Child Development 3-12
Part 2: Ages 6 to 9
Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service
Core In-Service
February 12, 2010
9:00-11:00 a.m.
Debbie Richardson, Ph.D.
Parenting Assistant Extension Specialist
Human Development & Family Science
Oklahoma State University
Introduction
 Welcome
 Centra instructions
 Overview of in-service
 Resource materials
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In-Service Objective
Extension Educators will be able to describe
growth, tasks, behaviors, and abilities of 6 to 9
year-old children including physical, cognitive,
emotional, and social development.
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Domains of Development
Physical
Cognitive
Social
Emotional
 Ages 5-7, skills in all domains are emerging
 Ages 6-8, beginning to consolidate growth in all domains
 Learning fundamental communication, math and problem-
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solving skills
 Expanding social and community awareness
Physical Development
Ages 6-9
Growth
 Rate of physical growth is slower  Eyes reach maturity in size
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– occurs in spurts
Often 3-6 growth spurts a year,
each lasting about 8 weeks
Height: Generally 2” to 2.5”/year
Weight: Average 5-7 lbs./year
Loss of front primary teeth and
emergence of permanent teeth
about age 6-7 – replace about 4
teeth per year
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and function
Brain growth slows - has
almost reached adult size
Head circumference increases
about 1”
Gradual growth of face
Infection-fighting lymphoid
tissues (i.e., tonsils, adenoids)
Individual Development
 Significant differences in
appearance including height,
weight and build
 Heredity, nutrition, normal
developmental variation and
physical activity can all affect
rate of growth & development
 AAP recommends well-child
visits at 5, 6, 8, and 10 years
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Motor Abilities & Skills
 Fine and large motor skills
 Muscle coordination and control are still uneven and
incomplete
 Muscular strength, hand-eye coordination, and stamina
continue to progress rapidly allowing older children the
ability to perform increasingly complex physical tasks (e.g.,
dance, sports, musical instruments)
 Skills/abilities influenced by growth, age, level of practice
performing tasks, and individual child’s innate abilities
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By age 5-6
Large motor
 Stand on one foot for 10
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seconds or longer
Hop
Somersault
Swing
Skip
Fine motor
 Copy geometric patterns
and print some letters
 Draw a person with a body
 Use fork, spoon, and
sometimes table knife
properly
 Able to take care of basic
hygiene (e.g., bathing,
teeth, toliet)
By age 8-9
 More graceful with movements
and abilities
 Master eye-hand coordination
 Manipulative skills increase
 Dresses and grooms self
completely
 Can use tools more effectively
 Good printing and writing
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Sleep
 Need about 9-11 hours per night
 Consistent sleep schedule and
 Increasing demands from school,
bedtime routine
 Quiet, private time
 Bedroom – dark, cool and
quiet, no TV or computers
 Avoid caffeine
sports, other activities
 TV, computers, video games,
caffeine can lead to difficulty falling
asleep, nightmares and disruptions
 Sleep problems, disorders common
 Poor/inadequate sleep can lead to
mood swings, behavioral problems,
cognitive problems that impact
ability to learn in school
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Cognitive Development
Ages 6-9
Cognitive Development - Piaget
Preoperational Stage: 2-7 yrs
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Concrete Operational Stage: 7-12 yrs
Thought processes (operations) become organized and
integrated with one another – allow logical thought
Ability to classify objects in multiple ways, order objects in a
logical sequence
Make rational judgments and perform operations about
concrete or observable phenomena
Abstract thinking, yet still limited (no hypothetical or
complex abstractions)
Cognitive Development - Piaget
 Better understanding of time and space, but not yet able to
correctly place events in time sequence
 Some reversibility - quantities moved can be restored (e.g.,
3+4 = 7 and 7-4 = 3), understand changes in form of
object
 Deductive reasoning – ability to draw conclusions from
given facts & info
 Relativism – realize other’s thoughts & perspectives differ
from own, can be wrong themselves, their own and other’s
thoughts/feelings do not reflect reality
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The Evolving Brain
 Continued brain development underlies changes in
cognitive skills
 Different parts of the brain start to function more
effectively as a coordinated system
 Newly developed functions enable children to coordinate
their thinking and their behaviors more effectively
 Pre-frontal cortex is still immature – the part responsible
for good judgment and control of impulses
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Metacognition
 Process of thinking about thinking
 Automatic awareness of own
knowledge and ability to
understand, control, and
manipulate their cognitive
processes
 Begins to think about own
behavior and see consequences
for actions
 Can think through actions and
trace back events that happened
to explain situations
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Thinking
 Dramatic increase in real-world knowledge – expanding
experiences outside homes, in schools and communities
 Fantasy thinking gives way to logical thinking, distinguish
between real & pretend, understand cause-and-effect
 Occasionally revert to pre-logical thinking patterns under
stress - normal and results from a healthy, active imagination
 Increase in speed and capacity of memory processing allows
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handling more complex problems; can consider 2 or more
aspects of a problem
Thinking
 Learn to control attention and concentrate for longer
periods of time - can obtain and use information more
efficiently
 Practicing and paying attention can
improve remembering new things
 About age 6, begin to internalize strict moral rules of
behavior (right or wrong) - Can understand and apply
rules, make judgments, and want rules strictly followed
 Able to develop simple plans before acting, to achieve
goals, more reliable without adult supervision
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Attention and Learning
 Rarely can sit for longer than 15-20
minutes for an activity
 Attention span gets longer with age
 May begin projects but finish
few…more about exploring
 Best learn through activities
 Can talk through problems to solve
them – requires more adult time
and child’s sustained attention
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Language
 Continually increasing
vocabulary
 By age 8, can understand
about 20,000 words
 Speak with more precision
 Begin to understand a word
may have different meanings
 Begin to read and write
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By age 5-6
 Recall parts of a story, tell longer stories
 Speak sentences of more than 5 words
 Use future tense
 Recite address correctly
 Count 10 or more objects
 Correctly name at least 4 colors
 Know about common items such as money, food, appliances
 Most learn to read by age 6-7, but some as early as 4-5
 Simple math, addition & subtraction
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By age 8-9 (3rd/4th grades)
 Can count backward and understand fractions
 Reading a paragraph extends beyond deciphering words to
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understanding content
Writing extends beyond correct spelling and penmanship to
composing a sentence and start paragraphs
Enjoy playing strategy games
Enjoy word play (e.g., puns, insults) to exercise and show off
growing cognitive & language abilities
Mostly think in present terms, but may
think about the future
Social & Emotional
Development
Ages 6-9
Psychosocial Development
Erikson
o Initiative Vs. Guilt (Purpose)
About 3 ½ to 6 years
Feel free to act, create, express self creatively, and take risks.
