(Mid Terms)

E. Vygotsky’s Socio-cultural Theory –

The term of Vygotsky’s theory is that social interaction plays a very important role
in cognitive development. He believed that individual development could be
understood without looking into the social and cultural context within in which
development happens. Scaffolding is Vygotsky’s term for the appropriate assistance
given by the teacher to assists the learner accomplish a task.
Vygotsky was educated under a teacher who used Socratic Method. This method
was a systematic question and answer approach that allowed Vygotsky to examine
current thinking and practice higher level of understanding. This experience, together
with his interest in Literature and his work as a teacher, led him to recognize social
interaction and language as two central factors to cognitive development. His theory
became known as the Socio-cultural Theory of Development.

Piaget and Vygotsky – Vygotsky worked on his theory around the same time as Piaget
in between the 1920’s and 30’s but they had clear differences in their views about
cognitive development, take a look at the comparisons between the two theories.

Piaget Vygotsky

 More individual in focus  More social in focus

 Believed that there are
universal stages of cognitive
development
 Does not give much emphasis
on language.
 Did not propose stages but
emphasized on cultural factors
in cognitive development.
 Stressed the role of language
in cognitive development.

Social Interaction – Vygotsky’s theory was more social than that of Piaget’s more
individual. While Piaget believed that individual’s cognitive development is through
the individual’s own processing of the tasks, Vygotsky believed that social interaction
with one’s environment and community takes a major role in one’s development.
Vygotsky believed that learning happens through participation in social activities.
Parents, teachers and other adults in the learner’s environment explain, model
assist, give directions and provide feedbacks to the learner. Peers also cooperate
and collaborate to enhance the learning experience.

Cultural Factors – Vygotsky believed that culture plays a major role in the cognitive
development. He looked into the wide range of experiences that a culture would give
to a child. For instance, one culture’s view about education, how children are trained
early in life can contribute to the cognitive development of a child. Piaget on the other
hand, believed that as the child develops and matures, he goes through universal

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 stages of cognitive development that allows him to move from simple exploration
with senses and muscles to complex reasoning.

Language – opens the door for learners to acquire knowledge that others already have.
Learners can use language to know and understand the world and solve problems.
Language serves a social function and individual function more importantly. It helps
the learner regulate and reflect on his own thinking and talk to others.

Children usually talk to themselves, example: a boy may say to himself. “ Ito gagawin
ko airplane ( holding a rectangular block), tapos ito gagawin ko airport (holding two
long blocks). To Vygotsky, this “talking to oneself” is an indication of thinking that
runs in a child’s mind and leads to private speech – a form of self-talk that guides
the child’s thinking and action.

Vygotsky believed in the essential role of activities in learning. Children learn best
through hands-on activities than listening passively. Learning by doing is more fruitful
when children interact with knowledgeable adults or peers.

Zone of Proximal Development

When a child attempts to perform a skill alone, he may not be immediately

proficient in it, alone the child may perform at a certain level of proficiency. We refer to
this as the Zone of actual development. However, with the guidance of a More
Knowledgeable Others (MKO), competent adult or a more advanced peer, the child
can perform at a higher level of competency. The difference between what the child
can accomplish alone and what he can accomplish with the guidance of another is
what Vygotsky referred to as the zone of proximal development. The zone represents
a learning opportunity where a knowledgeable adult such as a teacher, a parent or a
more advanced peer can assist the child’s development.
The support or assistance that lets the child accomplish a task he cannot perform
independently is called scaffolding. Scaffolding is not doing a task for the child while
he is watching, it is not doing short cuts for the child. It involves the judicious
assistance given by the adult or peer, so that the child can move from the zone of the
actual to the zone of proximal development. Examples: Unzipping the lunch bag,
opening the food container and putting straw on the child’s tetra pack, if you do that for
the child is not scaffolding. To scaffold, you must unzip the bag a little, hold it and let
the child continue to unzip the bag; open a little bit the lid of the food container and let
the child open it himself, and leading the straw to the hole of the tetra pack and let the
child put the straw through it.

These examples show how a right amount of assistance can allow the child to
accomplish a tasks. The teacher or the MKO should scaffold so that the gap between
the learner’s current skill level and the desired skill level is bridged. As the learner

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 become more proficient, and able to complete a task on his own, the guidance or
scaffold can be withdrawn. This is called scaffold and fade away technique.
When the MKO scaffolds, the process moves in four levels:
1. I do, you watch;
2. I do, you help;
3. You do, I help;
4. You do, I watch.

Learning will depend on the skill of the MKO, and the learner’s readiness and ability.

An illustration of the Zone of Proximal Development

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 Activity 16.

Exercise in scaffolding:

1. Choose a skill you are good in. Ex. driving, use of excel in laptop;
2. Identify an individual to whom you can teach this skill, somebody who wi8ll benefit from it;
3. Break down the steps you will take in teaching the skill;
4. Determine how you can use scaffolding. Describe the specific actions you will do to
scaffold;
5. Teach the skill to the individual;
6. Describe how the learning activity went.

F. Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory

Bronfenbrenner came up with a simple yet useful paradigm showing the different factors
that exert influence on an individual’s development. It points out the ever widening sphere of
influence that shape every individual, from his immediate family, to the neighbourhood, the
country and the world. His model is called Bio- ecological systems theory which presents the
child’s development within the context of relationship systems that comprise his development.
Through the child’s growing and developing body and the interplay between his immediate
family/community environment, and the society steers his development. Changes or conflict in
anyone layer will ripple throughout other layers. To study a child’s development, we must look
not only at the child and his immediate environment, but also at the interaction of the larger
environment.

Bronfenbrenner’s Bio-ecological Model: Structure of Environment

The microsystem – it is the layer nearest the child, it comprises structures which the
child directly interacts with. It includes the family, the neighbourhood and the school. The
microsystem covers the most basic relationships and interactions in hi immediate environment.
Does the child have strong and nurturing relationship with his parents and family? Are his needs
met? In this layer, relationship effects happen in two directions – both away from the child and
toward the child, this means that the child is affected by people with whom he interacts, in turn
these people are also affected by the child. For example’ a mother’s deep affection for her child
moves her to answer to the child’s needs and keep the baby safe. In turn, the baby’s coos and
smiles brings to the mother feelings of warmth and affirmation that indeed she is a good mother.
The child is affected by the behaviour and beliefs of the parents and in turn, the child also
affects the behaviour and beliefs of the parents. Brofenbrenner called this bi-directional
influences, similar to Erickson’s “mutuality” in his psychosocial theory. However, interactions at
the outer layers still influence the structures of the microsystem.

The mesosystem – this layer serves as the connection between the structures of the
child’s microsystem. For example, the mesosystem will include the link or interaction between
the parents and the teachers or the parents and health services or community and the church.

