Lesson 3: Physical Domain of Growth and Development

Introduction
The domain of physical development includes physical or biological growth and development,
the development of the brain, and motor skills development. In this lesson, we will talk about how a
child grows and how he/she develops his/ her gross motor skills (movement of large muscles), fine
motor skills (movement of small muscles), sensory perception (hearing, seeing tasting, smelling, and
touching), eye-hand coordination, kinesthetic sense, and balance.

Here we will further discuss the infancy stage into subcategories of "newborn," "infant," and
"toddler"; the childhood stage into more subcategories of "preschooler" and "school age"; and then
adolescence.

THINK
The child's growth is the increase in the number and size of cells of the child, resulting in an increase in
body size and weight. Growth is all about quantitative changes or increase in size. The child's
development, on the other hand, is the gradual advancement of skills that the child needs to function.
Therefore, development is about qualitative changes or functional abilities. When v speak of maturation,
we refer to the increase in competence and ability of the child as helshe grows, so that he/she can
function at a higher level.

Differentiation refers to the process of modification of early cells and structures to achieve a
specific structure that has a specific function.

These four processes are ongoing, interrelated, and interdependent. They have specific genetic,
environmental, endocrine, and. nutritional influences. As the child's body is continuously becoming
larger and more complex, his/her personality is also developing. Growth and development require both
physical and psychological energy. There are some lulls and spurts that occur while a child grows, and
these are related to the various needs and requirements of the child at various ages.

3.1 Physical Growth and Development

Newborn - This stage is from birth to one month. The height or length of a full-term newborn is
around 20 inches, and the weight is around 5 to 9 pounds Tooth formation is already in progress at
birth. Tooth buds appear at 11 weeks of fetal development. Permanent teeth are also developing
already.

Infant-This stage is from one to 12 months (one year). At this stage, physical growth is very fast.
Height increases by about 10 inches during the first 12 months. The child's weight doubles at four to
seven months. The average weight gain being around 5 to 7 ounces per week. By 12 months, the child's
birthweight has tripled. By six months, teething begins; by this time, the lower. central incisors erupt,
then the two central upper incisors appear. Sometimes, this sequence varies but many infants would
have six teeth by age one.
 Toddler-This is from one to three years. Physical growth levels off into a more gradual and
steadier rate by this time, up until puberty. The increase in height also slows down to about5 inches per
year. For weight, toddlers gain 4.5 to 6.5 pounds per year. Bone development continues, and by two
years of age, all 20 primary teeth have appeared.

Preschooler - This is by three to six years of age. Although in many Philippine schools, there are
such labels as "preschool," "junior kindergarten," and "senior kindergarten"; and now six-year-old
children are already in grade one in the Philippines. For the purpose of our discussion in the context of
"child development," we shall call this age group of children from three to six years as "preschooler.

At this stage, the preschooler's physical growth is still gradual and steady. Hel she grows at a
rate of 3 inches per year, a little slower than the previous stage. Just like toddlers, preschoolers also gain
about 4.5 to 6.5 pounds per year.

School age - This is from six to 12 years of age. In schools, the child is in the "primary school,"
"elementary" or "grade school," and "middle school." Physical growth is steady and gradual up until
puberty. In puberty. another growth spurt occurs, with developmental maturation. Between the ages of
six and 10 years, children grow in height for about 2 inches per year, slightly slower than the previous
stage. Then when puberty hits, there is the most growth in height. In weight, there .is also a rapid
growth spurt; there is also a gain, with an average of 30 pounds for girls and 52 pounds for boys. Bone
development continues.

At this stage the child starts to assert independence at home and in school. Emotional growth
continues. Both parents and teachers ideally instill good moral values, especially at this age. The child
should learn to make good choices. Thus, while he/she should be protected from adverse elements in
the environment, he/she should also learn to face consequences of his/her actions.

Adolescent- This is from 13 to 18 years. Although some children start puberty before the teen
years, we will discuss more on puberty at this stage. Teenagers go through drastic physical, cognitive,
and emotional changes during this stage. This is when identity and personality develop.

