The 6 stages of childhood (physical and psychological development)

The first years of life are marked by phases of childhood development.

Childhood is the stage of life that goes from birth to youth. However, within this phase there are also different moments that mark the rhythms of the child's development, both physically and psychologically.

That is why it is possible to distinguish between different stages of childhood. This is a classification that both psychologists and health professionals in general take into account to understand how human beings think, feel and act when they go through their first years of life.

The stages of childhood

We will now give a brief overview of these stages of childhood and the physical and mental changes that occur in the passage from one to another.

However, it should be kept in mind that the boundaries between these phases are blurred and do not always occur in the same way; each child is different. In any case, in all of these stages of childhood development can be seen in all these stages of childhood from processing information related to the senses and the present, to the understanding of abstract concepts that transcend the here and now. Unless some genetic or medical condition is present, this development will occur naturally if the nurturing environment is conducive.

On the other hand, this classification assumes that children go through a formal education process in schools; although this is not always the case, the evolution of children's nervous systems is similar in all societies and cultures.

Intrauterine period

Although childhood is considered to begin at birth, it is sometimes assumed that it may begin earlier, especially in cases of premature birth. This phase includes the early and late fetal period, and involves processes of rapid formation and refinement of the senses.

It should be kept in mind that, although totally dependent on others at this stage, the main learning processes are already taking place, especially through hearing. However, these are subject to a very simple and basic type of memorization.. For example, at this stage the areas of the brain involved in providing the basis for autobiographical memory have not yet developed.

This stage of life is characterized by the fact that neither the Biological structures of the organism have matured, nor has the child had the opportunity to learn from immersion in a social and sensory stimulating environment.

2. Neonatal period

This phase of infancy begins at birth and ends approximately at the end of the first month. In the neonatal period, babies learn the main regularities of the world around them and the most direct communication with other human beings is established, although they are not yet able to understand the concept of "I" and "you" since they have not yet mastered language. the concept of "I" and "you" is not yet understood because language has not yet been mastered..

In addition, even from the earliest days, babies show an astonishing facility for distinguishing phonemes and, in fact, are able to discriminate different languages by how they sound. This is an ability that is lost in the first months of life.

As far as physical changes are concerned, at this stage of infancy the whole body begins to grow except for the head. In addition, at this stage one is very vulnerableand sudden death is much more frequent in this period of time.

3. Postneonatal or infant period

This is still one of the earliest stages of infancy, but in this case, unlike the previous stage, physical and psychological changes are easier to notice, since there are more qualitative changes in behavior.

In the infant stage sufficient musculature to maintain an upright posture to maintain an upright posture and, in addition, at around 6 months of age, babbling and mumbling begin. In addition, they learn to coordinate body parts so that it is easy to move them together with precision (fine motor development).

Of course, breastfeeding is a very important element in this phase of growth, as it provides both nourishment and a channel of communication with the mother that allows for bonding.

4. Early childhood period

Early infancy is from the first to the third year of age, and coincides approximately with the stage when children attend kindergarten.. Here they begin to control the use of language itself, although at first it is a telegraphic language with single words and later they gain the ability to formulate simple sentences with incorrect generalizations (calling a dog "cat", for example).

On the other hand, at this stage, sphincter control begins to be gained and a strong will to explore and discover things is shown; according to Jean Piaget, this curiosity was precisely the engine of learning.

Moreover, at this stage, thinking is fundamentally egocentric in the sense that it is very difficult to imagine what they think or what they do not think. it is very difficult to imagine what others think or believe.. This does not mean that children want to harm others, but that their attention is focused on concepts that refer to oneself, since they are the easiest to understand and relate to sensory experiences.

As for physical changes, the size of the lathe and limbs continues to grow, and the difference in size between the head and the rest of the body is reduced, although this development is slower than in previous stages.

5. Preschool period

The preschool period is from 3 to 6 years of age. This is the stage of childhood in which the capacity for Theory of Mind is gained, that is, the ability to attribute unique intentions, beliefs and motivations (that are different from one's own) to others. This new ability greatly enriches social relationships, although it also allows lying to be more useful and effective as a resource.

In addition, here their ability to think in abstract terms develops further, partly because of myelination of their brains and partly because they begin to deal habitually with broad communities other than just their parents.partly because of the myelination of their brain and partly because they begin to deal habitually with wider communities than just their mother and father.

On the one hand, myelination means that more parts of the brain are connected to each other, allowing more abstract concepts to be created from the combination of ideas of many kinds, and on the other hand, the enrichment of the type of interactions to which the child is subjected means that his or her cognitive abilities learn to cope with more complex tasks.

In this phase, the child begins to reach agreements, to negotiate and to seek to give a concrete image. At the end of this phase, one often starts to try to adjust one's behavior to the to adjust one's own behavior to gender rolesand cases of gender dysphoria appear frequently during this stage.

6. School period

The school period is the last stage of childhood and the one that gives way to adolescence. It goes from 6 to 12 years old and in this phase the ability to think in abstract and mathematical terms is highly developed, although it does not reach its maximum. This is due to the fact that the myelination of the brain continues its course (and will not slow down until the third decade of life). The frontal lobes begin to be better connected with other parts of the brain, and this facilitates a better mastery of executive functions such as attention management and decision making following consistent strategies.

In addition, at the school stage the image that is given begins to have even more importance, and it is a matter of gaining friendship.and it is a matter of winning the friendship of those who are considered important.

The social circle outside the family begins to be one of the factors that shape the identity of the children, and this means that family norms begin to be frequently and consciously broken. and being aware of it. This is partly what makes this stage of childhood vulnerable to addictions, which can leave significant alterations in the brain, as in the case of alcohol consumption, which in many cases begins with puberty at the beginning of adolescence.

Impulsivity is also a characteristic of this stage, as well as the propensity to prefer short-term goals to those that are far in the future. At the end of the school period the body begins to manifest the signs of pubertymarked by voice changes in boys and breast growth in girls, among other things.

Bibliographic references

• Berk, L. E. (2012). Infants and children: Prenatal through middle childhood (7 ed.). Allyn & Bacon.
• Cantero, M.P. (2011). Historia Y Conceptos De La Psicología Del Desarrollo. Psicología Del Desarrollo Humano. Club Universitario.
• Cromdal, J. (2009). Childhood and social interaction in everyday life: Introduction to the special issue. Journal of Pragmatics. 41 (8): 1473–76.
• Demetriou, A. (1998). Cognitive development. En A. Demetriou, W. Doise, K.F.M. van Lieshout (Eds.), Life-span developmental psychology (pp. 179–269). Londres: Wiley.
• Howard C. (2008). Howard C. (2008). Children at Play: An American History. Nueva York: NYU Press.
• Taylor, L.C., Clayton, Jennifer D., Rowley, S.J. (2004). Academic Socialization: Understanding Parental Influences on Children's School-Related Development in the Early Years. Review of General Psychology. 8 (3): 163–178.