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Child Development Milestones Sample Essay & Outline

Child development stages can be described as theoretical milestones when it comes to child development. Holistic development often sees a child as an all rounded person and consequently learning about the child in many cases involves the studying of patterns and development of the child. The developmental norms are the ones that are referred to as milestones as they define some recognizable pattern of development in which a certain child of a certain age is expected to follow (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2007). It is of the essence to however note that each child develops in a unique way and the developmental milestones are just norms that often help on the proper understanding of the general patterns that exist in terms of the development of the child (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2007). This paper is going to interview a prominent Child psychologist-Beatrice Marshall in regards to the developmental milestones of a 2-4 year old child. The interview took place in the house office of Beatrice Marshall.

Interview

Interviewer: Thank you for taking the time to invite me to your office to talk about this pertinent matter that is developmental milestones for children. Firstly, what should be parents of a two year old baby feel?

Beatrice Marshall: They should be ecstatic; this is because they have been able to survive the most difficult stage which is caring and managing for a one year old baby. Hopefully, they have some energy left to enjoy with their preschooler. The next years are often referred to as magical years after one year. This is because it seems like magic that the child can finally listen to the parent and in fact, the parent at this time has an imagination that runs wild.

Interviewer: What are some of the milestones that a child has when he or she is about 2-4 years old?

Beatrice Marshall: It is of the essence to note that the developmental milestones are divided into several sections, firstly, there are the language milestones, secondly, there are the cognitive milestones, thirdly, there are the movement milestones and lastly there are the emotional as well as social milestones (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2007).

Interviewer: Thank you for correcting me, so what are some of the language milestones that can be expected for a child of around 2- 4 years of age.

Barbra Marshall: Most of the time when a child is one year old, he or she is not talkative, however, between the ages of two years and four years, this is likely to change. The child at this time can be able to say his or her name and even at times say his or her age. Psychologists have approximated that a child between the age of two years and four years can be able to speak around 250 words to around 500 words (Cooper, 2006). The child at this stage can also be able to speak in what can be described as simple sentences of around six words and answer simple questions. It is of the essence to understand that a child can be able to tell stories and speak in complete sentences by the age of four.

Interviewer: That is very interesting, what about the development milestones in terms of movements? What can be expected of a child of around two years to four years of age?

Beatrice Marshall: A child of two years starts to be on the move more. The child can be able to move around without support of the wall or anybody. He or she can also be able to walk up and down the stairs and this is often done with alternating feet-one foot per step. The child at this time has been able to master the art of throwing; kicking as well as catching a ball; he or she can be able to climb well (Cooper, 2006). At the advanced age of three to four years old, the child can be able to run more confidently as well as be able to even ride a tricycle. The children when requested can also be able to bend without falling back and can hop and stand easily on one leg for up to ten seconds. It is of the importance to however, note that these are general milestones and consequently not each child in the age of 2-4 years can be able to comfortable do all these things. This is mainly because children often grow differently and consequently, their maturation rate is also different.

Read how un-monitored child development can lead to diseases such as obesity

Interviewer: Are hand and finger skills considered movement milestones?

Beatrice Marshall: This has been a topic of contention for most psychologists as there are those that put it in a separate field while others put it under movement milestones. I do believe that it is a different field as the child in this case starts to become more nimble (Cooper, 2006). The child who is between the age of two years and four years at this stage can be able to easily handle small objects as well as be able to easily turn a book. At age three, the child should be able to handle in the right way age-appropriate scissors, build a tower with four or even more blocks and finally, by the age of four years the child can be able to screw as well as unscrew jar lids. By the age four, the child can be said to have mastered the hand and finger skills and can be able to do virtually every hand and finger skills with ease.

Interviewer: What about cognitively, what are some of the milestones that a two to four year should have cognitively.

Beatrice Marshall: This is often referred to as the most important milestones, as the child in many cases starts asking a lot of questions. Some of these questions include where did we come from?

Why is the Sky blue?

In this stage there are questions and more questions. There are several parents that find this annoying; however, it is a normal developmental milestone that occurs cognitively in the minds of two to four year olds. In addition to the persistent asking of why each and every time, the child can be able to correctly name familiar colors such as red, black, green, blue and white. The child at this time can also be able to comfortably understand and grasp the idea of different and same, the child can also remember parts of a story, better understand the time, understand the concept of counting and be able to count to around 20, complete puzzles that are appropriate and finally the child can be able to easily recognize as well as identify common objects as well as pictures.
Interviewer: What about the emotional and social milestones?