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 The exosystem – this layer refers to the bigger social system in which the child does
not function directly. This includes the government, the workplace, and the mass media. The
structures in this layer may influence the child’s development by somehow affecting some
structures in the child’s microsystem. This includes the parent’s work, like location and
schedules. For example, if the mother works as a call center agent at a distant place, and has
limited time for her child’s needs, the child is affected by the absence of the mother in breakfast
or in lunch and comes at night late. The child may not directly interact with what is in the
exosystem, but likely feel the positive or negative impact this system creates as it interacts with
the child’s own system.
The macrosystem - this layer is found at the outermost part in the child’s environment.
It includes the cultural values, customs and laws. The belief system contained in one’s
macrosystem permeates all interactions in the other layers and reaches the individual. For
example, in western countries like the U.S. most of the young people are expected to be
independent by the time they end their teen-age years, while in Asian countries like ours,
parents are expected to support or want to support their children for a longer period of time. In
China, sons are more valued than daughter. This may post challenges for girls over the world
growing up because of the differences in cultures. Children from different parts of the world
experience different child-rearing practices and therefore bring differences in developing as well.

The chronosystem – covers the element of time as it relates to a child’s environment.

This involves “patterns of stability and change” in the child’s life. This involves whether the
child’s day is characterized by an orderly predictable pattern, or whether the child is subjected to
sudden change in routine. It also includes the pace of the child’s everyday life, the effect can
also be internal. Example, some girls have different times of menstrual onset, some may have
menstruation earlier while others later. As the children grow older, they also acquire the ability to
cope and decide to what extent they will allow changes around them to affect them.
The ecological systems theory focuses on the quality and context of the child’s environment.
Brofenbrenner pointed out that as the child develops, the interplay within the layers of
environment system becomes more complex. In child’s development, there’s no more Nature
vs. Nurture, but Nurturing Nature. This means that both the environment and the biological
factors affect the development.

The Role of Schools and Teachers

Brofenbrenner’s theory reminds the school and the teachers of their very important
role. If the child lacks in support, care and affection from home, they can do a lot to understand
the child. This theory helps the teachers to look into the child’s environmental system in order to
understand more about the characteristics and needs of each learner. The schools and the
teachers can contribute stability and long-time relationship, but only to support and not to
replace the relationship at homes. Schools and teachers can work towards making the school
and environment that welcomes and cares for families.

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 Activity 17.
Study the circles of the different layers of Brofenbrenner’s bio-ecological theory.
Write a self-analysis how the people and circumstances in each layer affect your
growing up, how they have influenced your attitudes, behaviour and habits now.

Unit 4 – Development of the Learners at Various Stages

Objective: Explain the most common hazards to pre-natal development

Physical Development of Infants

This unit discusses the human development before and after birth. To make the
description of human development complete, it is good to understand the beginnings of the
child, the adolescent as learners.

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 The history of man for nine months preceding his birth,
would probably far more interesting, and contain events of
greater moment than all three scores and ten years that
follow it.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

English Poet, Essayist, 19th
century

The Stages of Pre-natal Development

Pre-natal development is divided into three periods – germinal, embryonic, and fetal
stages.

1. Germinal period – (first two weeks after conception) this includes (a) the creation of the
zygote, (b) continued cell division, (c) attachment of the zygote to the uterine wall. In the
germinal period, the differentiation of the cells already begins as inner and outer layers
of the organism are formed. The blastocyst – the inner layer of the cell develops later
into the embryo, the trophoblast – the outer layer of the cells later provides the nutrition
and support for the embryo.
2. Embryonic period – (2 to 8 weeks after conception) – in this stage, the zygote becomes
embryo. As the zygote attach to the wall of the uterus, two layers of cells are formed.
The embryo’s endoderm – the inner layer develops into the digestive and respiratory
systems. The outer layer of the embryo is divided into two parts, the ectoderm – the
outermost layer becomes the nervous system, sensory receptors (eyes, ears, nose) and
skin parts (nails and hair); the mesoderm – is the middle layer which becomes the
circulatory, skeletal, muscular, excretory, and the reproductive systems. The process of
organ formations during the first two months of prenatal development is called –
organogenesis.
As the three layers of the embryo form, the support systems for the embryo
develop rapidly, the placenta – the life support system that consist of the disc-shaped
group of tissues in which small blood vessels from the mother and the offspring
intertwine but do not join, the umbilical cord – contains two arteries and one vein that
connects the baby to the placenta, the amnion – is a bag or envelope that contains a
clear fluid in which the developing embryo floats. All these life support systems develop
from the fertilized egg and not from the mother’s body.
3. Fetal period – (from 2 months to nine months) growth and development continue
dramatically. At 3 months after conception, the fetus is about 3 inches long and weighs
about 1 ounce, moves its arms and legs and head, opens and closes its mouth, it
undergoes various stages, at 9 months, the fetus have grown substantially and weighs
about 4 ounces.

Teratology and Hazards to Prenatal Development

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 Teratology is the field that investigates the causes of congenital (birth) defects, a
teratogen is that which causes birth defects. It comes from the Greek word “tera” which means
monster. Below are the hazards to pre-natal development:
1. Prescription and non-prescription drugs – this includes prescription drugs such as
antibiotic, non-prescription drugs such as diet pills, aspirin, thalidomide.
2. Psychoactive drugs - this include nicotine, illegal drugs like marijuana, heroin and
cocaine, also caffeine or coffee, and alcoholic drinks.
3. Environmental hazards – these include radiation in jobsites, prolonged exposure to
heat in saunas and bath tubs, environmental pollutants, toxic wastes – these may
cause chromosomal aberrations or abnormalities, or mental retardation.
4. Other maternal factors such as Rubella (German measles) may cause malformation,
blindness, deafness, heart problems and mental retardation, and death; Syphilis or
genital herpes and AIDS, which may cause blindness, and other problems involving
central nervous system; nutrition which causes malnourishment and inadequate
growth and weight; high anxiety and stress which cause premature birth, reduced
birth weight, ADHD or even schizophrenia in later life; and age (too early or too late)
in which Down Syndrome has higher risk in babies born to below 18 mothers and
above 30 years old parents.

Human Life Begins at Conception

That which is in the mother’s womb is indeed a developing human being. From
conception, the zygote, the embryo and the fetus are undeniably a human being. All that we
have and all that we are have been there during conception – the color of our skin, hair, eyes, if
we become bald at the age of 50, are already there during conception. What were added in the
process of development is nutrition.
I still remember the movie on abortion that I once saw, “The Silent Scream”. There, the
mother submitted herself to a fraudulent medical doctor for abortion on her third month of
pregnancy. When the abortionist inserted his scalpel into the woman’s womb to crush the head
of the fetus, very clearly in that film, the fetus had his mouth open widely like he was screaming
for help as he evaded the deadly scalpel of the abortionist. That’s why the film was entitled
“The Silent Scream”.
This only means that the developing being in the womb is a human being, not just a
conglomeration of cells or tissues. Based on this facts, it is indeed wrong to do abortion. The
womb is supposed to be the safest of all places for human development. Unfortunately,
however, with abortion, it has become a tomb.

