Unit 4: Chapter 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22
MEETING PHYSICAL NEEDS:
Growth:
Toddlers: physical proportions change dramatically
-arms, legs and lower body lengthen
-chest becomes more prominent, head and abdomen less so
-balance and posture improve
Preschoolers: steady growth
-body becomes straighter and slimmer
-abdomen flattens, shoulders widen, neck and legs lengthen
-muscles and skeletal system become more developed
School-age children: growth is steady to age 10
-from age 10-14, growth spurts in which parts of the body grow faster than others; children may feel
awkward.
Good Nutrition:
-teaching self-feeding skills is a first step in promoting good nutrition
-parents should encourage children to eat a wide variety of healthy foods.
-serving sizes are approximately 1 tablespoon of food from each food group per year of age. (e.g. a
3 year old would eat approximately 3 tbsp of meat, 3 tbsp of vegetables, 3 tbsp of breads/cereals
and 3 tbsp of fruit at a meal.)
-it is up to parents to provide healthy food choices; it is up to children to eat as much or as little as
they need.
-introduce new foods one at a time, with foods that children like.
-children need 3 meals and 2 snacks per day
Motor Skills:
-skills that use the large muscles in the arms, legs and back are known as large motor skills
-examples include walking, running, jumping, throwing, catching
-small motor skills use small muscles in the fingers, wrists, and ankles.
-eye-hand co-ordination: the ability to move the hands and fingers
-manual dexterity: using your hands to accomplish tasks
-children show a preference for using one hand over another by about 18 months.
Hygiene Skills:
Toilet training: to teach children toilet training, parents must watch for signs of readiness
Bathing: with encouragement, children can gradually become responsible for bathing and dental
care
Dental Care:
-wipe/brush children’s teeth and gums twice a day
-brush teeth twice a day once children are eating solid foods
Unit 4: Chapter 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22
HEALTH AND SAFETY
1. The appropriate focus of health is overall wellness, rather than treating illness.
2. Preventive care, including regular medical exams and immunizations, helps maintain a
child’s wellness.
a. Toddlers should have medical checkups at 12 months, 15 months, 18 months and
every six months to one year through the preschool years.
b. School age children should see a doctor once a year.
3. Since young children cannot always describe their illness, parents need to recognize
symptoms.
4. During an illness
a. Call Telehealth Ontario if you have any questions or concerns. By calling 1-866797-0000, you have free access to a registered nurse — 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week.
b. Feed a light diet. Don’t force a child to eat. Give plenty of water and juices.
c. Give medication as prescribed by doctor until finished.
d. Ensure you give correct dosage of medication. Most dosages are based on child’s
weight.
e. Children with fever should stay home.
f. Do not give children products that contain aspirin.
Safety
1. Parents can prevent many injuries by taking simple childproofing measures such as:
a. Use gates at stairs and to keep child in a safe area.
b. Cover electrical outlets, tape cords to floor or wall; put away any electrical
appliances when not in use; keep cords out of reach.
c. Use cribs, playpens and other baby furniture in good condition; that meet safety
standards.
d. Store dangerous household products and medication in secure locations; keep all
chemicals and non-food items in their original containers and out of reach of
children.
e. Cook on rear burners of stove.; use unbreakable cups and dishes.
f. Fasten safety belts in vehicles, high chairs, strollers and shopping carts.
g. Lock up power tools and craft supplies when not in use.
h. Enforce strict rules against climbing on furniture and cabinets. Supervise children at
all times to prevent falls.
i. Keep emergency phone numbers next to phone
2. Parents must discuss personal safety with older children.
3. At bath time: use a non-slip mat in the bathtub, check water temperature, remove electrical
appliances, keep water heater at low setting, supervise bath time until children are at least 7
years old, and do not leave an older child in charge of a younger child.
4. Crib and bed safety:
a. At 3ft, a toddler is able to climb out of a crib. Keep mattress at the lowest level and
don’t put anything in the crib.
b. Use a gate to keep child in the room.
c. A child’s bed should be low, equipped with safety rails and at least 2 feet from
windows.
Unit 4: Chapter 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22
5. From birth, children are legally required to be in a car seat.
a. Rear facing in seat with five point harness until 10 kg/22 lbs.
b. Forward facing in seat with 5 point harness until 18 kg/40lbs.
c. Over 40 lbs to age 8, in a booster seat with seat belt.
6. Learning general and specific first aid procedures lets a parent react positively during an
emergency and possibly save a child’s life.
7. Parents need to treat lesser injuries correctly in order to prevent more serious damage.
EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT:
Toddlers who are between the ages of one to three, struggle with the realization that they are
separate from their parents yet still dependent in many ways. This is why we see typical behaviours
in toddlers such as temper tantrums. When children exhibit challenging behaviour such as this,
adults can play an important role in modeling respect, setting clear limits and responding in a calm
and consistent manner.
Toddlers and preschoolers:
a) are egocentric. They see things from their own point of view, understanding a situation
only as it affects them.
b) think only in the present. What’s happening right now is all-important.
Responding to emotions
 Infants thrive on parental affection. With encouragement, toddlers begin to give affection.
 Parents teach a child how to give affection and also that showing affection is a good thing.
 Parents need to show love and affection by giving lots of hugs, kisses, praise, kind deeds
and words.
 Children learn acceptable signs of affection for different situations.
Other emotions
 To help children manage anger, parents avoid frustrating situations and give children
strategies for expressing angry feelings.