Beatrice Marshall: A two to four year old at this juncture starts becoming more social. The child at this time might be able to co-operate with his or her friends, and even by the age of four starts to show problem solving skills (Remer, 2006). The child often starts to imitate friends and parents, he or she can also be able to show affection for family and friends and understand the concept of mine and theirs.

Interviewer: Should parents be concerned if their children do not show these developmental milestones?

Beatrice Marshall: It is imperative to understand that all children grow and develop at their own pace. Therefore, a parent should not be worried if a child has not been able to reach all the developmental milestones at time. However, a parent should be able to notice a gradual progression in terms of growth as well as development in the child. If this does not occur, then this might be a sign of a developmental delay and there is a need to talk to the child's doctor (Remer, 2006). It has however been determined that in many cases, there is no problem and it is just a small delay in the development of a child which has no repercussions. The child might at times suffer from a psychosocial crisis in his or her age group and the best way to resolve the crisis is to show the child that he or she is normal. The child should often be encouraged to perform activities that he or she can be able to do and should never be forced to do something that he or she cannot do.

Interviewer: Thank you for the interview, it was very enlightening.

Beatrice Marshall: The pleasure is all mine.

References

Remer, A. T., & American Academy of Pediatrics. (2006). The wonder years: Helping your baby and young child successfully negotiate the major developmental milestones. New York: Bantam Books.
Cooper, C. (2006). Baby milestones: Stimulate development from 0-3 years. London: Hamlyn.
Kail, R. V., & Cavanaugh, J. C. (2007). Human development: A life-span view. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth.

Sample Essay on Child Development Milestones

Child development stages can be described as theoretical milestones when it comes to child development. Holistic development often sees a child as an all rounded person and consequently learning about the child in many cases involves the studying of patterns and development of the child. The developmental norms are the ones that are referred to as milestones as they define some recognizable pattern of development in which a certain child of a certain age is expected to follow (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2007).

It is of the essence to however note that each child develops in a unique way and the developmental milestones are just norms that often help on the proper understanding of the general patterns that exist in terms of the development of the child (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2007). This paper is going to describe the developmental milestones of a 2-4 year old child.
Parents often feel ecstatic when their child reaches age 2-4 years, this is because they have been able to survive the most difficult stage which is caring and managing for a one year old baby.

Hopefully, the parents often pray that they have some energy left to enjoy with their preschooler. The next years are often referred to as magical years after one year. This is because it seems like magic that the child can finally listen to the parent and in fact, the parent at this time has an imagination that runs wild. It is of the essence to note that the developmental milestones are divided into several sections, firstly, there are the language milestones, secondly, there are the cognitive milestones, thirdly, there are the movement milestones and lastly there are the emotional as well as social milestones (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2007).

It is important to note that most of the times when a child is one year old, he or she is not talkative, and however, between the ages of two years and four years, this is likely to change. The child at this time can be able to say his or her name and even at times say his or her age. Psychologists have approximated that a child between the age of two years and four years can be able to speak around 250 words to around 500 words (Cooper, 2006). The child at this stage can also be able to speak in what can be described as simple sentences of around six words and answer simple questions. It is of the essence to understand that a child can be able to tell stories and speak in complete sentences by the age of four.

A child of two years can be described as always being on the move more. The child can be able to move around without support of the wall or anybody. He or she can also be able to walk up and down the stairs and this is often done with alternating feet-one foot per step. The child at this time has been able to master the art of throwing; kicking as well as catching a ball; he or she can be able to climb well (Cooper, 2006).

At the advanced age of three to four years old, the child can be able to run more confidently as well as be able to even ride a tricycle. The children when requested can also be able to bend without falling back and can hop and stand easily on one leg for up to ten seconds. It is of the importance to however, note that these are general milestones and consequently not each child in the age of 2-4 years can be able to comfortable do all these things. This is mainly because children often grow differently and consequently, their maturation rate is also different.

The child who is between the age of two years and four years at this stage can be able to easily handle small objects as well as be able to easily turn a book. At age three, the child should be able to handle in the right way age-appropriate scissors, build a tower with four or even more blocks and finally, by the age of four years the child can be able to screw as well as unscrew jar lids. By the age four, the child can be said to have mastered the hand and finger skills and can be able to do virtually every hand and finger skills with ease.

