Baby Growth and Development Essay Example For Students

Baby Growth and Development Essay Babies grow and develop at a very rapid rate during the first year oflife. They grow physically, mentally, emotionally and socially. However,through this portfolio, I intend to discuss the physical growth anddevelopment patterns of the infant through their first year. To begin with, development refers to the babys increased skill inusing various body parts. When dealing with the development of a childthere are three basic developmental rules. First Developmental Rule:This rule states that babies develop in the head region first, thenthe trunk, and lastly in the legs and feet. Therefore, it is said thatbabies develop in a head-to-toe direction or cephalocaudally. For example,a baby can hold up their head before they can grasp an object with theirhand. Also, they can feed themself before they can walk. SecondDevelopmental Rule:The second rule explains that children develop from the midline, orcentre of the body, outward toward the fingers and toes. This stage orrule is the one which affects the development of motor skills. Motorskills are the childs ability to control movement. There are two basicclassifications of motor skills, gross motor skills and fine motor skills. Gross motor skills are those which involve the large muscles. Whereas,fine motor skills are those involving the smaller muscle groups. Forexample, a child can grasp a big ball in their arms before they can catch abaseball in their hands. The fine skills of hands and feet are the last todevelop. Third Developmental Rule:Finally, this rule reveals that, as the brain develops, a childresponds to more and more sights and sounds in their environment. Furthermore, they learn to respond to much finer details. The Babys BodyIn this section, you will find specific break-downs of the babys bodyparts. I decided to do this to show how the baby grows and develops ineach area of their body. Also, you will see how these developing bodyparts affect the developing motor skills of the child. The following areaswill be discussed, their size and weight, the head, brain, eyes, ears, armsand hands and finally, the legs and feet and the trunk. Size and WeightThe average baby is 20 inches long at birth, or 50.8cm. However, notall babies are born the same length, generally, lengths vary from 18-21.5inches or 45.7-54.6 centimetres. The average baby weighs 7.5 pounds at birth, or 3.4 kilograms. Typically, the range is from 5.75-10 pounds or from 2.6-4.5 kilograms. A general rule is that a baby increases in height by 50% and triplesits birth weight in the first year. Clearly, this is a very rapid growthrate, however, the rate of growth slows down considerably after infancy. The HeadThe head of a newborn baby is very large compared to the rest of theirbody. For example, compared to the babys total length of about 20 inches,the length of the head measures approximately 5 incheswhich equalsone-fourth of the total length. There are four pieces of bone that make up the skull. These piecesare flexible. This is so that they can move slightly while the baby isbeing forced down the birth canal. The four skull bones will no join untilthe baby is about 18 months old. The area between the pieces, at the topof the babys head is called the fontanel, or the soft spot. Theflexibility of the skull gives the baby protection form concussion causedby bumps or falls. I remember being warned when my little sister was born,not to touch her head because of this soft spot. However, through myresearch, I found out that you cannot hurt a baby by touching the headgently. The BrainEven though the brain is large at birth, its development isincomplete. The part of the brain controlling posture and balance developsrapidly during the babys first year of life. EyesBabies are able to see at birth. Primarily, they notice movement. .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 , .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .postImageUrl , .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 , .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291:hover , .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291:visited , .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291:active { border:0!important; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291:active , .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291 .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u41bf04349a55bee31705cb8108459291:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The Road Not Taken EssayAlso, research shows that newborn babies are best able to see an objectthat is between 5 and 18 inches away. Also, newborns are extremelysensitive to bright lights. Therefore, a baby may open his or her eyes ina dimly lighted room more comfortably then in a brightly light room. EarsBabies have very good hearing. They often startle easily and will crywhen they hear loud noises. I remember when my little sister was born, sheliked to have songs sung to her and she would quite down when musicstarted. It has been proven that babies must be able to hear in order todevelop language normally. Arms and HandsAt birth, a baby has virtually no control of their arms and hands. The baby automatically grips objects tightly, for example, a pencil or afinger. Most babies are not able to open their hands freely until theyreach 3 months old. Babies first grasp objects in the palm of the hand with a whole-handmovement. It takes many months before they can pick up an object with thethumb and forefinger. This example proves the third developmentalrulegross and fine motor skills. Legs and FeetLegs and feet are the most helpless of the babys body parts. To beginwith, the legs are drawn up in the prenatal position. Legs also makeautomatic creeping or swimming motions. The legs and feet are the lastbody parts to be controlled by the infant. For example, a baby sits aloneand grasps objects with his or her hands long before learning to walk. Again this is a demonstration of the first rule of developmentthe babydevelops in a head-to- toe direction. TrunkThe main part of the body is called the trunk. The trunk will doubleand redouble in size several times before a baby reaches adulthood. Innewborns, the control of the trunk must wait until the brain matures. After about 3 months, control of the head and spine begins. By 5 months,the baby can usually sit up with some help and by 14 months, most babiesare walking. ConclusionThe entire process of growth and development is called maturation. Most of the development and growth described throughout this projecthappens as the baby increases in age. Physical maturation cannot be taughtto a child. A baby cannot be taught to sit or to stand before musclesdevelop. These skills are relevant only after the babys muscles havematured. Nature has set a general time for each childs muscles to mature,making it possible for children to accomplish skills. In a chart, on page6, I have summarized skills that are generally accomplished at certain agesthrough a babys developing months. Also on a chart on page 9, thephysical components of growth, involving large muscle control, small musclecontrol, seeing, eating, sleeping, and hearing are summarized. The First Year Growth What can a 3-month-old baby do?At 3 months, a baby is alert and responding to the world. * When put on her tummy, she can hold her chest and head upfor 10 seconds. * She tries to swipe at toys hung over the crib. * She turns her head toward an interesting sound or listens tovoices. * Loves to stare at peoples faces. * She coos and gurgles* Height-23.5 inches *Weight-12.5 pounds What can a 6-month-old baby do?At 6 months, she is developing control over her body. * She can sit with support and may sit alone for short periodsof time. * She can roll over* She will hold out her arms to be lifted up or reach and graban object. * She can hold her own bottle and toys. * She laughs out loud, babbles, calls for help and screamswhen annoyed. * Height-26 inches*Weight-16 pounds What can a 9-month-old baby do?At 9 months, she is exploring her environment. .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b , .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .postImageUrl , .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b , .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b:hover , .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b:visited , .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b:active { border:0!important; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b:active , .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ubd3f79e7c34c6ec5601cbbee85196c4b:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Of Mice And Men Dreams Essay* She can sit unassisted, crawl, pull to a stand and side-stepalong furniture. * She can use her fingers to point, poke, and grasp smallobjects. * She feeds herself finger foods* She knows her name and responds to simple commands* She uses jargon-babbling a pattern as if she were speakinga foreign language. * Height-27.5 inches*Weight-19 pounds What can a 12-month-old baby do?At 1 year, she is striving for independence. * She stands and may walk by herself. * She climbs up and down stairs and out of the crib or play-pen. * She prefers using one hand over the other and can drop andthrow toys. * She fears strange people and places. * She remembers events, expresses affection, shows emotions,uses trial and error to solve a problem. * Height-29.5 inches*Weight-22 pounds