 Temper tantrums are common among toddlers because they want to do more than they
can, and they can’t express themselves easily.
 When faced with a temper tantrum, remain calm, make sure children do not harm
themselves, give the tantrum as little attention as possible, maintain the rules. Save
explanations for when the child is calm. Start a quiet activity that might interest the child.
 To avoid temper tantrums: offer limited choices, save ‘no’ for big issues, help children
express negative emotions.
 Children overcome fears with reassurance, explanations and understanding.
 A parent promotes independence by allowing and encouraging children to do more for
themselves.
Unit 4: Chapter 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22
Promoting self-esteem
 Parents guide children to gain self-esteem that is based on genuine positive qualities.
 Parents who can help children believe in themselves raise children who can accomplish
things.
 What can parents do?
o Focus on important qualities such as humility, respect, self-control, compassion, etc
o Offer praise appropriately and mean what you say
o Correct misbehavior
o Be accepting
o Stay involved in the child’s life and activities
o Teach empathy so that children don’t focus on themselves at the expense of others
o Encourage independence
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT:
Although very young toddlers (ages one to two) will happily play alongside one another (what is
called parallel play), they will not play together and really cannot be expected to share and take
turns, at this stage.
As toddlers get a bit older, it is increasingly important that they spend time with other children so
they can learn to share, cooperate and get along. By the time a child is three years old, s/he should
be able to engage in more cooperative play.
Socialization: gaining attitudes, beliefs, and behaviour patterns that are acceptable in society.
A child’s first social group is the family. Parents need to teach children how to get along within the
family so that they can use these skills in the outside world.
Separation Anxiety: the stress an infant or toddler feels when separated from familiar people (like
parents). It usually passes in a few months. Parents can:
 Avoid leaving when the child is asleep or distracted
 Discuss separation matter-of-factly
 Spend time together before leaving
 Involve the child in an interesting activity
 Leave quickly, with a smile, and a wave good-bye
Sibling rivalry: competition between siblings
 Encourage siblings to play and work together but to have their own interests and friends
 Give each child enough positive attention; treat children fairly, not equally
 Allow each child to have some ‘on their own’ time
 Don’t reinforce rivalry by comparing siblings; realize each child is an individual
Social Growth
Gender identity:
 around age two, children become aware of two different genders.
 by preschool age, they know their own gender
 parents should encourage a child to develop interests and abilities regardless of gender
Toddlers:
 Toddlers enjoy being around other toddlers
Unit 4: Chapter 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22
 They watch and imitate each other
 They don’t interact with each other, share or enjoy large groups
 They engage in parallel play: playing beside each other, not with each other
 By age four, most children have the language and social skills needed for co-operative play:
playing together at agreed-upon activities
In order to develop friendships, children learn skills such as taking turns and sharing. They learn
about popularity and grow more selective about their friends.
Other important social skills that parents must teach their children include conflict resolution and
problem solving, manners, and kindness to animals. Modeling these skills and giving a lot of
opportunity for practice helps children grow socially.
INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT:
Promoting Thinking skills:
Memory strengthens as a children link words and concepts to experiences. Parents can help older
children develop strategies for improving memory. Clustering or grouping helps children recall
items based on a common quality such as colour or shape.
Curiosity motivates a child to learn about the world. Parents can encourage questions, model
curiosity, show children how to find and use resources, and stay positive even when results are
unpleasant.
A child who produces or invents something new uses imagination and creativity. Parents must be
sensitive to a child’s feelings because criticism can squash creativity.
Reasoning is the ability to think logically, rationally and analytically. It is very limited in young
children. Parents can help children use reason to make sense of experiences. Helping children
solve simple problems improves their reasoning skills.
Language Skills:
Building Vocabulary:
-speak to children and name objects starting in infancy
-listen and ask questions
-use visual aids and demonstrations
-teach children concepts such as big, small, round, square
-have fun with language using rhyme, rhythm, repetition and silly sounding words
Encourage reading by reading books with children regularly. Talk about the story, the pictures
and ask questions. Choose books that have enjoyable stories, rhymes and simple plots. Take
children to the library regularly. Research has shown that reading to children is the single most
important factor in a child’s success as a reader.
Unit 4: Chapter 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
Character is the moral strength that helps you do the right thing even when no one is looking.
Conscience:
 Emotionally healthy children develop a conscience. This is an inner sense of what is right
and wrong.
 Experts believe that the conscience develops between the ages of five and seven.
 Younger children are also starting to learn right from wrong.
 Setting limits for children and being able to say no to them is an important part of
developing their conscience.
Empathy: to learn empathy, children need positive examples to model.
Responsibility, respect, concern, trustworthiness, fairness and good citizenship are examples of
important values that parents must teach their children by setting an example and by direct
teaching.
Responsibility:
 Parents can teach children to be responsible by setting a good example and talking to them
about values.
 Parents must be clear about how they expect their children to behave, appropriate to their
age.
 Behaving responsibly builds a sense of self-worth in children.
 Children should learn:
o Personal responsibility
o Responsibility at home
o Responsibility in the community
o Responsibility at school
Outside Influences:
Children will be influenced from many sources as they spend more time away from their
parents.
1. Peer influences: Life can be affected by who your friends are. Children need to be
taught that the way friends behave and treat people is more important than their
popularity or how much money their family has.
2. Media influences: television programming, video games and Internet access can
undermine family values. These things should be monitored. Parents need to set rules
about ‘screen time’. Parents should also have discussions with their children about what
they are watching and how the values on screen fit with their family values.