The cognitive development is often referred to as the most important milestones, as the child in many cases starts asking a lot of questions. Some of these questions include where did we come from? Why is the Sky blue? In this stage there are questions and more questions. There are several parents that find this annoying; however, it is a normal developmental milestone that occurs cognitively in the minds of two to four year olds. In addition to the persistent asking of why each and every time, the child can be able to correctly name familiar colors such as red, black, green, blue and white. The child at this time can also be able to comfortably understand and grasp the idea of different and same, the child can also remember parts of a story, better understand the time, understand the concept of counting and be able to count to around 20, complete puzzles that are appropriate and finally the child can be able to easily recognize as well as identify common objects as well as pictures.

A two to four year old at this juncture starts becoming more social. The child at this time might be able to co-operate with his or her friends, and even by the age of four starts to show problem solving skills (Remer, 2006). The child often starts to imitate friends and parents, he or she can also be able to show affection for family and friends and understand the concept of mine and theirs.

It is imperative to understand that all children grow and develop at their own pace. Therefore, a parent should not be worried if a child has not been able to reach all the developmental milestones at time. However, a parent should be able to notice a gradual progression in terms of growth as well as development in the child. If this does not occur, then this might be a sign of a developmental delay and there is a need to talk to the child's doctor (Remer, 2006). It has however been determined that in many cases, there is no problem and it is just a small delay in the development of a child which has no repercussions. The child might at times suffer from a psychosocial crisis in his or her age group and the best way to resolve the crisis is to show the child that he or she is normal. The child should often be encouraged to perform activities that he or she can be able to do and should never be forced to do something that he or she cannot do.

The child between 2-4 years of age can be said to be in the anal stage and at this stage the child often learns to respond to some of the demands of the society and this includes bowel as well as bladder control. The psychosocial crisis that occurs in this stage is autonomy vs shame & doubt. The child often tries to get independence and if he or she is unable to get it he or she feels shame & doubt about the decisions made.

In this stage in order for the child to overcome this psychosocial crisis there is a need for the child to be given independence to do whatever he or she likes (it has to been within a reasonable limit) (Remer, 2006). At this point, the child should be given the ability to experiment in for him or her to be able to develop autonomy and avoid feeling shame and doubt about his actions. This will eventually help the child to become independent and increase his self-esteem. Therefore, the child should left to be adventurous and should be encouraged by the caregivers to do go for what he or she wants instead of being restricted.

Interview Questions

Interviewer: Louis (Uncle)
Interviewee: Jordin
Parents: Kiesha
Location: The ROCK FAITH CENTER
INTERVIEW WITH A 4 YEAR OLD.

QUESTIONS:

1. What is your name, how old are you and who do you live with?
2. What professions are your parents in?
3. What is your favorite color?
4. What is your favorite toy?
5. What is your favorite food/fruit?
6. What is your favorite TV show?
7. What is your favorite game?
8. What goals are you setting for your daughter’s future?
9. What is your favorite animal?
10. Who is your best friend?
11. What is your favorite drink?
12. Where is your favorite place to go?
13. What do you like to eat for breakfast?
14. What do you like to eat for lunch?
15. What do you like to eat for dinner?
16. What is your favorite song?
17. What is your favorite thing to do outside?
18. Who are the most important people in your life?
19. Do you like going to Head Start every day?
20. What do you want to be when you grow up?
21. Who is your favorite uncle and why?
22. What is the nicest thing that your parents ever did for you?
23. When did you cry last and why?
24. What is your favorite outfit?
25. If you could be an animal which one would you want to be?
26. Where do you like spending time?
27. What do other children think about you?
28. What do you do to be happy?
29. Who is your favorite cartoon?
30. What do you think of school?
31. How do you feel when your do some house chores?
32. When do you think is the best time for your bed time?
33. What kind of people do you like?
34. If you had lots of money what would you do with it?
35. What do you like best about Dad and Mom?

ANSWERS:

