Physical development1

Hina Jalal (PhD Scholar)
@AksEAina
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
HINA JALAL
(PHD SCHOLAR GCUF)

@AksEAina
Overview
Physical development is one of the major topical areas in the study of child development. It focuses on the
ways in which the overall body's structure including the brain, nervous system, muscles, organs, senses and
the bodily needs (e.g., hunger, thirst) determine an individual's behavior and development. For example, a
developmental psychologist might be interested to see how malnutrition affects the physical growth of a
child.
However, physical development is not only specified to the biological and maturational changes that occur
over time with little or no influence from the context. Rather, it is believed to occur within an environmental
context, where factors such as nutrition, opportunities for play, cultural practices etc play a significant role.

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2 THE ABCS OF GENETICS
A human body is composed of trillions of micro units, called cells. Each cell has a core control, named as the nucleus.
The nucleus contains rod like structures which are known as chromosomes. The chromosomes come in 23 pairs (one
from the father and one from the mother) and carry information about the size, shape and other genetic features inherited
from the parents. Overall, they are responsible for the storage and transmission of genetic information from one
generation to another.
2.1 Genetic inheritance
Chromosomes comprise of a series of proteins called deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA. DNA has a tendency to duplicate
itself through a process, called mitosis. This feature enables chromosomes to copy themselves and produce new cells
which have exactly the same pattern of genetic information. Each DNA carries thousands of genes across the length of
the chromosomes (Berk, 2013). Genes are the basic units of hereditary transmission. This implies that a combination of
genes results in certain traits of the child. Luckily, many harmful traits are coded as recessive by the genes, which
reduce the possibility of their genetic transmission (Berk, 2013). However, in cases, where both the parents carry the
recessive allele for a certain harmful trait, it is likely that the child will carry that disorder. Yet, inheriting certain
disorders from parents does not always lead to untreatable conditions. Rather, a supporting environment can play a
significant role in helping the child to live a normal life.

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2.2 Genes and environments
Contemporary researchers believe that genes (nature) and environment (nurture) interact to manipulate a
child's development. This is because they often influence and get influenced from each other to form patterns
of development (Keenan & Evans, 2009). Moreover, a child's genetic disposition urges him/her to find a
compatible environment for himself/herself. For example, a child with a musical talent would be inclined to
join the music/singing club at school etc. This tendency gets stronger as the child moves into adulthood and
takes the charge of his/her own environment.
On the other hand, environment may also have a critical impact on genetic factors. For example, certain
behavioral traits such as cognitive abilities etc change dramatically under supportive/unsupportive conditions.
Similarly, different children react differently to their environmental circumstances (e.g., out of the two children
coming from the 3 same deprived context, one child performs slightly better under supportive conditions,
whereas the other one performs way better).

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3 LIFE BEFORE BIRTH - PRENATAL DEVELOPMENT
Life before birth encompasses the time period between conception and birth. The
development that takes place during this period is referred to as prenatal development.
Generally, prenatal development comprises nine months which are further characterized
by three periods including the zygote, embryo and fetus (Keenan & Evans, 2009).
• The embryo marks the beginning of the third week and lasts until the end of the
second month of pregnancy. It is characterized by the most rapid changes during
prenatal period which set the stage for the development of body parts, structures and
systems.
• The fetus is the longest prenatal period which starts from the ninth week and lasts
till birth. It is characterized by immense physical growth and finishing. In particular,
the brain's growth is at its peak.
3.1 Environmental Risks - Teratogens
Any environmental agent which may affect and cause damage to the development of
embryo or fetus during the prenatal period is referred to as teratogen (Berk, 2013).
Teratogens involve a range of factors and vary in their severity. The possible damage
caused by teratogens depends on different factors such as the amount and length of the
exposure to a harmful agent, genetic structure and age of both the mother and the
fetus, and other negative influences from the environment (Keenan & Evans, 2009).

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4 PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDHOOD
4.1 The course of physical growth
The course of physical growth includes changes in body size, proportions, muscle-fat makeup, and skeleton. It also
includes gains in gross- and fine-motor skills (Berk, 2013).
i Changes in body size.
The most rapid changes in body size are observed during infancy. These changes are marked by an immense increase in the
height and weight of the child. However, the growth rate slows down in early and middle childhood. While the first two
years of life characterize rapid but decelerating annual growth trends, early and middle childhood follow slow but steady
growth.
ii Changes in body proportions.
As the body increases in size, different parts of the body grow at different rates and follow different patterns.
Understanding these trends would help us to develop appropriate expectations of a child's physical abilities at different age
levels.
The first trend in the growth of the child highlights the 'head to toe' pattern.
The next pattern follows the 'inside to outside' or 'centre to outside' path.
It follows 'general to specific' and 'large to small' patterns of development during childhood.
iii Changes in muscle-fat makeup.
Muscle to fat ratio also changes during the course of physical development. While the body fat increases at a faster rate in
infancy to help the baby keep a consistent body temperature, it is considerably reduced during early and middle childhood.
Whereas, muscles build up at a much slower rate during infancy and childhood, when compared to the adolescence period,
as they start to develop rapidly.

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iv Skeletal growth.
Since children of the same age may grow and mature differently at different speeds, it becomes difficult to account for the
causes and consequences of individual differences in physical development. Physical maturity is estimated by skeletal
growth or age which specifies a measure of the development of body bones. It is based on the number of epiphyses
(special growth centers which are present at each end of all long bones in the body) and the extent to which they are
merged. This measure of an individual's physical development helps to understand the causes and consequences of
individual differences in physical development of children.
v Changes in gross and fine motor skills.
Gross motor involves all the big muscles in a human body. Gross-motor activities involve activities which require the use
of big muscles and include crawling, walking, running, skipping and jumping. Children's gross motor skills experience
considerable gains with the increase in body size, proportion, and muscle strength.
On the other hand, fine motor skills require a precise control of muscles and coordination of body movements to perform
different activities such as drawing, writing, and cutting with scissors. With time and experience, children acquire a
complex system of fine motor skills featuring a dynamic interplay of brain, body movement, motivational and contextual
factors.

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5 PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF LEARNERS
1. Children need to move
Children at the pre and elementary school level have an inherent need to move their bodies. It is, thus, difficult for them to
remain static with little or no body movement while working on sedentary activities.
2. Improved eye-hand coordination
Eye-hand coordination, also referred to as visual motor integration skills, begin to develop during infancy. It controls the
hand movement of a child guided by his/her vision. Although this coordination is not sophisticated during infancy, it reaches
to the point of near independence during the pre-school years, and continues to improve through middle childhood.
3. Improved body coordination
Balance and coordination are critical physical attributes which help the child to maintain a controlled body position while
performing a task. While the pre and elementary school children show increased body coordination in high energy activities
such as running, climbing etc, they can still fall easily.
4. Improved perceptual abilities
Although the five basic senses are well-developed at birth, the child continues to develop perceptual abilities during pre and
elementary school years. These improved abilities help the child to interact with the physical and social world in an effective
way.
5. Improved gross and fine motor skills
The motor skill development follows the 'general to specific' growth pattern among children. Children tend to develop gross
motors well in advance before they start to develop fine motor skills. Pre and elementary school children develop better
upper body mobility and coordination.

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Thank
You

Physical development1

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