During teens, girls develop at a younger age than boys. Girls start puberty between ages 9 and
13, while boys start puberty around 11 to 14. Girls who start puberty grow to be much taller than boys
who have not started puberty. In other words, their growth spurt happens earlier. The peak increase in
height of girls is around 13 years of age. For boys, the growth spurt may happen later, but it continues
for a longer time, usually stopping at around the age of 18 or 20 years.

Girls have hair growth in the underarm, their breasts develop, their hip widens, they grow pubic
hair, and their ovaries start to produce eggs and have their first menstruation (menarchy). Boys, on the
other hand, have voice change, grow facial hair, underarm hair, and pubic hair, their testicles lower, and
they have their first ejaculation (spermarchy). For both boys and girls, the frontal lobe of the brain
develops until around the age of 25 or somewhere in the mid or late twenties.

As a child grows physically through all of these stages, he/she also develops cognitively and
socioemotionally, like teenagers tend to become closer to their peers than to their parents. But as this
happens, parents and teachers should closely monitor them to ensure that they do not develop bad
habits or keep bad company. Parents and teachers should be aware of their role throughout all the
stages of development of the child, showing deep understanding of his/her needs at the various stages.
3.2 Brain Development
The human brain begins to develop during the third week of conception and continuously
develops at least until late adolescence, and some argue that it continues develop throughout life. Brain
development is a complex series of dynamic and adaptive processes that are driven by interactions
between events in the ells in our body as a result of gene expression and from circumstances in the
environment. Our brains grow bigger as we grow, but that is not only what is happening.

Brain connections and function. During brain development, the brain undergoes three
processes: a proliferation of dendric branches forming synapses between neurons in the nervous
system, where brain cells sprout branches to connect one brain cell to many other brain cells. This is
known as synaptogenesis The brain also undergoes myelination (growing a covering called myelin
around the axon part of brain cells up to 18 years old) and pruning.

During brain development, connections are formed between cells that are being used. We are
born with more brain cells (neurons) than what we actually need. And in two critical periods of
development (around age 2 and in adolescence), brain cells that do not form connections are "pruned,"
just like when we prune or cut out dead branches in a tree. Only those cells that are connected and
functioning stay and elaborate. While the cells that are unused retract and die. Thus, the famous phrase:
"use it or lose it." The process is highly influenced by the inputs the developing brain receives from the
environment. What the brain is exposed to, what we see, what we hear, the many languages we are
exposed to, what activities we do, or events we experience, all help determine which connections will
stay or which ones will be pruned. The initial overproduction of neurons (brain cells) makes the brain
malleable. This is known as brain plasticity (neuroplasticity) or the ability of the brain to adapt and
change resulting from experience.

Studies done in animals show that animals that grow up in complex environments that offer
plenty of input have an increased number of brain cell connections, while animals that are raised in
deprived environments show deprived sensory systems. Therefore, the developing brain needs certain
inputs from the environment to develop normally. An enriched environment promotes brain
development.
 Since different parts of the brain have different roles, with each part of the brain doing
something different, they have to send electrical signals to other parts of the brain and work together to
perform complex tasks, like talking, or walking, and so on. This is why connections are very important.
These connections form distinct functional networks or groups of brain regions that work together to
perform tasks. Examples are the visual network, auditory network, sensory network, language network,
attention network, and so on. The visual network allows us not just to see, but also to make sense of
what we see. The auditory network allows us not just to hear, but also to make sense of what we hear.
So, a person who is born deaf who receives a cochlear implant does not necessarily understand what
he/she can hear because the brain may not make sense of the sounds entering the person's ear. We also
have a "salience network" to help us figure out what is important in the environment so we can focus on
what is significant and not be overwhelmed with so many things going on in our environment. We also
have a "default mode network," which is what we do when we are not thinking or when we are at rest.
This is important so the brain can rest, consolidate our memories, and so on.