1. My name is Jordin Marie Hawk and I am 4 years old. I live with my mommy (Kisha) and daddy (Ryan).
2. My daddy is in the Army and mommy teaches school.
3. My favorite color is green.
4. I don’t have a favorite. I like them all.
5. I love shrimp and grapes.
6. Dora the Explorer and Doc McStuffins.
7. Patty Cake.
8. To become what she wants to become and guide her from an early age to pursue her dreams. She holds the key to her own destiny. Not going to force her decision.
9. My 2 dogs, Chaz & Taz.
10. My best friend is my big sister, Rian.
11. Flavored water from Walmart. I like white grape the best.
12. The park in our neighborhood.
13. Waffles with daddy.
14. Hot dogs and Lunchables. On special occasions, I like crab legs.
15. Broccoli and baked chicken.
16. The theme from Dora the Explorer.
17. Blowing Bubbles.
18. Jesus, mommy, daddy and my big sister.
19. Yes, I like play time with my friends and my teachers are great. We do a lot of stuff.
20. A lawyer or a teacher. I like helping people.
21. Uncle Tim, he buys me sweets.
22. bought me a bike.
23. I fell down on the driveway. Yesterday.
24. My cool jacket and Jeans
25. Lion
26. The park
27. They like me because I play with them.
28. Play with my big sister (Rian)
29. Dora the explorer
30. I have not yet gone to school.
31. I feel good about myself, however, I do not like cleaning
32. at night.
33. People that play with me.
34. Buy myself a guitar and a car
35. They love me and play with me.

References
Remer, A. T., & American Academy of Pediatrics. (2006). The wonder years: Helping your baby and young child successfully negotiate the major developmental milestones. New York: Bantam Books.
Cooper, C. (2006). Baby milestones: Stimulate development from 0-3 years. London: Hamlyn.
Kail, R. V., & Cavanaugh, J. C. (2007). Human development: A life-span view. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth.

Growth & Development in Children Essay

Abstract

This paper examines a useful aspect of growth and development (G&D) in children. This, however, should not be taken to mean that G&D only happens in children; adults also undergo a lot of development not necessarily in the aspect of physical growth but in other domains such as awareness, spirituality, and intellectual development, just to mention a few. This narrative review looks at the role of guidance in growth and development. It commences by identifying two articles that address this subject and proceeds by analyzing some of the important aspects of guidance and how they impact G&D in individuals. The first part of this review explores positive guidance with regards to G&D in children and examines the strategies that can be used to influence children to grow and develop in socially acceptable ways.

Keywords: growth and development, positive guidance.

Adams, S., & Baronberg, J. (2005). Promoting Positive Behavior: Guidance Strategies for Early Childhood Settings. London: Pearson Education Inc.

What question/hypothesis was the researcher trying to answer or investigate?

In this article, Adams & Baronberg (2005) highlight some of the various techniques that can be used to influence positive growth and development in children. The authors aptly call these techniques positive guidance techniques and offer that these techniques play an important role in early childhood learning especially in cementing desired behavior.

Define the variables studied

The variables studied in this article include reinforcers, i.e., commending a child when it has achieved a feat. When a behavior is reinforced, the likelihood of the child repeating it increases. The main kinds of reinforces are social, tangible, and activity reinforcers. Praise, logical consequences and choice are the other variables discussed at length.

Describe the sample

The authors of this article do not give the sample size of their study population. The study is more qualitative than quantitative hence empirical figures are not available to comment on. Rather, the authors give a descriptive analysis of the effect of using (or not) some of the techniques of positive guidance

One of these techniques involves the use of responsive language in positive terms, e.g., instead of telling a child “Don’t run,” it is much more effective if we say, “Please walk.” Stone (1993) argues that responsive language explains to children and gives reasons why their actions are/aren’t be acceptable.

How did the researcher gather data in the study?

Within the context of behavioral research, qualitative approaches have been widely used to gather data. It is safe to presume that the authors obtained their data via these three commonly used methodologies, i.e., ethnography, phenomenology, and grounded theory (Sutton & Austin, 2015). It is instructive to note that qualitative research relies on a lot of reflection on the part of the researcher in order to provide context and understanding to the readers.

What were the results?

The results indicate that positive guidance techniques help in the growth and development of children. Though there aren’t any substantive figures that we can use to evaluate the efficacy of such methods because this is qualitative research, this review relies on the insights and reflections of the authors to conclude that positive guidance techniques are effective.

How do the results affect your understanding of standardized assessments in early childhood classrooms? 

This article makes it abundantly clear that the way children are given instructions contributes significantly to their ability to retain these instructions. Standardized assessments might not incorporate many of these techniques and thus limit the degree of learning in children. This implies that the failure of a child in an assessment test may not necessarily be out of understanding the concept but the context under which the instruction was given (Pianta & Hamre, 2009).

What did you learn about how data is used in early childhood education from this study?

It can be concluded that some data used in ECD are not quantitative. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it implies that such data needs to be augmented with empirical evidence which is more factual and verifiable.

Article 2: Changing Behavior Through Reinforcement and Punishment: Operant Conditioning. (2017). Retrieved January 15, 2018, from Libraries: http://open.lib.umn.edu/intropsyc/chapter/7-2-changing-behavior-through-...

