Growth and Development in Children

Growth and Development in Children

Growth and development among children is quite a complex psychological and physiological process. It requires the growth and development of various aspects of a child.  Growth and development in children involve the aspect of physical, cognitive as well as development milestones achievements. Besides, the process occurs in stages of child growth and development. There are different stages of growth and development. In this paper, we analyze a child who is a preschooler. This is a child between the age of 3 to 5.

A Preschooler is a child who has not yet been enrolled in an education or schooling system. They involve children who are undergoing preparation to join the education system. Such examples of a child include a child who is in nursery schools or the preschool system, such as pre-primary schools or in early education (Ricci & Kyle, 2009).  As a resident of the Hawai state, I chose to analyses the growth and development of children in the Hawai community.

Children exhibit different features in terms of their growth and development. One of the aspects of growth is physical growth and development.  The physical growth and development of a child in the preschooler stage are said to be rapid. According to research studies, a child in the preschooler stage exhibit a steady increase in growth exhibited in terms of increased height, weight as well as muscle tone (Walker & Holland, 2019). In comparison with the toddlers, a preschooler’s legs, for instance, is longer and leaner

Cognitive development and growth among children is also another aspect of growth.  It involves improved growth and development in terms of reasoning, thinking as well as understanding. This stage of growth is crucial for knowledge expansion.  From the analysis of children in my community, a preschooler learns at this stage questioning skills, spatial relationships, problem-solving skills, memory enhancement, symbolic interaction, among other types of skills.

Moreover, development milestones are other steps that are very important for a child to take. Child development milestones refer to types of skills that are gained by a child within a specific period of early childhood growth and development.   For a preschooler, based on my analysis and observation of the children in my community, I have realized some of the skills and knowledge a child gains at this stage.  It is at this stage that the world of a child starts to open up.  A preschoolers’ child starts to show independence. Some of the skills a child at this age group gains or learned include jumping, walking, talking fluently without struggling too much, socializing with people, and being more active in plays, among other things (Burns et al. 2012). Other skills may include showing affection, hopping on a single foot.

Another important ingredient, nutritional needs stimulate growth and development discussed above. Proper nutrition for a preschooler is very important.  The age of a preschooler also has specified nutritional needs that parents need to adhere to. In Hawai, various programs have been set up to enhance the nutritional health of children across all ages. Some of the nutritional requirements that are very necessary for the growth and development of a child, especially a preschooler, include; lean meat, poultry, seafood such as fish, eggs, legumes, as well as lightly processed foods (Ricci & Kyle, 2009). Besides, such foods contain minerals for growth and strong borne formation among such children.

Also, there is the issue of child-parent interaction, communication, discipline, plays as well as recreational activities. Many of such skills are enhanced with the development milestone aspect.  Parent-child interaction Is usually reduced at this stage. When children milestone development skills, they start showing independence. Hence, a child starts being more involved in plays and recreational activities from their fellow friends outside their close-knit with their parents (Burns et al. 2012). Many preschoolers I seen in my community can ride bicycles, different play types, show affection to their close people, effectively performing coloring.

Early child growth and development is a challenging stage due to some of the challenges that are faced during this stage. One example of such a challenge is cultural implications.  Research studies have shown that cultural implications such as art, ethnicity, language, music, religious practices impact children’s growth and development either positively or negatively (Walker & Holland, 2019).  As a result, a child faces the challenge of progressing under the required growth and development domains. Ethnicity, for instance, cultural practices that prohibit the eating of certain diets may also bar a challenge from getting nutrition benefits from certain diets.   Children’s safety is also a challenge. However, for preschoolers, they usually have an understanding of mental capacity and can be able to listen to instructions and avoid dangerous situations. However, safety measures are still required to be undertaken in such situations.  Generally, for preschoolers, you have to check the environment they are interacting with to ensure there is safety on the various activities they are engaging in.