their own, and nurture their best qualities.
Children have varying physical and emotional needs, depending on their age, personality, and
developmental stage. Over the past several decades, the age of puberty has been dropping for
many young people, bringing an increasingly early end to childhood. Both genetic and
environmental factors influence the onset of puberty, and observers believe that its early onset
may to some degree reflect the stresses a child has experienced.

Infancy
In the first year of life, children are totally dependent on their caregivers and closely bond with
them as they begin to develop personalities and attempt their first steps and first words. Research
suggests that, along with being the stage of life when humans make the greatest cognitive steps,
they are also probably the happiest days of a person’s life.
What are the key milestones of infant development?
Babies make a tremendous amount of progress during their first year, developing the ability to
get to a seated position without help, pulling themselves up to stand, taking steps while holding
onto furniture, and perhaps taking their first independent steps.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of
Pediatrics, infants can also be expected to display most of the following social and cognitive
skills, although each child develops differently and may achieve some milestones earlier or later
than others and still be considered to be experiencing healthy development:

Social Development

 Is shy with strangers

 Cries when parents leave
 Has favorite things and people
 Shows fear in some situations
 Hands adults a book when they want to hear a story
 Repeats sounds or actions to get attention
 Puts out an arm or leg to help with dressing
 Plays games such as “peek-a-boo” and “pat-a-cake”
Cognitive Development and Communication Skills

 Responds to simple spoken requests

 Uses simple gestures, like shaking their head for no, or waving “bye-bye”
 Makes sounds with changes in tone that mimic speech
 Says “mama” and “dada” and exclamations like “uh-oh”
 Tries to repeat words they hear
 Explores things in different ways, like shaking, banging, throwing
 Finds hidden things easily
 Looks at the right picture or thing when it’s named
 Starts to use objects correctly like a cup or hairbrush
 Puts things in a container, takes things out of a container
 Lets things go without help
  Pokes with index finger
 Follows simple directions like “pick up the toy”

Can babies think logically?

Researchers who explore infant thinking now believe that babies are more complex thinkers than
was once believed and there is some evidence that, by the end of their first 12 months, they are
capable of logical reasoning, testing their hypotheses about the physical world and spending
more time pondering unexpected results than expected ones. They also appear to use process of
elimination to come to conclusions, not unlike adult detectives and scientists.

How does skin-to-skin contact benefit babies?

Cuddling is an essential piece of the bonding process for parents and babies—especially for
premature babies—but research shows that it has powerful effects beyond building a
relationship. Touch calms babies by reducing levels of stress hormones like cortisol and lowering
their heart rate. Not insignificantly, skin-to-skin contact with their babies calms stressed-out new
parents as well. There is also no evidence that holding or carrying babies “too much” will spoil
or otherwise inhibit them; in fact, some research suggests that adults who were held and cuddled
more as babies were more likely to be well-adjusted later in life.

Are babies moral?

It has long been believed that babies are amoral and must be taught to be helpful or kind to
others. But a growing body of research shows that humans may be innately prosocial. Studies of
babies as young as seven months old find that they are willing to share food, toys, and other
objects, not only with their parents but with strangers as well, and both when requested and
spontaneously. Newborns also show empathy, crying in reaction to hearing another baby’s cry in
the first days of life. Later, they mimic the gestures and sounds their parents make to comfort
them when they see another infant experiencing distress.

Why do babies laugh so much?

Babies love to laugh, and laboratory observations show that they also take it very seriously,
focusing intensely on games that lead to laughter, such as peek-a-boo. Developmental
psychologists believe that a baby’s laughter may serve a primarily social function; it is an
invitation to adults to engage with them and it encourages adults to keep playing even if the basic
action is repetitive. For the baby, the key to such games is the adult’s participation.

How does taking their first steps change an infant’s world?

Once a child begins to walk, they can navigate and explore their world in a much more directed
and aggressive way. It is also considered to be a major milestone for a parent, whose role as
supervisor and protector transforms. A parent’s anxiety may increase at this stage, although they
will soon learn that while babies fall often as they take their first steps, they are rarely troubled
by stumbles very long. It is the first step on the path toward granting their child independence.
Which words does a child say first?
A child’s first words are heavily influenced by which words their parents use most often, as well
as local cultural effects: In some cultures, a child’s first words tend to include more verbs; in
others, more terms referring to extended-family relationships; and in the U.S., where labeling
and naming objects is a more common aspect of infant game play, babies are more likely to learn
words like dog, cat, duck, and kitty. Large-scale cross-cultural studies, however, point to at least
six universal first words: mommy, daddy, hello, bye, uh-oh,  and  woof-woof.

Toddlerhood
During toddlerhood, one- and two-year-olds display a range of new skills and personality traits,
and begin to assert themselves by making their first bids for independence, even as they stay
close to their parents or caregivers. They can also be expected to throw tantrums when those bids
are denied.

What are the key milestones of toddler development?