What question/hypothesis was the researcher trying to answer or investigate?

In this article, the authors are investigating the impact of punishment and reinforcement on behavior change. Behavior change is a core component in children’s’ ability to learn and thus the need for this article to outline how variables such as reinforcers and punishment can be used. The hypothesis is that positive reinforcers influence the repetition of behavior. Punishment is also believed to limit the occurrence of unacceptable behavior (Schacter, Gilbert, & Wegner, 2011).

Define the variables studied

The variables studied in this article are reinforcement and punishment. These two can be sub-divided into positive and negative reinforcement and positive and negative punishment. Positive reinforcement increases the pleasant stimulus and strengthens the desired behavior. Positive punishment, on the contrary, increases the unpleasant stimulus and weakens the undesired behavior. However, negative reinforcement removes the unpleasant stimulus and weakens the undesired behavior, while negative punishment removes a pleasant stimulus in order to weaken an undesired behavior (Schacter et al., 2011).

Describe the sample

The sample used in this study were animals – a cat and a rat. In the first instance, the cat was placed in a skinner box from which they were to escape. The cat moved around clawing uneasily and chanced upon the lever that opened the box’s door. After several repetitions, the cat was able to identify the door lever straight away and escape from the box. A similar experiment was conducted using a rat, but in this case, the situation was modified such that on touching a lever, pellets of food fell into the cage. Again, after several repetitions, the rat was noted to immediately touch the lever to get more food.

How did the researcher gather data in the study?

In this study, data was obtained through observation. The researcher would then record the number of attempts the animals made before they were finally able to achieve their intended objectives, i.e., to escape the cage, and to get more food.

What were the results?

The results were predictable – when the behavior was rewarded, the chances of it being repeated increased significantly. In both instances, the cat and the rat eventually learned to push the button that would make them achieve their goals (Changing Behavior Through Reinforcement and Punishment: Operant Conditioning, 2017).

How do the results affect your understanding of standardized assessments in early childhood classrooms?

Like in the previous case, the response of children in standardized tests can be a function of the reinforces/punishments attached. If a child scores a certain grade in a test and is rewarded, the likelihood of passing that test again increases. If no reward is given, the child quickly loses the incentive to assert himself/herself (Schacter et al., 2011).

What did you learn about how data is used in early childhood education from this study?

In early childhood education, data is used to either encourage/discourage a desired/undesired behavior. Children are typically at an age where their cognitive skills are not fully developed, and therefore they are guided by more by instincts than by reason.

Compare and contrast both studies and explain the similarities and differences.

The similarities between both studies are that reinforcers are effective in encouraging/discouraging certain behaviors. Children received encouragement from being rewarded but quickly lost interest in any activity that was not incentivized (Schacter et al., 2011). For the animals, however, it was a matter of survival – the cat had to find a way to escape the cage while the rat quickly learned that for it to get the food, it needs for survival it had to touch a button. At this level, it can be argued that the children and the animals are both driven by instincts.

As they grow the children develop their cognitive skills and they start to reason and appreciate aspects such as delayed gratitude (Joseph, 2015). This means that even when they are not rewarded immediately, they can continue with the desired behavior. Animals, on the other hand, don’t have this kind of ability.

References
Adams, S., & Baronberg, J. (2005). Promoting Positive Behavior: Guidance Strategies for Early Childhood Settings. London: Pearson Education Inc.
Changing Behavior Through Reinforcement and Punishment: Operant Conditioning. (2017).
Joseph, N. A. (2015). Delayed Gratification Behavior Among Elementary School Children: An Intervention Model. Journal of Research Initiatives, 1(3), 2-13.
Pianta, R. C., & Hamre, B. K. (2009). Conceptualization, Measurement, and Improvement of Classroom Processes: Standardized Observation Can Leverage Capacity. Educational Researcher, 38, 109-121.
Schacter, D. L., Gilbert, D. T., & Wegner, D. M. (2011). The role of reinforcement and Punishment. In B. Skinner, Psychology (pp. 278–288). New York: Worth Incorporated.
Stone, C. A. (1993). What's missing in the metaphor of scaffolding? In E. Forman, N. Minick, & C. Stone, Contexts for learning: Sociocultural dynamics in children's development (pp. 169–183). New York: Oxford University Press.
Sutton, J., & Austin, Z. (2015). Qualitative Research: Data Collection, Analysis, and Management. The Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy, 68(3), 226–231.