The First Two Years of Birth

A person that say babies are boring, they haven’t spent too much time watching them. Most people accept the thought that a newborn infant just eats and sleeps, ignoring the complex and their rapid growth.

A typical infant comes into the world with all of its senses: it can see, taste, hear, feel, and smell. However, all of these senses are not yet completely developed. Also, they can move. The muscles, bones, and nervous system are already developed and ready for use. The first duty from the early weeks and months is to learn to use their sensory and motor (movement) abilities, to learn how to use these sensory and use it efficiently. This has to be most remarkable task anyone faces in life. Think about the incredible amount of growth a child most make in its first two years. There are no other period in all of our life will be mark by such massive and speedy development.

Expecting a Child

Prenatal Development

The fertilization of an egg by a sperm is the start of pregnancy and conception. The first two weeks of cell division, which follow by fertilization, there is little differentiation between the kinds of cells produced. However, after that first two weeks the embryo starts to produce diverse cells and primitive structures that will become the main organs such as the heart, veins, brain, kidney, eyes, liver, and digestive tract. Even though the embryo is less than an inch long, it already develops into a recognizable human form.

By around the 16th weeks the embryo now resembles a human infant measuring about six or seven inches in length. During this period the fetus, as the embryo is now called, starts to move about within the uterus, and the mother can feel the movement.

Right through the rest of the pregnancy, the fetus develops by increasing in size and its complexity. While the basic human structure develops in the first few weeks, the inner organs now grow and setting up the functions once the organs are fully develop. In the third month of pregnancy, the fetus has primitive reflexes; by the end of the fifth month, it can make grasping gestures, blink, suck, and swallow.

What not to do during pregnancy

Don’t smoke: It’s not good for you and bad for the baby. Get help by asking your doctor on ways to stop smoking.

Don’t eat too much “junk food”: Sugary food, candy, soda, chips and other sweets have little nutrition that’s good for you or the baby.

No alcohol: Even a drink a day might harm the baby. Get help from your doctor if you need to stop drinking.

Don’t take drugs or medications: Not even aspirin without consulting with your doctor.

Dr. Benjamin Spock

The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, written by Dr. Benjamin Spock’s in 1946, has sold over 25 million copies to date, more than any book (except the Bible) in U.S. history.

In the 1940’s, Dr. Spock advised parents to loosen up the tight scheduled approach to child rising: at that time this idea seemed revolutionary. He advocated considering each child as an individual, that each child’s needs are different from other children. His advice was important in the growth of a more relaxed, but yet more child-centered approach to child rising.

Theories of Child Development

Near the beginning of 1800’s, child development became a topic of scientific research. Previously the religion and philosophy were the two primary influences of the way and styles of raising a child.

Philosophers

An English philosopher John Locke, says that all knowledge is acquired from experience. A child is like a blank sheet of paper in which all experiences could be written on it. If this were true, controlling the environments and setting which the child was raised would lead to an expected outcome.

This viewpoint gave little influence to the child’s inborn predisposition to become or do certain things. They properly acknowledged the role of cause and effect in the child’s development.

A German philosopher Immanuel Kant believed that there are different [... continue reading]

Children in Development

Each parent deal with the incredibly difficult duty of raising children and may be overwhelm with conflicting advices claiming to be vital for the child’s future regarding mental and physical health. That is why many new parents are overwhelmed by this situation and many are just not ready for parenthood.

How do parents know which childcare professional is right or not? There are so many different advices, which one should they use? It may seem there are no real correct way for raising a child. Different cultures and different generations have different views on child development; regardless of these differences, the majority of the children in all societies develop into healthy and functional adults.

For instance, between 1820 and 1860, American parenting were guided by moralistic, [... continue reading]