Ivan Lopez Blog #1

Childhood Development

The topic I chose to talk about in my blog post in Childhood Development. Childhood Development can be described as a complex and dynamic process through which a child grows physically, emotionally, socially, and cognitively from infancy to adolescence. It encompasses various stages, each marked by significant milestones. Early childhood lays the foundation for later life, as children rapidly acquire basic motor skills and language abilities. As they progress, emotional and social development becomes crucial, fostering empathy, self-awareness, and interpersonal relationships. Cognitive development, including memory, problem-solving, and critical thinking, also advances, enabling children to learn, adapt, and thrive. The environment, including family, peers, and educational experiences, plays a pivotal role in shaping a child’s development, making it a field of study and intervention vital for nurturing healthy, well-rounded individuals.

In my personal life I have witnessed this concept applied in many children watching how they grow but the situation that stands out to me most is my nephew. My nephew Luis is 6 years old and has Autism which has slowed and deferred this process both cognitively and physically. Over the years he has experienced change at a slower rate and has not come close to gaining the consciousness of a regular kid. During the sensorimotor stage (birth-2), Luis did not experience all that he was supposed to such as object permanence and did not remember much of what he ate or played with. He would be presented with toys which he used multiple times and could not figure out how to use them or what they were. He also showed how excited he was when receiving a gift then was given the same gift later in the day and was excited as if he never got it before. Moving forward into the preoperational stage (years 2-6/7), most children start to learn language, form theory of mind, and become egocentric. Being autistic means that he will not gain these traits right away. Luis has barely been able to speak, let alone perform everyday tasks that an ordinary child could perform. It is questionable if he has his own mindset because he won’t know what he’s thinking based on how small of a reactive personality he shows but it can be seen and proven that he is not able to perform the tasks of a normal child. This is why I chose Child Development because this not only proves that this concept is true, it proves that it can differ from person to person and change based on the brain capacity of each individual.