Early Childhood Development

Physical Development
Children in this stage of development should be able to walk down stairs
alternating their feet. They have the ability to throw balls with increased
body rotation and catches ball. Children should be able to ride a bicycle
with training wheels; some may even be able to ride without them.
Language Development
During this stage of development children speaks clearly and in full
sentences. They can distinguish between past and future tense and use them correctly.
They also master additional conversational strategies, such as turnabout.
Cognitive Development
With further cognitive development children in this stage are able to sort familiar objects
into categories. They have the ability to distinguish between animate and inanimate
objects. They have replaced make-believe and belief in magical creatures with reasonable
explanations such as Santa becomes their parents and fairies do not exist.
Social-Emotional Development
Two typical social/emotional milestones during this stage of development are the ability
to use active strategies to help regulate own emotions, and the ability to make social
comparisons among multiple individuals (Berk, 2013).
Moral Reasoning/Self-Regulation
Children in this stage of development are able to understand good conduct and
the expectations of good conduct. They have a gradual understanding of ideal
reciprocity and emphasize with peoples intentions and expectations in regards
to moral judgment. When faced with what they perceive as violations of moral
conduct they are able to consider more variables such as purpose of the rule,
peoples intentions and context (Berk, 2013).
Signs of Atypical Development
Some signs of atypical development are the child is withdrawn and not active. They have
trouble focusing on activity for more than 5 minutes and are easily distracted. The child is
unable to distinguish between reality and make-believe and often replace one with the
other. They do not have developed self-help skills such as brushing teeth or dressing.
When faced with the lack of skills found in this stage of development, parent should
address any concerns with their doctor.
Social Influences
Children in this stage are still greatly influences by the adults and other
children around them. They still follow the things there parents and
siblings do. Children receive their first lessons on social cues and how
to interpret them from their families. They place high value on the
actions of their parents, teachers, and peers.
Cultural Influences
Children are greatly influenced by the morals and values that are held
within the family. From an early age they learn things are specific to their religion,
society, and culture. This can be things as simple as choice of food to more complex
moral issues such as right and wrong. These cultural influences will affect their moral
self-concept and later development.
Strategies for families to help childs learning and development
One thing that families can do to help with the childs learning and development in this
stage is to participate in reading time. Children in this stage are developing strong
language skills. By having at least 20 minutes of reading everyday children are able to
expand their vocabulary and practice their language skills. Story time can also help with
cognitive skills. The parents can ask questions related to the story to help their child
develop strong comprehension skills.



References
Berk, L. E. (2013).Child development. (9th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Important Milestones: Your Child at Five Years. (2014, March 27). Retrieved August 11, 2014, from
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/milestones/milestones-5yr.html