Activity 18. - Reflection

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1. Pretend you are “Junior” or “Baby” four months old at the mother’s womb. Your mother is
planning to do abortion. “You are to be aborted!” Write your mother a letter convincing her
that you are a developing human being contrary to what she and the pro-abortionist are
thinking. Describe to her the development that has already taken place in four months.
Reflect what you have learned in pre-natal development. Give your letter the title “A Letter
from Junior or Baby.
2. Look at yourself, you are perfectly made. You can breathe normally. Did it ever occur to
you that it could have been otherwise? Are grateful? Write your reflection on how grateful
you are that you are now a full grown person, developing to be somebody in the future.

Physical Development of Infants and Toddlers

After we have studied the development before birth, we are now ready follow the baby’s
development after birth – the period of infancy followed by toddlerhood (from birth to 2 years
old).

Cephalocaudal and Proximodistal Patterns

The Cephalocaudal trend or pattern of growth and development which is in the

conception to 5 months where the head of the fetus grows more than the body- is also the trend
of growth that applies on the first months after birth. The infant learns to use first their upper
limbs before their lower limbs, likewise, in the head area, the top part area-the eyes and the
brain grows faster than the lower parts such as the jaw. The proximodistal is the prenatal growth
from 5 months to birth when the infant grows from inside of the body outwards. This is the trend
shown in the first months after birth when the earlier maturation of muscular control of the trunks
and arms, followed by the hands and fingers. When referring to motor development, it refers to
the development of motor skills from the center of the body outward.

Brain Development

Among the most dramatic changes in the brain in the first 2 years of life are the
spreading connection of dendrites to each other.

Myelination or myelinization – the process by which the axons are covered and insulated by
layers of fat cells, begins prenatally and continues after birth. Myelination increases the speed at
which information travels through the nervous system.

 At birth the newborn’s brain is about 25% of its adult weight, by the second birthday, the
brain is about 75% of the adult weight
 Shortly after birth, baby’s brain produces trillions more connections between neurons
than it can possibly use. The brain eliminates connections that are seldom or never

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 used. The infant’s brain is literally waiting for experiences to determine how connections
are made.
 Based on research made, the brains of animals reared in enriched environment weights
more, had thicker layers, had more neuronal connections and had higher levels of
neuronal activity. This finding implies that enriching the lives of infants living in the
impoverished environment can produce positive changes in their developments.
Depressed brain activity has been found in children who grew up in a depressed
environment.

Motor Development
Along the aspect of motor development, infants and toddlers begin from reflexes,
to gross motor skills to fine motor skills.

Reflexes – the newborns have some basic reflexes which are automatic and serve as survival
mechanism before they have the opportunity to learn. Many reflexes which are present
at birth subside within the two months as the baby grows and matures.

The most common reflexes are:

 Sucking reflex – it is initiated when something touches the roof of an infant’s mouth.
Infants have strong sucking reflex that helps them to latch onto the mother’s breast, a
feeding bottle, and some babies suck pacifiers for comfort.
 Rooting reflex – this reflex is evident when a baby’s check is stroked, the baby responds
by turning his head in the direction of the touch and opening his mouth for feeding.
 Gripping – the baby will grasp anything that is placed in his palm, this grip is strong that
can support his entire weight
 Curling – when the baby’s foot is stroked in the inner sole, the baby responds by curling
his toes and when the baby’s foot is stroked in the outer sole, the baby responds by
spreading his toes.
 Startle/Moro reflex – infants will responds to sudden noise by throwing their arms and
legs apart and their heads back and then cry and pull their limbs back into their bodies.
 Galant reflex – when the infant’s middle or lower back is stroked near the spinal cord, he
will respond by curving his body toward the side which is being stroked.
 Tonic Neck reflex – this is observed when the infant is placed on his abdomen,
whichever side of the child’s head is facing, the limbs on that side will straighten, while
the opposite limbs will curl.
Gross Motor Skills

It is always a source of excitement for parents to witness dramatic changes in the

infant’s first year of life. This dramatic motor development is shown in babies unable to
even lift their heads to being able to grab things, to chase a ball or to walk away from
parents. This development includes muscular growth and development from being prone
to be able to move their bodies, sit, stand, walk and run on their own.

Fine Motor Development

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 Fine motor skills include a refined use of thae small muscles controlling the
hands, fingers and thumb. The development allows one to be able to complete tasks
such as writing, drawing, buttoning. This ability to exhibit fine motor skills involve the
precise eye-hand coordination.

Here are some research findings regarding newborn’s visual perceptions:

Can Newborns see?

 newborn’s vision is 10 to 30 times lower than normal adult vision. By 6 months old,
infants’ vision becomes better and by 1st birthday, infant’s vision approximates that of
an adult.(Bank and Salapatek, 1983 cited by Santrock, 2002)
 Infants look at different things for different length of time. According to the study by
Santrock, 2002, it was found that infants preferred to look at patterns such as faces
and concentric circles, ant not at color or brightness. Among thae first few things that
babybies learn to recognize is their mothers’ faces for they feed and nurse them.
Cam New-borns hear?

 Infant’s sense of hearing develops before the birth of the baby, when in the womb,
the baby hears his mother’s heartbeat, the grumbling of his stomach, the mother’s
voice and music.
 Infant’s sensory thresholds are somewhat much higher than that of adult, stimulus
must be louder to be heard by a newborn than by an adult.
Can New-borns differentiate odors?

 In an experiment conducted by MacFarlane (1975) “young infants who were

breastfed showed a clear preference for smelling their mother’s “breast pad” when
they were 6 days old which does not show when they were 2 days old. This means
that it requires several days of experience to recognize their mother’s “breast pads”
Can Newborns feel pain? Do they respond to touch?

 They do feel pain. Newborn males show a higher level of cortisol (an indicator of
stress) after a circumcision than prior to the surgery
 Babies respond to touch, newborn automatically sucks objects placed in their mouth,
or a touch of a check makes the newborn turn his head toward the side that is
touched in an effort to find something to suck.

Can Newborns distinguish the different tastes?

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  In a study conducted by babies only two-hours old, babies made different facial
expressions when they tasted sweet, sour and bitter solutions (Rosentein and Oster,
as cited by Santrock, 2012)
 When saccharine was added to the amniotic fluid of a near-term fetus, increased
swallowing was observed
 This indicates that sensitivity to taste might be present before birth
Do Infants relate information through several senses? In other words, Are infants capable of
intermodal perceptions?

 Intermodal perception is the ability to relate, connect and integrate information about
two or more sensory modalities such as vision and hearing
 In a study conducted by Spelke and Owsley (1979), it was found out that as early as
3 ½ months old, infants looked more at their mother or father when they hear their
voice.
 This capacity for intermodal perception gets sharpened considerably through
experiences.

Cognitive Development of Infants and Toddlers

Cognitive development in infancy refers to development in the way a baby thinks. This
includes his language, communication and exploration skills. Example of cognitive activities
include paying attention, remembering, learning to talk, interacting with toys and identifying
faces.

Learning and Remembering

Do infants learn and remember?