Most children take their first steps during this period, before tackling stairs and starting to run.
They begin to undress themselves, to eat with utensils and drink from cups, to throw a ball (or
whatever else is handy), and draw straight lines and circles.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of
Pediatrics, one- and two-year-olds can also be expected to display most of the following social
and cognitive skills, although each child develops differently and may achieve some milestones
earlier or later than others and still be considered to be experiencing healthy development:

Social Development
  Hand things to others as a form of play.
 Have temper tantrums.
 Display a fear of strangers.
 Show affection to familiar people.
 Engage in pretend play, like feeding a doll.
 Cling to caregivers in new situations.
 Point to show things to others.
 Explore alone, but with parents or caregivers within sight.
 Copy others.
 Show excitement to be around other children.
 Express defiance, such as when told not to do something.
 Play mostly beside other children, but begin to include others in games like chase.
Cognitive Development and Communication Skills

 Point to get attention and show someone what they want.

 Say
several single words, including “no,” and, eventually, form sentences of two-to-four
words.
 Understand the purpose of common objects like phones, brushes, and spoons.
 Show the ability to point to specific body parts.
 Scribble on their own.
 Follow
1-step verbal requests without any gestures (“sit down”) and, eventually, two-step
commands.
 Point
to things or pictures when they are named, including in books, and begin to name
them themselves.
 Recognize the names of familiar people.
 Repeat words overheard in conversation.
 Find things even when hidden under two or three covers.
 Begin to sort shapes and colors.
 Complete familiar sentences and rhymes.
 Play simple make-believe games.
  Build towers of 4 or more blocks.
 Start to favor a dominant hand.

What are signs of developmental concern during

toddlerhood?
If a child in late toddlerhood is not walking steadily, copying others, following simple
instructions, or gaining new words, is limited to fewer than 6 words, is not displaying the ability
to point to familiar objects and people, does not notice when a caregiver leaves or returns, or
loses skills they once had, a parent or caregiver should schedule a developmental screening with
their pediatrician.

How can parents promote empathy in toddlers?

Empathy involves understanding what another person may be feeling, and then feeling or
imagining a similar emotion. Research suggests that children clearly display empathy by about
18 months of age, often taking action to help an adult who seems to be struggling with a task or
comforting a parent or caregiver who seems sad or distressed. For children who may be highly
sensitive, taking on others’ emotions may be easy, even if it’s sometimes overwhelming; for
other children, research shows, parents who talk about emotions, openly and often, can help them
develop higher levels of empathy—along with, of course, modeling empathy at home.

Can toddlers share?

Yes, even if it’s harder when they are tired or overwhelmed. Research shows that, before turning
2, children will share their food with others, even a stranger—and even if they are hungry
themselves. Evolutionary psychologists believe that “altruistic food transfer” is a key behavior
that separates humans from other primates, one that fosters group cohesion and, in a larger sense,
the success of the community and the species.

How do toddlers manage conflict?

Toddlerhood has long also been known as “the terrible twos,” because children often struggle to
manage their emotions and behavior at this age. But it is also the stage when kids begin to play
with each other, and recent research has shown that, contrary to their reputation, toddlers respect
and favor fair play. Watching pretend scenes in which one puppet won a conflict because another
puppet got out of its way or otherwise deferred to it, toddlers reported that they liked the winning
puppet better. But when the winning puppet ended a conflict by pushing the other puppet out of
the way, toddlers did not like the winner more.

Can toddlers help around the house?

They can certainly try, and if they show an interest, parents should let them (within reason). A
large body of research shows that virtually all toddlers who watch a parent or caregiver do chores
will make gestures to help or copy them. This desire to help out, researchers believe, is nearly
universal, but many parents mistakenly do not allow it, often because they believe the toddler
may get hurt, may create more work for the adult, or just slow things down. And when parents
do ask toddlers to help, they often recruit them with the promise of a reward, quashing their
instinct to chip in just to be helpful.

Why do toddlers get scared?

Fear is not innate in humans, many researchers believe (the fear of creatures like spiders and
snakes may be an exception), but is instead learned, typically in late infancy and early
toddlerhood. For most children, their first fear is of strangers, strange places, or the departure of
parents or caregivers. Some fears are conditioned—being “attacked” by an aggressive or overly
enthusiastic or affectionate dog, for example. Others fears are learned by example, such as seeing
a parent’s fearful reaction to blood.

How many words do children need to hear?

Research has long suggested that significant differences in eventual academic success emerge
between children who hear more words in their homes at a young age, and those who don’t.
More recent studies find that the differences can be vast: Some adults use as few as 400 words in
a 90-minute period with a child, while others use as many as 9,000. But another key difference
emerged from these studies: the importance of the diversity of the words a child hears. Children
whose parents or caregivers used a wider range of words, including difficult words and even
nonsense words, appeared to have an academic advantage later, even if they hadn’t heard the
highest volume of words.

Can a parent detect dyslexia in a toddler?

Dyslexia, which involves difficulty with accurate word recognition, as well as poor decoding and
spelling, affects 10-15 percent of children. Effective intervention and instruction can help
children with dyslexia manage and excel in school, but early detection is greatly beneficial and
many signs tend to emerge in toddlerhood. Parents should be aware of struggles with
phonological awareness skills—in other words, if a child fails to match letter names to their
corresponding sounds, or has trouble blending sounds into larger words, recognizing rhymes, or
pronouncing common words.