o Industry Vs. Inferiority
7-11 years
Busily learn to be competent and productive or feel inferior
and unable to do anything well. Tries to develop a sense of
self-worth by refining skills.
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Expanding Social World
 Spend more time outside their homes, in school, with peers, and
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in activities with other adults and without adults present
Have increased freedom and autonomy to explore the world
Become less dependent on family and less self-centered
Greater physical and cognitive capacities make it possible to be
more responsible for tasks at home and school
Very energetic, like to make things, take risks, and are interested
in accomplishing a task
Need to develop a sense of mastery or
competence by performing tasks
without adult help
Expanding Social World
 Changes from fantasy play where imagination is key element to
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rules-based games with objective to win a competition regulated
by rules
More capable of playing a larger number of children for longer
periods of time and sticking to rules of a game
Belonging and acceptance by peers becomes very important
concern; no longer look to only adults for gratification
Very concerned with justice and fairness
Develop and show social skills (i.e., empathy, compassion) by
observing effect of their own and others’ behaviors toward others
Emotions
 Usually able to articulate thoughts  Common fears include
and feelings
 Although no less articulate than
girls, many boys are not as
expressive mainly due to
socialization to be masculine
 By age 9, most boys have
successfully learned to repress
feelings except anger – tend to be
more physically oriented in selfexpression
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monsters, the dark, the
unknown, school, failure,
death, family problems,
and rejection
6 Year-Olds
 Emotions up and down
 Plays best with one friend
 Thrives on approval
rather than large group
 Needs to be reminded of
instructions
 Money and rewards of
greater interest
 Possessive with belongings;
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not yet able to distinguish
“mine” & “yours”
Responds negatively at first
then cooperates
Has trouble compromising
Difficulty making choices
Likes to help with routines
7 Year-Olds
 Does not listen or take
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 Plays easily with others
 Wants to be part of a group
 May be self-absorbed, moody,
 Becoming more aware of self
and others
 Sensitive to others’ feelings;
may feel others dislike them,
are critical or poking fun
 Dislikes individual praise
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correction well
Responds well to rewards
Procrastinates, easily
distracted, short memory,
tunes out; loses interest
suddenly
Very competitive and does
not know how to lose
Lies because of immaturity
Immature sense of ownership
Fights with words
More modest about body
8 Year-Olds
 More outgoing and self-confident
 Easily disappointed if people
 More self-aware and self-judging;
don’t behave as wished
 Talks a lot and gossips
 Cannot lose gracefully
 Interested in & concerned
about possessions
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dislikes being teased about
shortcomings
Can respond rapidly to
instructions
Prefers hint/cue rather than a
direct order; responds to glance
Asks for praise; wants time,
attention, affection, approval
Tells tales with some truth
Dramatic, impatient, demanding
Likes to argue, compete, criticize
9 Year-Olds
 Quieter; more self-control; can
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spend more time alone
Increasingly self-confident,
independent, responsible,
dependable, cooperative
Likes to please
Likes organized activities; likes
to be chosen
Friendships are more solid
Sometimes temperamental
May resist/rebel authority and
being told what to do
 Great interest in fairness
 Group standards more
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important than parental
standards
Demanding /critical of others
and self
Self-involved; may not hear
when spoken to; may appear
absent-minded or indifferent
Shows anger at parents but is
loyal to family, friends
Takes criticism or commands
better if carefully phrased
Related Issues
Ages 6-9
Peers & Friendships
 Develop ability to communicate
 Understand others’ points of view
 Enable functioning as part of a group
 Learn social rules
 Develop personality through interaction
 Opportunities for give and take, negotiation of differences,
shared experiences, mutual trust
 Naturally curious about relationships between genders, but peer
group usually consists of same-sex friendships and typically deny
interest in opposite sex
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Self-Concept
 Shift in self-esteem – continue to develop a sense of self
and how perceived by others
 Measure own worth in a more objective way based on
social acceptance and own sense of competence
 Parents who demonstrate close relationship, acceptance,
define clear limits for activities and behaviors, and respect
child’s stage of development and unique individuality help
build high self-esteem
 Higher self-esteem → can better develop ways to resist
risk factors for aggression, violence, and other negative
behaviors
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Stress
 Growth & development
 School
 Peers
 Schedule
 Problems at home
 Pressure to conform to expectations from family,
teachers, other adults
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Relationships with Parents
 Change as children’s competence and
autonomy increase
 Parents need to share their control over
children’s lives with the children
themselves
 Parents need to change parenting
strategies to incorporate:
 reasoning
 reinforcement of children’s
understanding of right & wrong
 problem-solving & prosocial skills
 use of humor
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Discussion & Questions
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Wrap-up
 Watch video clip and review resource materials
 In-service evaluation
 Next Session on Ages 10-12: Friday, Feb. 19, 9–11am
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