Yes, Pavlov’s Classical conditioning and Skinner’s Operant have been proven to apply
to infants. All of us experience infantile amnesia – the ability to recall events that happened
when we were very young (Spear, 1979). Generally, we can remember little or nothing that has
to us before the age of 5, and it is extremely rare for someone to recall many memories before
age 3. Reports of childhood memories usually involve memories of significant events (ex. a birth
of a sibling or a death of the parent; Fivush and Hammond, 1991). For example, some adults
may remember their own hospitalization or a birth of a sibling as far back as 2 years old, and a
death of a parent or the family moved from one place to another may be remembered as far
back as 3 years old.

Language Development

From day one, infants appear to be programmed to tune in to their linguistic environment
with the specific goal of acquiring language. Infants have remarkably acute language learning
abilities even at an early age.

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 Within the first years in life, we human, seem to progress through the following stages in
producing language (Sternberg, Robert 2003)

1. Cooing which comprises largely vowel sounds

2. Babbling which comprises consonant as well as vowel sounds; to most people’s ears,
the babbling of infants growing up among speakers from different language group
sounds very similar.
3. One-word utterances – these utterances are limited in both the vowels and consonants
they utilize (Ingram, 1999 as cited by Santrock, 2003)
4. Two-word utterances and telegraphic sentences
5. Basic adult sentence structure (present at about 4 years old) with continuing vocabulary
acquisition.
The infant utters his first word, followed by one or two more words. The infant uses these
one-word utterances termed holophrases to convey intentions, desires and demands
which are usually nouns describing familiar objects that the child observes or wants, ex are
mama dada, dede etc.

By 18 months old, children typically have vocabulary of 3 to 100 words (Siegler, 1986).
Because of the limited child’s vocabulary at this point, the child overextends the meaning of
words in his existing vocabulary to cover things and ideas for which a new word is lacking.
For example, the general term he may use for all four-legged animal is “doggie”, in linguistic
this is called overextension error.

At between 1 ½ to 3 ½ years old, children start combining single words to produce two-
word utterances, with rudimentary syntax but with articles and prepositions missing referred
to as telegraphic speech.

Vocabulary expands rapidly, more than tripling at about 3 years old from 300 words to
1,000 words. At 4 years old, children acquire the foundations of adult syntax and language
structure (Sternberg, 2003).

Language Acquisition Device (LAD)

Noam Chomsky (1965, 1972) noted linguistic, claims that humans have an innate
language acquisition device (LAD). This LAD is metaphorical organ that is responsible for
language learning. Just like the heart is designed to pump blood, this device is programmed
to learn language, whatever the language community children are in.

Prof. Laura-Ann Petito of Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire and her
colleagues conducted a recent study that concluded that ‘by 5 months of age, babies are
already specializing by using the left side of their brains for language sounds and the right
side for expression of emotion, we all speak out from the right side of our mouths, babies
babble out from the right side of their mouths.”

The right side of the body is controlled by the left side of the brain, while the left side of
the body is controlled by the right side of the brain. (Connections in the brain are

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 contralateral or crossed). Babies use the right side of their mouths for babbling, babbling is a
language function that is controlled by the left side of the brain.

Socio-emotional Development of Infants and Toddlers

The Formative Years- the first three years in human development are said to be the most
important, because they are called the formative years. Parents and caregivers at this stage
of human development play a significant role in the development of infants and toddlers.

As the poem “Children Learn What They Live” by Dorothy L. Nolte expresses the kind of
home and school environment that parents and teachers produce determines to a very great
extent the quality of the development of children.

The following are the elements that have to do with the wholesome socio-emotional
development of children.

Attachment

 For healthy socio-emotional development, the infant needs to establish an enduring

emotional bond characterized by a tendency to seek and maintain closeness to a
specific figure, particularly during stressful situations. This is the social phenomenon
of attachment.
 According to Dr. John Bowly -father of attachment theory), the beginning of
attachment occur within the first 6 months of the baby’s life with a variety of baby
signals that he uses to keep his parents or caregivers engaged. The baby smiles
often, gazes into his mother’s or father’s eyes and smile which will make parents
stay longer with the babies, thus the baby develops a sense of attachment with his
parents.
 The key to a good start in the social development of the baby is a lot of responsive
interaction with the baby (K.Pasek and R. Golinkoff, 2003). Babies seem to let us
know when they want to interact, the timing of the caregiver’s response is very
important.
 Other relevant and interesting research findings by K.Pasek and R. Golinkoff, 2003
are the following:
 What is absolutely central to the babies’ emotional well-being is not so much
feeding but the consistent involvement of the caregivers. Being fed by his mother
is not what attach the baby to the mother but the consistent, close nurturing that
matters in early relationship.
 Children who have good attachment relationships as infants make better
adjustment in number of areas in future life.
 Infants attached to more one caregiver are developing emotional relationship
with multiple caregivers at once.
 Even if children are in child care for 30 hours per week, the family contributes
more to child’s social and cognitive well-being than does the child care
arrangement. Parents matter and children are attached to parents even when
children are in child care.

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  Parents and caregivers help children regulate their emotions by working with
them and by serving as their models.

Temperament

Another factor related to the infant’s socio-emotional development is temperament.

 Temperament is the word that captures the ways that people differ, even at birth in
their emotional reactions, activity level, attention span, persistence and ability to
regulate their emotions. (K.Pasek and Ann Golinkoff, 2003). Every baby expresses
personality traits called temperament. How a child responds emotionally to objects,
events, and people reflect his emotional temperament.
 Researchers Thomas, Chess and Birch described 9 different temperament
categories (Honig, 2010, Secure Relationship: Nurturing Infant-Toddler Attachment
in Early Care Settings). These are:
1. Activity level – Some babies are placid or inactive. Other babies thrash around a lot, and
as toddlers, they are always on the move. At this stage they must be watched carefully.
2. Mood – some babies are smiley and cheerful, others have a low-key mood or look more
solemn or unhappy even if they are securely attached.
3. Child’s threshold for distress – some babies are very sensitive, they become upset very
easily when stressed. Other babies can more comfortably wait when they need to be fed
or want attention.
4. The rhythmicity of children – some babies get hungry or sleepy on a fairly regular or
predictable basis, other babies sleep at varying times, urinate or have bowel movements
at unpredictable times. They are hard to put on “schedule”.
5. Intensity of response – when a baby’s threshold for distress has been reached, some
babies act restless, other babies act cranky or fret just a little, but other babies cry with
terrific intensity or howl with despair. They shriek with delight and respond with high
energy when reacting to happy or challenging situations.
6. Approach to new situations – some infants are very cautious, they are weary and fearful
of newly met persons, being placed in another crib, or taken to visit a new setting. Other
babies approach new persons, new activities or new play activities with zest and
enjoyment.
7. Distraction – some children can concentrate on a toy regardless of surrounding bushel
or noise in a room, others are easily distracted.
8. Adaptability of the child – some children react to strange or difficult situations with
distress but recover fairly rapidly, others adjust to new situations with difficulty or after a
long period.
9. Attention span – Some children have a long attention span, they continue with an activity
for a fairly long time. Others flit from one activity to another.
Based on this temperament traits, psychiatrists Alexander Thomas and Stella Chess studied
babies’ temperament and clustered temperaments into three basic types:

1. The easy child – easily and readily establishes regular routines, generally cheerful and
adapts readily to new experiences;

15
 2. The difficult child – irregular in daily routine, slow to accept new experiences, and tends
to react negatively and intensely to new things;
3. Slow-to-warm-up children – show mild, low-key reactions to environmental changes,
negative in mood and adjust slowly to new experiences.

