PHYSICAL

DEVELOPMENT
OF INFANTS &
TODDLERS
SANIE G. BAUTISTA

“A baby is God’s opinion that life

should go on. ”
-Carl
Sandburg
OBJECTIVES

At the end of this topic, the students are expected to:

1. Describe the brain’s role in infant and toddler physical
development.
2. Identify infant and toddler physical and motor
developmental milestones.
3. Familiarize baby’s senses functions and perceptual
development.
OUTLINE

• Definition of Terms
• Cephalocaudal and Proximodistal Patterns
• Height and Weight
• Brain Development
• Motor Development
• Sensory and Perceptual Development
DEFINITION OF TERMS

Physical Development pertains to the baby’s bodily

growth, fine and gross motor skills, and the abilities of
various organs of the body. When a baby achieves a
new physical capability, his life improves, and that is
an event in his physical growth calendar.
 DEFINITION OF TERMS

INFANT TODDLER
• a child in • a young
the first period of life child who is
• a baby or a very young just
learning to
child that can neither walk
walk.
or talk.
• a person who is not
of full age
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
CEPHALOCAUDAL TREND

• Cephalocaudal trend is the

postnatal growth from
conception to 5 months when
the head grows more than the
body.
PROXIMODISTAL PATTERNS

• Proximodistal is
the prenatal
growth from 5
months to birth
when the fetus
grows from the
inside of the
body outwards.
HEIGHT AND WEIGHT

• Drop 5 to 10 percent of their body weight within a couple of weeks

of birth
• Breastfed babies are typically heavier than bottle-fed babies
through the first six months
• An infants length increase by about 30percent in the first five
months.
• A babies weight usually triples during the first year but slows down
in the second year of life.
• Low percentages are not a cause for alarm as long as infants
progress a long a natural curves of steady development.
BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

Myelination is the
process by which the
axons are covered and
insulated by layeres of
fat cells, begins
prenatally and continues
after birth this process
increasing the speed at
which information travels
through the nervous
system.
BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

• 25% of its adult weight (at birth), 75% of its adult

weight (2nd birthday)
• A baby’s brain produces trillions more connections
between neurons than it can possibly use. The brain
eliminates connections that are seldom or never
used (Santrock, 2002).
• Depressed brain activity has been found in children
who grew up in a depressed environment (Circhetti,
2001, cited by Santrock, 2002).
MOTOR DEVELOPMENT
REFLEXES

Reflexes are involuntary • Sucking Reflex:

movements or actions. Some initiated when
movements are spontaneous something touches the
and occur as part of the baby's
roof an infant’s mouth.
normal activity. Others are
responses to certain actions.
REFLEXES

• Rooting Reflex: most • Gripping/Gasping

evident when an Reflex: babies will
infant’s cheek is gasp anything that is
stroked. The baby placed in their palm.
responds by turning his
or her head in the
direction of the touch
and opening their
mouth for
feeding.
REFLEXES

• Curling Reflex: when • Startle/ Moro Reflex:

the inner sole of a
baby’s foot is stroked,
the infant respond by
curling his/ her toes.
When the outer sole of
a baby’s foot is stroked,
the infant respond by
spreading out their
toes.
infants will respond to
sudden sounds or
movements by throwing
their arms and legs out,
and throwing their
heads back.
REFLEXES

• Galant Reflex: shown • Tonic Neck Reflex:

when an infant’s middle demonstrated in infants
or lower back stroked who are placed on their
next to the spinal cord. abdomens.
The bay will respond by
curving his/her body
toward the side which
being stroked.
GROSS MOTOR SKILLS

Movements involving larger muscles, like those in the

arms, legs, feet or the entire body.
MILESTONE OF MOTOR
DEVELOPMENT
FINE MOTOR SKILLS

• Movements involving
small muscles, like
those in hands, wrist
and fingers.
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT MILESTONES –
INFANTS AND TODDLERS

2 Months 4 Months
• Holds head steady without support
• Holds head up with
• Pushes down on legs when feet are
support on a hard surface

• Begins to push up when • Rolls over from tummy to back

lying on tummy • Holds and shakes toys, swings at

dangling toys
• Makes smoother • Brings hands to mouth
movements with arms • Pushes up to elbows when lying on
and legs tummy
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
MILESTONES…

6 Months
• Rolls over both from stomach to
back and from back to stomach
• Begins to sit with support
• Supports weight on legs when
standing and might bounce
• Rocks back and forth,
sometimes crawls backward
before moving forward
9 Months
Crawls
Sits without support
Moves into sitting position
with support
Stands, holding on to adult
or furniture for support
• Pulls to stand
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
MILESTONES…

1 Year 18 Months
• Moves into sitting position • Walks alone
without support
• Runs
• Pulls up to stand and walks
alone while holding onto • Pulls toys while walking
furniture
• Helps undress self
• Takes few steps without
support of adult or furniture • Drinks from a cup

• Stands alone • Eats with a spoon

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
MILESTONES…

2 Years
• Begins to run
• Climbs onto and down from furniture
without support
• Walks up and down steps while
holding on for support
• Throws ball overhand
• Draws or copies straight lines and
circles
• Stands on tiptoes
• Kicks a ball
SENSORY AND
PERCEPTUAL
DEVELOPMENT
SENSORY AND PERCEPTUAL
DEVELOPMENT
Sensory and Perceptual Characteristics
Development
Vision - 10 to 30 times lower than
normal adult vision
- (6 months) vision become
better
- (1 yr. old) vision
approxiamates that of an
adult
Hearing - Develops much before the
birth
- Infants sensory thresholds
are somewhat higher than
those of adult
SENSORY AND PERCEPTUAL
DEVELOPMENT
Sensory and Perceptual Characteristics
Development
Touch and Pain - They do feel pain
- Newborn males show a
higher level of cortisol (an
indicator of stress) after
circumcision than prior to
surgery
- Babies respond to touch
Taste - Sensitivity taste might be
present before birth
SENSORY AND PERCEPTUAL
DEVELOPMENT
Sensory and Perceptual Characteristics
Development
Smell - It requires several days of
experience to recognize
their mother’s breast pad
odor
Intermodal Perception - Definition: the ability to
relate, connect and
integrate information
about two or more sensory
modalities such as vision
and hearing
- It gets sharpened through
experience
THANK YOU!