Chapter 3 Tools for Exploring the World: Physical, Perceptual, and Motor Development

1. Chapter 3 Tools for Exploring the World: Physical, Perceptual, and Motor Development DEP 2004 & 2004H Human Development Across the Lifespan Erica Jordan, Ph.D., University of West Florida

2. Guiding Questions • What abilities and characteristics does the healthy newborn possess? • What are helpful tips for caring for newborns? • What key structures are involved in the physical development of a healthy newborn? • What is brain plasticity? Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

3. The Newborn’s Reflexes • “Unlearned” responses triggered by specific stimulation • Pave the way to get the nutrition newborn needs to grow • Protection from danger • Foundation for larger, voluntary patterns of motor activity • Assess whether newborn’s nervous system is working properly Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

4. Assessing the Newborn • Apgar score - quick assessment of newborn’s status at 1 min. and at 5 min. • 7 or 8 – 10: healthy • 4-6: needs special attention and care • 3 or less: life-threatening situation Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

5. Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS) • Used with newborns up to 2 months of age • Evaluates functioning of four systems: • Autonomic: ability to control body functions (breathing, temperature regulation) • Motor: ability to control body movements and activity level • State: ability to maintain a state (e.g., alert) • Social: ability to interact with people Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

6. Newborn’s States(Classification may vary) • Alert inactivity: baby is calm with eyes open and attentive; seem to be deliberately inspecting environment—Quiet alert period, important for learning and interacting with others! • Waking activity: eye’s are open but seem unfocused while arms/legs move in bursts of uncoordinated motion Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

7. Crying: baby cries vigorously; accompanied by agitated uncoordinated movement • Sleeping: baby alternates from being still and breathing regularly to moving gently and breathing irregularly; eyes are closed Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

8. Tips for Soothing Crying • Recognize that this is their only form of communication. They need something. • Try to remain calm. Infants are sensitive to stress and other negative emotions. • Become familiar with the infant’s various types of cries. Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

9. Try to calmly rock, pat, bounce, or nurse the infant. • Recognize that premature infants, colicky infants, and other infants might cry more often and more intensely during the first few months. Additionally, all babies go through times when they cry more often. This is normal. • Help the baby to expel gas by patting while on your shoulder or knee or by laying the child flat and “bicycling” the legs. Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

10. Recognize that sometimes the infant may not be able to be soothed sometimes. • Don’t take it personally as if you did something wrong or attribute malicious intent toward the child. • Try to calm the child by meeting any of the child’s needs. If crying does not cease, simply hold the child. • If crying continues to persist, consult a physician to be sure that the child is not in pain or does not require medical attention. Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

11. Take care of yourself by seeking support when needed. Never take frustration out on a baby. • Kaleb Schwade: http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/criminal/northdale-day-care-worker-pleads-guilty-to-injuring-5-month-old/1099708 Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

12. Sleeping • Newborns sleep ______ hours/day • Irregular or rapid-eye-movement (REM): irregular sleep where infant’s eyes dart rapidly beneath eyelids, body is quite active • Regular (non-REM) sleep: heart rate, breathing, and brain activity are steady Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

13. Tips for Dealing with Infant Sleep Patterns • Recognize that infants need to feed every few hours requiring them to wake up. • Remaining in a deep sleep for long periods of time is also very _____________ for young infants whose bodies are very sensitive to physiological changes. Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

14. Infants grow best during _____________________. • Avoid letting young infants “cry it out,” especially if they are under 6 months old. • Develop a consistent sleep time routine. • Use safe sleeping guidelines. (www.attachmentparenting.org) Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

15. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) • When a healthy baby dies suddenly for ________________ • __________________ particularly vulnerable • Suggestion: Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

16. Growth of the Body • Most rapid in infancy so nutrition extremely important • Breast-feeding ensures they get the nourishment they need. Some benefits of strong milk breast-feeding… • Malnutrition - being small for one’s age because of inadequate nutrition Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

17. Emerging Nervous System • Neuron - basic cellular unit of brain and nervous system specialized In receiving and transmitting information • Cell body - center of neuron that keeps it alive • Dendrite - end of neuron that receives information • Axon - tubelike structure that emerges from cell body and transmits information to other neurons Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

18. Emerging Nervous System • Terminal buttons - small knobs at the end of the axon that release neurotransmitters • Neurotransmitters - chemicals released by terminal buttons that allow neurons to communicate • Cerebral cortex - wrinkled surface of brain that regulates many functions distinctly human • Hemispheres - right and left halves of cortex • Corpus collosum - thick bundle of neruons that connects hemispheres • Frontal cortex - brain region that regulates personality and goal-directed behavior Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

19. Emerging Brain Structures • Neural plate - group of cells present in prenatal development that becomes brain and spinal cord • Myelin - fatty sheath that wraps around neuron and enables them to transmit information more rapidly • Synaptic pruning - gradual reduction in number of synapses, beginning in infancy, continuing until early adolescence Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.

20. Brain Plasticity • Neuroplasticity – extent to which brain organization is flexible • Experience-expectant growth - process by which the wiring of the brain is organized by experiences that are common to most humans • Experience-dependent growth - process by which individual’s unique experiences affect brain structures and organization Adapted from Kail & Cavanaugh’s Human Development: A Life-Span View, 5th Ed.