29 Introduction to Infancy
Learning Objectives
At the end of this lesson, you will be able to
- Summarize overall physical growth during infancy.
- Describe the growth of the brain during infancy.
- Contrast development of the senses in newborns.
- Compare gross and fine motor skills and give examples of each.
- Explain the merits of breastfeeding.
- Discuss nutritional concerns of marasmus and kwashiorkor.
- List and describe the six substages of sensorimotor intelligence.
- Describe stages of language development during infancy.
- Define babbling, holophrasic speech, and overregularization.
- Contrast styles of attachment.
- Discuss the importance of temperament and goodness of fit.
- Describe self-awareness, stranger wariness, and separation anxiety.
- Use Erikson’s theory to characterize psychosocial development during infancy.
Introduction
Welcome to the story of development from infancy through toddlerhood; from birth until about two years of age. Researchers have given this part of the life span more attention than any other period, perhaps because changes during this time are so dramatic and so noticeable and perhaps because we have assumed that what happens during these years provides a foundation for one’s life to come. However, it has been argued that the significance of development during these years has been overstated (Bruer, 1999). Nevertheless, this is a period of life that contemporary educators, healthcare providers, and parents have focused on most heavily. We will examine growth and nutrition during infancy, cognitive development during the first 2 years, and then turn our attention toward attachments formed in infancy.
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Bruer, J. T. (1999). The myth of the first three years: A new understanding of early brain development and lifelong learning. New York: Simon and Schuster.
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