To build and maintain healthy brain development, it happens in “serve and when a child and return"
interactions, like when a child and a caregiver transfer various form of communication between one
another, like eye contact, touch, sounds, son playing games like peek-a-boo. However, another kind of
childhood experience can also shape brain development. That is stress. There are good kinds of stress,
like meeting new people, studying for a test, or learning something new like how to walk These are good
kinds of stress because they prepare children to cope with future challenges. But there are bad kinds of
stress known as toxic stress, and these are bad for brain development. If a child is constantly exposed to
serious ongoing hardships like abuse, neglect, and parental addiction, and he/she has no other caregiver
in life to provide support, we now know that basic structures and connections in the child' developing
brain may be damaged. Since there is no support for future development the child would be at risk of
developing future health problems, development issues addiction, or crime. Although it is possible to fix
some damages caused by toxic stress later on in life, it is easier, less expensive, and more effective to
build a solid brain foundation early in life. This can involve the development of basic social and
emotional skills, including executive function and self-regulation. With the many things going on in life
simultaneously, like paying attention, making plans, remembering and following rules, sharing toys,
dealing with worries and temptations, and learning about letters and numbers, the executive function
helps the child to prioritize. When parents, caregivers, and the community help a child try to overcome
toxic stress and build a solid brain architecture, we can help all children to have healthy, nurturing
experiences they need for good brain development and better futures, not just for the an children but
also for the whole community.

The adolescent brain. Adolescence is a period of rapid brain change. During this time with the
influx of hormones, the brain becomes very sensitive to new experiences, like rewards, novelty, and
social experience. In short, they become interested in new things and in new people. Their emotions get
very active but the networks involved in emotion regulation and impulse control are not yet well
developed until later in their 20s. So we have a situation where there is a lot of impulsivity and
emotional arousal at this stage in life, yet the ability to regulate that arousal is not yet developed. The
challenge is the fact that at this stage, the adolescents are exposed to many new things that can
potentially lead to negative consequences.

What can go wrong in brain development? We know that brain development is affected by
things and events in the environment. Brains are not just formed, they are also built over time based on
one's experiences. Positive interaction between young children and their caregivers builds the
foundation of a developing brain. Exposure to a smiling, loving caregiver or parent can affect brain
development.

Exposure of a child to alcohol or other substances can also affect brain development. What could
happen if, for example, the mother, while she was pregnant, consumed a lot of alcohol or used drugs, or
if she got sick with German measles and the like? What could happen if a child is exposed to lead in lead
paints, mercury when one consumes affected fish, or the effect of eating fruits and vegetables that still
have traces of pesticides, and so on? How are these things affecting a child's mental function and overall
health?

Individual differences. Going back to exposure to toxic stress, it is seen that reaction to different
sources of stress depends on the density of neurons and the amount of chemicals in the brain. Some
children have underactive stress response after adapting to chronic stress. In this case, children tend to
be aggressive, impulsive, delinquent, or have short attention span.

Meanwhile, children with overactive stress response may have behavioral inhibition or become
shy. They have a tendency to avoid people, events, or objects. Inhibited children are found to have more
electrical brain activity in the right hemisphere of the brain.

Mild stress does not only affect the brain, this also affects other parts of the body, like the heart
may speed up, the pupils can dilate, muscles can become tense, and cortisol (a hormone) starts to flow
from the adrenal glands. Differences in the genes that control out stress response may lead to
underactive or overactive stress response.

Aside from genes, life experiences can also lead to strong stress reactions. These can be. caused
by traumatic events in life, like experiencing neglect, abuse, violent crime, accidents, or disasters.
Occupations that are stressful also have similar effect, like the life experiences of military personnel,
police, or firefighters. For example, when someone has gone through the experience of a burning house,
the person can be extremely anxious and stressed by the sight or smell of something burning, at the
same time, that person can see other stressors, like project deadlines as not stressful even if other
people are so stressed about those kinds of things. This is because this person had gone through worse
things in life.
 Individual differences in brain function are correlated to differences in intelligence, in coping
with stress, or in socialization. Individual differences can be brought about by genes and experiences.
Genes tell the brain to overproduce synapses and to prune them. During synaptogenesis, the brain
incorporates experiences into the brain architecture. Experiences can affect how the brain develops due
to brain plasticity or the ability of the brain to change both structure and function as a result of
experience.

Scientists are still trying to discover how the connections develop over time They are still trying
to find out how individual differences in connections relate to behavior, to cognitive strengths or
weaknesses, or the effect of exposure to video games and social media.

