Summarize the physical growth and development of children ages 6-11.

• growth = 1-3 inches per year
• growth spurt: girls 10-12, boys 12-13
• weigth gain = 5-8 lbs per year

Discuss the problem of obesity in middle childhood. What are the contributing factors related to obesity?

1. incidence of obesity among US kids rapidly increasing (15% 6-11 yr olds are obese compared to 11% in 1994)
2. genetics, environment, inactivity

Rough and Tumble Play

Is it typical across cultures?

What gender is is seen more in?

kids 6-11 spend less time in unstructured play and more time in rough and tumble play, informal games and organized sports

includes wrestling, kicking, tumbling, grappling, and chasing with screaming and laughing

cross - cultural

seen in boys more than girsl

Why are some children not as physically fit as they should be?

decrease in PE classes

emphasis on competitive sports: only the best kids get to play b/c winning is more important

Asthma

What are some causes?

Asthma is the most prevalent chronic illness in this age group. (increased 232% since 1969)

Causes:

tightly insulated houses

environmental toxins

allergies

tobacco smoke in house

pets

use of gas stoves

How does asthma affect child's development?

children miss an avg. of 10 days of school and experience 20 days limited activity...

 both with developmental implications

Leading cause of death (5-14 yrs old)
What activities lead to

increased incidence of ER visits?

accidental injuries leading cause of death

Activities: bicycles

snowmobiles

trampolines

to prevent, wear headgear for all sports

under 16 shouldn't ride snowmobiles

no trampolines!

What is Piaget's stage of cognitive development for this age group?

Concrete Operations (3rd stage)

ages 7-12

children develop logical but not abstract thinking

includes advances in logical thinking w/ regards to:

cause and effect

seriation

inductive and deductive reasoning

Concrete operational child

and

Conservation

Horizontal Decalage?

Child now understands reversability

can solve problem of ball of clay or

2 glasses of water

Horizontal Decalage - unable to transfer learning about one type of conservation to other types

(Ex: solves clay but not water problem

or vice versa)

3 Stages of Moral Development

(Piaget)

Stage 1

 ages 2-7 (pre-operational stage)

obedience to authority

thinks rigidly about right and wrong

rules come from adult and can never be changed

punishment is deserved regardless of intent

3 Stages of Moral Development

(Piaget)

Stage 2

ages 7-11 (concrete operations)

increasing flexibility based on mutual respect and cooperation

develop sense of justice, based on fairness and equity for all

considers intent

3 Stages of Moral Development

(Piaget)

Stage 3

ages 11 or 12 (Formal Operations)

AKA Equality Stage

equality in justice but takes into account specific circumstances

Ex: 2 yr old vs. 10 yr old spilling milk

considers intent and age appropriate ability

Pros and Cons of Intelligence Testing

Most widely used individual test for intelligence?

Pros - IQ scores in middle childhood fairly good predictors of school achievements

Cons - timed tests (some children don't do well on timed tests)

does not measure native ability b/c test infer intelligence from what children have learned (from school or culture)

unfair to minorities

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-III)

Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligence

 each person has several distinct forms of intelligence

different parts of the brain process different kinds of information

Gardner assesses intelligence directly by observing its products (individual testing by observation)

8 Types of Intelligence

1. Linguistic: writing, editing, translating
2. Mathematical/Logical: science, business
3. Musical: musical composition, conducting
4. Spatial: architecture, carpentry, city planning
5. Bodily/Kinesthetic: dancing, athletics
6. Interpersonal: teaching, acting, politics
7. Intrapersonal: counseling, spiritual leader
8. Naturalist: hunting, fishing, gardening

Parents of High Achievers

• create environment for learning
• provide place to study
• set times for meals, sleep, homework
• monitor how much TV watched and what kids do after school
• show interest in children's lives
• as child gets older responsibility shifts from parent to child

Intrinsic

and

Extrinsic Rewards

Intrinsic - encouragement and praise for ability and hard work. More effective

Extrinsic - giving children money or treats for good grades or punishing them for bad ones, NOT as motivational for children. Child studies for wrong reasons

What parenting style tends to develop children to become high achievers in school?

Authoritative parents - children were curious and interested in learning, liked challenging tasks and solving problems by themselves

Authoritarian - lower achieving, relied on extrinsic rewards and too close of supervision

Permissive - lower achieving, did not seem to care how child did in school

Self - Fulfilling Prophecy

Oak Hill School Experiment

children live up or down to other people's expectations for them

Oak Hill - teachers falsely told student had unusual potential, teachers treated these students better and in a few months these kids showed unusual gains in IQ.

Social Promotion

automatically promoting kids even if they do not meet academic standards

*Although retention can be wake up call, most cases it is first step towards lowered expectations, poor performance and dropping out of school*

NEED to identify at risk students early and intervene before they fail

How do schools meet needs of non-English speaking students?

1. English immersion - minority children immersed in English from beginning
2. Bilingual education - taught in 2 languages, first in native language then switching to English when proficient
3. 2-way/Dual language learning - english speaking and foreign children learn together. Most succesful approach but least common. English speakers learn foreign language at early age.