 Height
 Weight
 Hair color
 Eye color
 Senses
 Smell
 Taste
 Hearing
 Vision
 Touch

 Also includes motor skills:
 Fine Motor Skills – involve small muscles in the body.
 Example – muscles that control your fingers.
 Gross Motor Skills – involve larger muscles in the body.
 Example – muscles that are in your legs, shoulders and arms

What affects physical development?
 Prenatal Care
 Genes
 Overall Healthiness
 Nutrition
 Experiences and Exposure
 Environment

Physical Development in Infancy
Average Birth Statistics
Birth
6 months
1 year
Males Females
Length Weight
19 3/4 7 ½
Length Weight
19 1/2 7 1/2
26 1/2 17 1/2 25 1/2 15 1/2
29 22 1/2 29 21

Physical Development in Infancy…
 From birth to 1, babies normally triple their birth weight
 Average stats are just that…pediatricians watch for steady growth rather than hitting specific marks.
 Chart boys and girls separately.

Average Growth Charts

Growth in the first year
 Babies gain approximately 1 pound per month.
 Height is referred to as length at this stage of life because babies are measured laying down.
 Bone growth is rapid during this stage.

Growth in the first year
 Heredity genes play a role in increase in length.
 Head and abdomen are normally larger than the legs and arms (disproportioned).
 Soft spot on head to allow the brain to grow.

Physical Development in Infancy
 Vision:
 Takes about a week before babies eyes can focus.
 By 6 months, vision has clarity and sharpness of an adult.
 Begin to have depth perception around 2 months
 Eye muscles continue to strengthen
 Can see vibrant colors and patterns

Physical Development in Infancy
 Hearing:
 Can hear when they are born (an infant hearing test is administered shortly after birth)
 Respond to sound/tones rather than specific words.
 By 7 months, babies can recognize parents voices (and other voices who the babies hear on a regular basis)
 Hearing abilities can affect language and speech development.

Physical Development in Infancy
 Speech:
 Though babies are not “talking,” the muscles in the throat and mouth strengthen to help babies develop speech abilities.
 Babies will mimic what they hear

Physical Development in Infancy
Motor Skills
 Babies have little control over their muscles when they are born.
 Must gain coordination, as well as build muscles
 During the 1 st year, gross motor skills develop more than fine motor skills

Physical Development in Infancy
 Gross Motor Skill Development
 Turning head, waving arms, kicking legs
 Holding up head/controlling neck
 Rolling over
 Sitting up
 Push up format
 Army crawling
 Up on all fours – arms and legs
 Crawling

Physical Development in Infancy
 Fine Motor Skills
 Clenching fists
 Hold toys in their hands
 Picking up objects and food
 Holding their own bottles
 Hand-Eye Coordination
 Begins developing around 3 months
 Can move objects purposefully around 1 year