The Development of Emotions

Here are the milestones (significant points in development) of the baby and the toddlers’
emotional and social development:

Early Infancy – (from birth to six months)

 Between six and ten weeks, a social smile emerges, usually accompanied by other
pleasure- indicative actions and sounds including cooing and mouthing. This social smile
occurs in response to adult smiles and interactions.
 As infants become more aware of their environment, smiling occurs in response to a
wider variety of context, they may smile when they see a toy they have previously
enjoyed.
 Laughter which begins around three or four months requires a level of cognitive
development because it demonstrates that the child can recognize incongruity or
contradictions. Laughter is usually elicited by actions that deviate from the norm such as
being kissed in the abdomen, or playing peek-a-boo. Laughter promotes social
development because it fosters reciprocal interactions with others.
Later Infancy Months – (7 to 12 months)

 During this period, infants begin expressing fear, disgust and anger because of the
maturation of cognitive abilities. Anger is often expressed by crying, it is the frequent
emotion expressed by infants. Although some infants respond to distressing events with
sadness, anger is more common.
 Fear also emerges during this stage as children become able to compare an unfamiliar
event with that what they already know. Unfamiliar situations or objects often elicit fear
responses among infants.
 Separation anxiety – is the second fear in this stage, children may cry in fear, if parents
leave them in unfamiliar place or surroundings.

Socialization of emotion begins in infancy. This process is significant in the

infant’s acquisition of cultural and social codes for emotional display, teaching them how
to express their emotions, and the degree of acceptability associated with different types
of behavior.
Another that emerges during this period is social referencing. Infants begin to
recognize the emotions of others and use this information when reacting to new
situations and people. As infants explore their world, they generally rely on the emotional
expressions of their mothers or caregivers to determine the safety or appropriateness of
a particular endeavor.

Toddlerhood (1 to 2 years old)

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 During this stage, infants express emotions of shame and embarrassment and
pride. These emotions mature in all children, and adults contribute to their development.

Emotional Understanding –
In this stage of development, children acquire language and are learning to
verbally express their feelings. This ability is the first step in the development of
emotional self-regulation skills.
Children rely on adults to help them regulate their emotional states. If the infants
feel uncomfortable, they may communicate this emotional state by crying, but have little
hope of alleviating the discomfort on their own.
In toddlerhood, children begin to develop skills to regulate their emotions, with
emergence of language providing an important tool in communication. It enables the
children to communicate their feelings to persons capable of helping their emotional
state. Speech enables children to self-regulate using soothing language to talk
themselves through difficult situations.
Empathy, a complex emotional response to situation, also appears in
toddlerhood, usually at the age of two. The development of empathy requires that
children read other’s emotional cues, understand that other people are entities distinct
from themselves and take the perspectives of other persons, or putting themselves in
the position of another.

Activity 19.

Answer the following thoroughly and accurately, support your answers with the theories/
concepts that you have learned.

1. You have learned that past events recalled as early as two years are those that had
personal significance.
a. Does this apply even after age two? Support your answer.
b. How does this apply to your future teaching as a teacher?
2. Studies show that when parents, teachers and caregivers talk more to children and ask
any questions, they create more stimulating language environments for the children.
What recommendations can you give to parents for them to provide stimulating language
environment? You may do further research on this to complete your answer.

17
 3. What are some of the applications of the theories/ concepts in child development are
most helpful in your future teaching? Explain your answer.
4. Read the poem below by Dorothy L. Nolte, a trained Family Counselor:
a. Using your own experiences of development, explain how you have grown into what
you are now, and
b. Explain how the environment affects the development of a child.

Children Learn What They Live

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn…

If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight…
If a child lives with fear, he learns to be apprehensive…
If a child lives with pity, he learns to feel sorry for himself…
If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy…
If a child lives with jealousy, he learns to feel guilt…
But…
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient…
If a child lives with encouragement, he learns to be confident…
If a child lives with praise, he learns to be appreciative…
If a child lives with acceptance, he learns to love…
If a child lives with honesty, he learns what truth is…
If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice…
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith in himself
and those about him…
If a child lives with friendliness, he learns the world is a nice place
In which to live…
With what is your child living?

The Early Childhood (The Preschool Children)

The preschool years is commonly known as “the years before formal schooling begins”.
It covers around 3 -5 years of age. The preschool years is very important as it lays the
foundation of later development. At this stage, the children achieve many developmental
milestones. They love to move a lot, they enjoy being active, they are interested to work with
their fingers like the blocks and clay toy, the have a more balanced stance than the toddlers.

Big Ideas about the Physical Development of the Preschool Children

1. There are significant changes in physical growth

2. Their physical development is marked by the acquisition of gross and fine motor skills
3. They can express themselves artistically
4. Proper nutrition and right amount of sleep are important for them

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 5. Caregivers and teachers can help a lot in maximizing their growth and development
6. Preschool children in inclusive classrooms can thrive well with the appropriate
adaptations made in the classroom, materials and activities.
Significant Changes in Physical Growth

Toddlers have their center of gravity (refers to the point at which body weight is evenly
distributed) at a high level-about the chest that is why they tend to fall down with sudden
movement. While the preschool children have their center of gravity at a lower level-about the
belly button, which give them stability and balance. They begin to develop skills that requires
balance like biking or skating.

All their baby teeth or milk teeth are already in place and the permanent teeth are
beginning to come out. This is the best stage to teach children of proper dental hygiene.

Gross and Fine Motor Development

Gross motor development refers to acquiring skills that involves the large muscles. This
involves locomotors, non-locomotors and manipulative skills.

 Loco motor skills involve movement from one place to another like walking, running,
climbing, skipping, hopping, creeping, galloping, swimming and dodging
 Non-loco motor skills are movements that stays in a place like bending, stretching,
turning and swaying
 Manipulative skills are those that involve projecting and receiving objects like throwing,
striking, bouncing, catching and dribbling.
Preschool children are physically active; the level of activity is highest at 3 years
and becomes a little less when the preschool child gets older. Preschool children should
be provided with a variety of appropriate activities which will allow them to use their large
muscles. Regular physical activity helps preschool children build and maintain healthy
bones, muscles and joints, control weight and build lean muscles, prevent or delay
hypertension, reduce feelings of depression and anxiety and increase capacity for
learning.

Fine Motor Development

This involves acquiring the ability to use the smaller muscles in the arms, hands
and fingers purposefully, like picking, squeezing, pounding, opening things, holding and
using a writing implement. It also involves self-help skills like using the spoon and fork
when eating, buttoning, zipping, combing and brushing.

Different environments provide experiences with fine motor skills like

keyboarding and manipulation of the mouse in using computers, laptop and tablets in

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urbanized areas. In other places, children use their fine motor skills in digging soil,
making toys out of recycled materials, playing clay dough and finger painting.