What do all these imply to the classroom teacher and to parents or caregivers> It is important to
provide optimal experiences for children. Adults should help keen the brain well-nourished with healthy
food as well as exercise for blood circulation to help supply oxygen to the brain. Opportunities for
repeated practice to develop skills should be given to help strengthen synaptic connections in the brain.
Adults can also emphasize the benefits of learning and of appropriate behavior Adults can provide early
education and early intervention, especially for the first 10 years of life that are a sensitive period for
brain development.

3.3 Motor Development The brain is part of the nervous system.

The nervous system has two main parts: the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) and
the peripheral nervous system (nerves that branch out from the spinal cord). The part of the brain that
has an important role in motor control is the cerebellum ("little brain"). If there is any dysfunction in the
cerebellum, signs will be seen in motor development.
 In each point in development, adaptive control of movement is affected by perception and
cognition to plan and guide one's actions. Social and cultural factors can promote or impede motor
behaviors. Consequently, motor behaviors create perceptual information, allowing the child to learn
about the world around him/her and make social interactions. So you see, motor development is related
to cognitive and socioemotional development as well.

Perception in the brain is the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through our
senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste). It is an outcome of complex functions of the nervous
system. The capacity for perception is essential for good motor control. It is dependent on normal brain
growth and the development of the sensory nervous system. The ability to recognize sensory stimuli is
the basis for understanding, learning, and knowing how to react. This plays a major role in cognitive
development as well as socioemotional development, which will be discussed in the succeeding units of
this module.

Patterns in motor development. Motor development moves in a cephalocaudal pattern (from

Newborn. In this stage, the newborn shows limited amounts of motion. The newborn learns to
develop responses to any external stimulus. He/she exhibits the grasp reflex, wherein he/she grasps any
object that is placed on his/her hand. You try to put your finger on his/her hand, he/she could reach for
it and grasp it The newborn also shows the startle reflex, where he/she reacts to any loud noise or to
sudden movements.
 Infant. The term variation refers to the variation of movements that infants produce during
motor development. As infants experiment through trial and error with all different movements, this
experience provides vital input for the developing nervous system. Variation helps develop a repertoire
of efficient functional movements and allows for variability, which is knowing what movement to do in a
certain situation. Limited variation and variability can be indications of abnormal motor development. At
this stage, the infant shows many new developmental abilities.

At three to six months, he/she starts to move about more. The infant is able to control his/her
head and start playing with his/her hands and legs. After months, the infant starts to respond to his/her
name when called, sit up without support, and then start to stand with support. This age is also when
he/she starts to babble. The infant learns to turn to the side and eventually learns to sit. After nine
months, he/she may start crawling. He/she also shows more dexterity in his/her fingers and can pick up
objects by inching them with his/her thumbs. He/she would develop control over his/her hands before
having control of his/her feet. He/she would later be able to stand and then start to learn how to walk
with support.

Toddler. By this time, the toddler can walk by himself/herself. His/her language skills develop
and is now capable of communicating his/her wishes with words. He also learns how to say "no." At this
stage, he/she continues to go through emotional development and learns to regulate his/her emotions.
Learning routines like dinnertime routines and bedtime routines would help prepare toddlers for routine
tasks they would be learning when they start school.

Preschooler. At this stage, most children enter schools and receive formal learning. The teacher
plays a big role in a child's life starting from this stage. This time, many children transition from home to
school, move through different preschool levels, and then transition to elementary level. The
preschooler develops both gross motor skills and fine motor skills. Gross motor skills are the movements
of large muscles, like walking, running, or jumping. Fine motor skills refer to tiny muscle movements that
are precise, like writing, drawing, cutting. or sewing. He/she shows great interest in arts and crafts,
drawing, and writing. He/she also continues to develop cognitively, developing math skills, language,
and reading.

School age. At this stage, the child starts to assert independence at home and in school.
Emotional growth continues. Both parents and teachers ideally instill good moral values, especially at
this age. The child should learn to make good choices. Thus, while he/she should be protected from
adverse elements in the environment, he/she should also learn to face the consequences of his/her
actions.

Adolescent. Adolescents become better at moving their bodies as they mature. Boys continue to
improve in gross motor skills even unto their early twenties. They rapidly gain physical speed, strength in
jumping and throwing, and endurance. On the other hand, girls make modest gains in gross and fine
motor skills until around the age of 14. Beyond this, not much progress is seen unless they are
specifically trained for a sport or a hobby that requires these skills.