By the end of preschool years, most children manage to hold pencil with their
thumb and fingers, draw pictures, write letters of the alphabet, use scissors and do
threading and stringing activities. They can eat and dress independently. Handedness or
the preference the use of one hand over the other, is usually established around four
years of age, earlier than this, children are observed to use both their hands
interchangeably.

Preschool Children’s Artistic Development

At the heart of the preschool years is their interest to draw and make other forms
of artistic expressions. This form of fine motor activity is important to preschool children.
Viktor Lowenfeld did a study of this and came out with the following stages of drawing:

1. Scribbling stage - where the children begin with large zigzag lines which later
become circular marking and soon, discrete shapes are drawn. The child may give a
name to his drawing at the end of this stage.
2. Pre-schematic stage – this already includes early representations. Adults may be
able to recognize the drawings. Children give the same name to their different
drawings. Their drawings usually comprise of a prominent head with its basic
elements, later, arms, legs, hands and facial features are included.
3. Schematic stage - more elaborate scenes are depicted. Children usually draw from
experience and exposure. Drawings may include houses or buildings, trees, sun and
sky, and people that initially seem to float in the air, but later drawings appear to
follow ground line.

Parents and teachers should ensure that there is enough space, and opportunity
for the preschool children to develop their artistic inclinations by allowing them to
draw and express their thoughts and also a great supply of drawing and writing
materials. Children’s drawing allows us to have a glimpse of how they understand
themselves and the world around them.

Preschool Children’s Nutrition and Sleep

Preschool children need enough nutritious foods to help them grow and develop
healthy body and healthy mind. Too much and too little of proper nutrition have
negative effects – malnourished and under nourished children are said to be
unhealthy.
It is also important for preschool children to get sufficient amount of rest and
sleep. Preschool children benefit from about 10-12 hours of sleep each day. It is
when they sleep that vital biological processes that affect physical and cognitive
development take place. During sleep, especially in the dream state (rapid eye
movement stage), growth hormones are released. Blood supply to the muscles is
likewise increased helping preschool children regain energy. In the state of
dreaming, brain activity is also attained.

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 Activity 20.
1. Surf the internet and make a collection of gross motor and fine motor
activities for preschool children that the parents and the teachers can use to
support growth and development of preschool children. Explain how these
activities aid in the development.
2. Research on the recommended food guide for preschool children. Make a list
of this. Interview a parent with preschool child or children about what she
feeds them daily for one week. Make a comparison if the foods she gives to
her children match with the list you found. Write your reflection on the result
of your findings.

Cognitive Development of the Preschool Children

Objectives: Describe the cognitive development that takes place among

preschool children.

Brain Connections in Preschool Children

Because of the fascinating development in neuroscience, brain developments of young

children have been of great interest. Brain research point us to more effective ways to care for
and teach preschool children. Cell connections are called synapses also referred to as synaptic
connections. The human brain contains about 50 billion neurons at birth, by age 2, children
have developed half of the brain cell connections that will be made at a lifetime, and around 6
years of age, the brain develops for more sophisticated thinking patterns.

The child’s billion cells have the ability to make almost countless connections that
prepare the child for intricate pathways to learn language, acquire logical-mathematical skills,
interact with people, grow in his feelings and emotions and even express himself in art.

Brain research has pointed out the crucial role of the environment. Experts have shown
specific areas of brain activity that respond to environmental stimulation. The brain forms
specific connections (synapse) that are different for each person. The quality of connections
depends on the quality of stimulation and exposure provided by the environment. A supportive

21
and stimulating environment is that which offers many experiences involving the different
senses (multi-sensoria) which allow the child to think imagine and create his best. This
environment can be provided by a good combination of healthy and functional environment and
a quality preschool program that allow the children to explore, expose, and experience.

There is also a strong evidence that shows that highly stressful environments marred by
trauma and chaos affect the cognitive development of children. High level of cortisol (stress
hormone) may lead to diminished brain growth in areas needed for memory, learning and
emotional attachment. It also leads to anxiety and hyperactivity and impulsive behavior.

An environment that lacks proper stimulating experiences can also cause damage.
Preschools who make children work with nothing but work sheets and pictures instead of real
life hands-on experiences do more harm than good. The teachers’ defining role is providing the
children with quality learning environment that will lead to optimum brain development.

Language Development of Preschool Children

Sometimes, children’s understanding comes ahead of their speech. Children in early

childhood stage grasp rules of language (morphology, semantics, pragmatics) that develops
gradually as they mature. Symbolic thinking involves language, literacy and dramatic play.
Children’s language development becomes increasingly complex in the four areas: phonology
(speech sounds), semantics (word meaning), syntax (sentence construction) and pragmatics
(conversation or social use of language). As they advance in age and continue interaction with
people, preschool children expand rapidly in their vocabulary through fast mapping – a process
by which children absorb the meaning of new words after hearing it once or twice in
conversation. Preschool children combine syllables into words and words into sentences in an
increasingly sophisticated manner.

In asking questions, preschool children cling to a consistent word order, and so they ask
questions not following the pattern “subject-verb-object” order but by simply saying with a rising
intonation the sentence in the natural order as in “Mother is coming?” instead of “Is mother
coming?”. They also have difficulty with the sentence in the passive voice. When they are told
“the car is pushed by a truck” they will demonstrate a truck pushing a car. With an expanded
vocabulary, preschool children become skilled conversationalist and often initiate conversation.

Parents and teachers should monitor the development in the four areas to identify mild
or severe speech difficulties. These difficulties can be referred to speech pathologist- a specially
trained speech professional, to improve language proficiency.

Information Processing Theory – Attention and Memory

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 The information processing is another model to examine and understand how children
develop cognitively. It conceptualizes children’s mental processes through the metaphor of
computer processing, encoding, storing, and decoding data.

The toddlers’ attention span changes significantly during the preschool years. They pay
attention more than the preschool children. But one deficit in attention during this stage is that
attention is focused only on aspects that stand out at the expense of those that are relevant to
solving a problem to performing well on a task. Example, if you ask the toddler what they did
during their Christmas vacation, they can tell it, but when you ask them about the lesson left
before vacation, they can’t.

Among the interesting event in this stage are those involving short-term memory
where memory is retained for up to 15 to 30 seconds, assuming there is no rehearsal –
which can help keep information in short term memory (STM) for a much longer period.
Differences in memory span occurs across the ages due to: (a) rehearsal; (b) speed and
efficiency of processing information.

Between the ages of 2 to 5, the long term memory (LTM) also begins to form,
which is why some people cannot remember anything in their childhood prior to ages 2
or 3. Long term memory (LTM) involves storing the information about the sequence of
events during the familiar situations as “scripts”. Scripts help children understand,
interpret and predict what will happen in future scenarios.

Between the ages 5 and 7, children learn how to focus and use their cognitive
abilities for specific purposes, for example, children can learn to pay attention to and
memorize lists of words or facts. Children of this stage have also developed a larger
overall capacity to process information. This information processing capacity allows
children to make connections between old and new information. For example, children
can use their knowledge of the alphabet and letter sounds (phonics) to start sounding
out and reading new words.

As information processing increases in speed, memory becomes increasingly

longer. Young children remember a great deal of information if they are given
appropriate cues and prompts. Sometimes the memories of the preschoolers seem to be
erratic, but these inconsistencies may are the results of inadequate prompts and cues.
Rehearsal and organizing information are essential mental activities that can be
employed to improve the processing of information.

The Young Children’s Theory of Mind

Theory of mind refers to individual’s thoughts about how mental processes work
(Santrock, 2002).

By the age of 2 or 3, children become aware that the mind exists. They refer to
needs, emotions, and mental states. Example, a child says “I forgot my doll” or “I want

23
 ice cream”, this imply that he is aware that a mind exists. Cognitive terms such as “know,
remember and think” usually appear after perceptual and emotional terms, but are used
at the age of 3 (Santrock, 2002).

As their representation of the world and ability to remember and solve problems,
children start to reflect on their though processes. They begin to construct their theory of
mind – or a set of ideas about mental activities. This develops between ages 3 and 5.
This involves awareness of one’s own thought processes, social cognition,
understanding that people hold false beliefs, ability to deceive, ability to distinguish
appearance from reality and ability to distinguish fantasy from reality (Preschoolers
Cognitive Development, 2007).

How do children manage to develop a theory of mind at their young age?

Speculations and research findings suggest that social experience is very important.
Social experience includes (Preschoolers’ Cognitive Development, 2007)

 Early forms of communication

 Imitation
 Make-believe play
 Language
 Social interactions

The Role of Caregivers (Parents and Teachers) in the Cognitive Development of

Preschool Children

For three years of age

1. Speak with children as often as possible. Use short sentences, ask questions and listen.
2. Add new information to the children’s sentences, example, “yes that’s a flower, it’s a red
flower, and it smells good.”
3. Teach children to memorize his first and last name and other’s name in the family.
4. Provide books for children and read the same books to them.
5. Encourage interest in reading and writing, provide pencils and papers.
6. Count objects of interest with them, like cookies, toys, balls, and measure their heights
and allow them to help and read measurements.
7. Explain how and why things happen. Help them do simple science activities and explain
the process, example, flying kite, freezing water, why it rains.
8. Provide sets- things and objects that go together, explain the process. Example, how to
mix juice, peel oranges, mix coffee in their presence while explaining cautiousness.
9. Sing simple songs, encourage a variety of body movements and dance with them with
the music. Play musical games like “London Bridge”, “Ring around the Rosie, Old
McDonald”.
For four – year old children

1. Read with aloud each day and encourage them to look at the books, provide alternative
material to read, example, newspaper, old books, ads, and cereal boxes.

24
 2. Say nursery rhymes and encourage them to tell stories.
3. Encourage interest in writing and words, provide pencil, crayons and paper. Print letters
and numerals on toy shelves with descriptive words example, big bear, 3 small dolls.
4. Teach important number and space concepts. Sort and count everything in sight, like
books, socks, rocks/ stones, leaves. Talk about inside, outside, under, behind, beside
before, after, larger than, too far.
5. Teach them the correct use of phones, gadgets.
6. Encourage them to help plan and plant in garden, water plants and measuring plant
growth.
For five years old Children

1. Add drama to your readings each day, use different voices for different characters, ask
them to end a story on their own.
2. Ask them to tell you their story. You can record their story telling and let them listen to
themselves later.
3. As “what if questions”. Example, “What if there were only 3 eggs, we are four to eat”.
4. Involve them to write thank you notes, holiday greeting cards and letters. Let them
dictate a message to you, write it down and let them copy.
5. Give them opportunities to sort, group, match, count, and sequence in real life situations,
as in sorting and matching their socks, setting table, matching fork and spoons. Expose
them to games involving matching pairs.
6. Take/ answer questions seriously, give answer they can understand. Talk to them about
what happens and why.
7. As their interest in numbers increases, encourage them to count things of interest;
number of children present and absent in class.
8. Encourage interest in jokes, reading humorous stories, riddles, and rhymes. Join them in
jokes from school, books, and TV.
9. Give opportunities to express dramatic and creative interest, teach them how to move
their bodies to dramatize the opening of a flower, falling of leaves or rain, wiggly worms
and snakes and branches or laundry dancing in the wind.

Activity 21.

After you have read the lecture, answer the following questions:

1. To enhance the preschool children’s development in their symbolic thinking, language,

attention, memory function, and metacognition, what developmentally appropriate
practices would you recommend: What developmentally inappropriate practices would
you not recommend? Support your answers.
2. Critics argue that many preschools are academically oriented and stressful for young
children. Do you agree or disagree? Explain your answer.
3. Does preschool matter? Doesn’t it rob the child of his irretrievable childhood? Defend
your answer.
4. What are some roles of the caregivers (parents and teachers) that you can perform to
help preschool children develop their cognitive abilities? Explain your answer.
5. Explain the meaning the quote below:

25
 There are children playing at the street who could
solve some of my top problems in physics, because
they have modes of sensory perceptions that I lost
long ago.
- J. Robert Oppenheimer
Socio-emotional Development of the Preschool Children

Socio-emotional development is crucial in the preschool years. Attending preschool is more

for “socialization” than for formal academic learning. During the preschool years, children
learn their ever widening environment (Bronfenbrenner’s theory of development). Preschool
children discover their new roles outside their homes. They become interested to assert
themselves as they relate with other people. A lot of important social skills they learned in
preschool years will help them throughout life as adult. This skills can determine the child’s
later social adjustment and consequent quality of relationship in adult life.

Big Ideas on Preschool Children’s Socio-emotional Development

1. The development of initiative is crucial to the preschool children.

2. A healthy self-concept is needed by preschool children to interact with others.
3. Environmental factors influence gender identity in young children.
4. Preschool children’s social development is shown through the stages of play.
5. The caregiving styles of parents and teachers affect the socio-emotional development
of the preschool children.
6. Preschool children are interested in building friendship.

Preschool Children’s Initiative

As discussed in Erickson’s theory of development, preschool children deal with

the psychological conflict of initiative vs. guilt. Erickson believe that healthy preschool
children develop initiative- the tendency of the children to take action and assert
themselves. They will yearn to create, invent, pretend, take risks and engage in lively
and imaginative activities with their peers. When parents, teachers and other adults
support these attempts and provide a stimulating environment, the preschool children’s
sense of initiative will grow. But if the adult show overprotection, extreme restriction and
criticism, the preschool children will develop guilt.

The key thing to remember is to apply “judicious permissiveness”. This involves

setting realistic boundaries that keep preschool children safe and respectful of self and
others while allowing them greater opportunity to explore, take risks and engage in
creative activities, they will develop a healthy sense of initiative in an affirming,
encouraging and stimulating environment.

Self-concept and the Preschool Children

Self-concept refers to the way one sees himself, a general view about one’s
abilities, strengths and weaknesses. The preschool child’s self-concept mainly focuses

26
 on observable characteristics and his usual beliefs, emotions and attitudes. Some
demonstrate this by saying “kaya ko na”, “ako lang mag isa gumawa ng project ko”. Self-
concept is also self-esteem – which refers to one’s judgments about one’s worth.

Preschool children are naturally positive, they are confident to try again if they
don’t succeed the first time on something. However, they may become negative because
of repeated frustration and disapproval. Preschool children need a lot of patience and
encouragement from adults.

Environmental and Gender Typing in Preschool Children’s Socio-emotional

Development

As they create ability to create schemas develop, they become capable of

gender typing –the process of forming gender roles, gender-based preferences, and
behaviors accepted by society. They form gender stereotypes- they associate things
like toys, games, clothes, jobs, colors or actions and behaviors that are being “only for
boys” or “only for girls”. Consequently, they form their own gender identity – the view of
oneself as being “masculine” or “feminine”.

Differences in parental expectations and behavior towards sons and daughters

affect gender typing and gender identity. Parents expect their sons to play with toys for
the boys and daughter with toys for the girls. The expectations of other people also
affect the formation of the preschool children’s gender schema. Mass media and ICT
also offer various images of what it means to be a boy or a girl.

Schools are in a tight situation in balancing on how to deal with sensitive issues
like the LGBT to be on the side of respect to the diversity without confusing children
who are on the stage of forming their own gender schemata. Teachers should think
thoroughly on how to present perspectives about boys and girls especially on discussion
about occupations and community/ society acceptance.

Parten’s Stages of Play

Play is the main agenda of the preschool years. Play has a social dimension. As
the preschool children develop, social interaction with playmates increases. Mildred
Parten, in the 1930’s did a study in children’s play behavior which led to the Parten’s
Stages of Play. The stages described the play development of children and the gradual
increase of social interaction as they go through these stages.

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 Parten’s Stages of Play

The child appears not to be playing but

1. Unoccupied directs his attention on anything that
interests him.

The child spends time watching others play.

2. Onlooker He may talk to them but does not enter into
play with them.

The child starts to play on his own. He

3. Solitary Play seems not to notoce other children playing
nearby.

28
 The child plays with toys similar to
those near him, but only plays beside
4. Parallel Play and not with them. No interaction taks
place.

The child plays with others, there is

5. Associative Play interaction among them, but notask
assignment, no rules and organization
are agreed upon.

The child plays with others bound by

some agreed upon rules and roles. The
6. Cooperative Play goal is to make something, play a game
or act out somethhing. Interaction is
evident.

Friendship in Preschool

As they continue to grow, preschool children are interested in having friends, this
must be encouraged. Friendship benefit the preschool children’s development by
providing stimulation, assistance, companionship, social comparison and affection
(Kostelnik, 2010). Through friendship, children develop different social roles like being a
leader, a follower, someone who takes tasks and someone who helps out and comforts.
Friendship is important because it provides sense of belongingness and security.

Parents and teachers must expose children to experiences of establishing

friendship, maintaining positive relations and resolving conflicts.

Caregiving Styles

Caregivers are the parents, teachers and the other adults. Caregiving styles
affect the development of the children. Baumrind gave a model that describes the
different styles of caregiving, his study begun in the 1960’s. This was based on his study
that looked into the authority and the development of children. In 2007, Marion
expounded on these factors.

Responsiveness – refers to caregiver behaviors that pertain to expression of affection

and communication. It refers on how warm, caring and respectful the adult is to the child.
It involves openness in communication and willingness to explain things in ways that the
child will understand.

29
 Demandingness - refers to the level of control and expectations. This involves discipline
and confrontation strategies.

Baumrind’s Caregiving Styles

Authoritative-
Permissive - Low
high demandingness/
demandeingness/ high
high responsiveness
responsiveness

Authoritarian - Negligent - low

high demandingness/
demandingness/ low
low responsiveness
responsiveness

Baumrind’s Caregiving Styles and their Effect on Children

Caregiving Style Description – The caregivers Effect on the Preschool

style has the following

30
 descriptions Children

Authoritative - (high  Expect behavior  Makes the preschool

demandingness/ high appropriate to the age child secure and safe
responsiveness) of the child  Teaches the child to
 Maintain reasonable take responsibility for
and fair limits his action
 Closely monitor the  Develops self-control
activities of the child  Develops a realistic
 Warm and nurturing view of oneself
 Have realistic  Builds the child’s
expectations of the capacity for empathy.
child
 Communicate
messages in a kind,
firm and consistent
manner
 Discipline approach
focuses on teaching
than punishing

Authoritarian – high  Set subjective or  Lead to aggressive

demandingness/ low unreasonable limits behavior of the child
responsiveness  Communicate  Brings about poor
messages self-control
 Strive to have strong  Results in poor self-
psychological control, esteem
punishment, sarcasm,
withdrawal of love,
threats
 Not able to teach
children a better way
to behave
Permissive – low  Permit the preschool  Has difficulty
demandingness/ high children to regulate controlling impulses
responsiveness their own behavior  Tends to be
and make their own dependent
decisions even if the  Tends to be
children are not yet demanding of their
ready to do so caregivers
 Do not set rules or  Tends not to persist
very few if any or easily gives up on
 Do not demand good a task.
behavior or ask
accomplishment
 May confidence in
their ability to
influence the children

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  May be disorganized
or ineffective in
managing the family,
the class
Negligent – low  Shows undemanding, If the child experience
demandingness/ low indifferent and this early in life, he
responsiveness rejecting action may develop:
towards the child  Attachment problems
 Has little commitment
 Delayed cognitive
to their role as
development
caregiver
 Poor social and
 May be depressed or
emotional skills
overburdened by
 Delinquent behavior
many concerns like
later in adolescence
poverty, marital
problems or absence
of support from others

The Role of Caregivers in Socio-emotional Development of the Preschool Children

Teachers and parents play an important part in the socio-emotional development

of the preschool children.

1. Be sincere and respectful to each child, greet them by names always.

2. Read story books that deal about friendship and different feelings.
3. Develop routines in the home or school that encourage working together and getting
along.
4. Help children to make rules and play simple games by providing opportunities for
them to play in small groups.
5. Encourage them to play games that involve social interaction and team work.
6. Observe how a child plays with other children, teach them to request, bargain,
negotiate and apologize.
7. Help children understand and cope with strong feelings by giving them words that
they can use to express how they feel.
8. Use dolls, puppets or pictures to demonstrate to children how to express feelings
appropriately.
9. Acknowledge how the child feels, example, “I know that you are sad about your
pet…”
10. Catch children doing good, affirm the efforts they made to accomplish something, be
specific in your praise, not just saying “good job”. Example, “When I saw you keep
your toys on the shelves, I really felt happy, do that always.”

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Activity 22.

1. Research further on the following, and discuss how the concept/ theory on
gender development will help you do your duty as a future teacher.
a. Biological approach to gender development
b. Gender schema theory (by Sandra Bam)
c. Social cognitive theory
2. Read/ research on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) issues.
Write an essay about your own views on introducing lessons on LGBT to the
preschool children.
3. The best caregiving style is the authoritative style, make a list of 10 qualities that
an authoritative teacher should have. Explain how each quality may help in the
development of the preschool children.

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