Physical Development of Infants and Toddlers

PHYSICAL
DEVELOPMENT
OF INFANTS
AND TODDLERS
MODULE 12
INFANTS
A very young child that can neither walk
or talk.
In an early stage of development.
TODDLERS
Young child who is learning to walk.
CEPHALOCAUDAL TREND
The Postnatal Growth from conception to 5 months
when the head grows more than the body.
The greatest growth always occurs at the top –the
head.
The infants learn to use their “UPPER LIMBS” before their

“LOWER LIMBS”.
The same pattern occurs in the head area.
The top parts of the head – the eyes and the brain –grow
faster than the lower parts such as the jaw.
PROXIMODISTAL The Pre-natal growth from 5
months to birth when the fetus
TREND grows from the inside of the
body outwards.
The muscular control of the

MOTOR DEVELOPMENT
trunk and the arms comes
Refers to the development of
motor skills from the center of the earlier as compared to the hands
body outward, and fingers.
HEIGHT AND WEIGHT
Its normal for new born babies to drop 5 to 10 percent of
PHYSICAL their body weight within a couple of weeks of birth. (Due to

the baby’s adjustment to Neonatal Feeding. Once they adjust
DEVELOPMENTS
to sucking, swallowing, and digesting, they grow rapidly).
Breastfed babies are typically heavier than the bottle-fed
babies through the first 6 months. After 6 months, the
breastfed babies usually weigh less than the bottle-fed babies.
In general, an infant’s length increases by about 30% in the

first 5 months.
A baby’s weight usually triples during the first year but
slows down in the second year of life.
Low percentages are not a cause for alarm as long as infants

progress along natural curve of steady development.
BRAIN DEVELOPMENT
Among the most dramatic changes in the
brain in the first 2 years of life are the
spreading connections of dendrites to each
other.
MYELINATION or MYELINIZATION
The process by which the axons are covered and
insulated by layers of fat cells, begins prenatally and
continues after birth.
The process of MYELINATION or MYELINIZATION
increases the speed at which information travels
through the nervous system.
DENDRITES are specialized extensions of the cell body.
They function to obtain information from other cells and carry that
information to the cell body.
BRAIN DEVELOPMENT
At birth the newborn’s brain is
about 25% of its adult weight. By
the second birthday, the brain is
about 75% of its adult weight.
Shortly after birth, a baby’s brain

produces trillion more connections
between neurons that it can possibly
use. The brain eliminates connections
that are seldom or never used. The
infant’s brain is literally waiting for
experiences to determince how
connections are made.
MOTOR DEVELOPMENT
Along this aspect of motor development, infants and toddlers begin from reflexes
to gross motor skills and fine motor skills.
REFLEXES
The newborn has some basic reflexes which are of course automatic and serve as survival
mechanism before they have the opportunity to learn. Many reflexes which are present at birth
with generally subside within a few months as the baby grows and matures.
COMMON REFLEXES BABIES HAVE

SUCKING REFLEX -the sucking reflexes is initiated when something touches the roof of an
infant’s mouth. Infants have a strong sucking reflex which help to ensure they can latch unto bottle
or breast. The sucking reflex is very strong in some infants and they may need to suck on a
pacifier for comfort.
ROOTING REFLEX -the rooting reflex is most evident when an infant’s cheek is stroked. The
baby responds by turning his/her head in the direction of the touch and opening their mouth for
feeding.
GRIPPING REFLEX -babies will grasp anything that is placed in their palm. The strength of the
grip is strong, and most babies can support their entire weight in their grip.
CURLING REFLEX -when the inner sole of a baby’s foot is stroked, the infant respond by
curling his or her toes. When the outer sole of the baby’s foot is stroked, the infant will respond by
spreading out their toes.
STARTLE/MORO REFLEX -infants will respond to sudden sound or movements by throwing their
arms and legs out, and throwing their heads back. Most infant will usually cry when startled and
proceed to pull their limbs into their boobs.
GALANT REFLEX -galant reflex is shown when an infant’s middle or lower back is stroked next to
the spinal cord. The baby will respond by curving his or her body toward the side which is being
stroked.
TONIC NECK REFLEX the tonic neck reflex is demonstrated in infants who are placed on their
abdomens. Whenever side the child’s head is facing the limbs on that side will straighten, while the
opposite limbs will curl.
CAN NEWBORNS SEE?
NEWBORNS vision is about 10-30 times lower than a normal adult vision.
Their vision becomes better by 6 months of age and by their first
birthday, their vision approximates that of an adult.
CAN NEWBORNS HEAR?

Sense of hearing in infants develops much before the birth of the in the
womb. The baby hears his/her mother’s heartbeats, grumbling of her
stomach, mother’s voice and music. Infants’ sensory thresholds are
somewhat higher than those of adult which means that stimulus must be
louder to be heard by a newborn than an adult.
CAN NEWBORNS DIFFERENTIATE ODORS?
In an experiments conducted by Mcfarlane (1975), it suggests that it
requires several days of experience for infants to recognize odor.
CAN NEWBORNS FEEL PAIN? DO THEY RESPOND TO TOUCH?

Infants do feel pain. Newborn males show a higher level of cortisol (an
indicator of stress) after a circumcision than prior to the surgery.)
Babies respond to touch. Newborns automatically suck on objects
placed in his/her mouth, or touching the cheek makes a newborn turn
his/her head towards the side that was touched.
DO INFANTS RELATE INFORMATION THROUGH SEVERAL SENSES?
ARE INFANTS CAPABLE OF INTERMODAL PERCEPTION?
Intermodal perception is the ability to relate, connect and integrate

information about two or more sensory modalities such as vision and
hearing. It was found in a study conducted by Spelke and Owsley (1979),
that as early as 3 ½ months old, infants looked more at their mother,
they also heard her voice and longer at their father when they also head
his voice.
THANK YOU…
LIFE SPAN DEVELOPMENT OF
INFANTS AND TODDLERS
GROSS MOTOR SKILLS
 It is always a source of excitement for parents to witness dramatic changes in the infant’s first
year of life. This dramatic development is shown in babies unable to even lift their heads to
being able to grab things off the cabinet, to chase the ball and walk away from the parents.
FINE MOTOR SKILLS

 Are skills that involve a refined use of the small muscles controlling the hand, finger and thumb.
The development of these skills allows one to be able to complete tasks such as writing, drawing
and buttoning.
 The ability to exhibit fine motor skills involve activities that involve precise eye-hand
coordination.
 The development of reaching and grasping becomes more refined during the first 2 years of
life, initially, infants show only crude shoulder and elbow movements, but later they show wrist
movements, hand rotation and coordination of the thumb and forefinger.
SENSORY AND PERCEPTUAL
DEVELOPMENT
 The newborn senses the world into which he/she is born
through his/her senses of vision, hearing, touch, taste and
smell. As he/she advances physically his/her sensory and
perceptual abilities also develop.
What INFANTS and TODDLERS can do physically?
 DOMAIN: Physical Health, Well-being and Motor Development
PHYSICAL HEALTH
STANDARD 1_ The child demonstrate adequate growth (weight, height, head circumference).
STANDARD 2_ The child has adequate sensory system to participate in daily activities.
0-6 months
 Startles to loud sound
 Visually follows a moving object from side to side
 Visually follows a moving object up and down
 Reacts to pain by crying
 Withdraws or reacts with surprise when in contact with something cold
 Reacts with pleasure/ smiles or relaxed expression when he/she tastes something delicious
 Reacts by making a face/frowns/grimaces when he/she tastes something he/she does not like
7-12 months
 Reacts with pleasure when he/she smells something nice
 Reacts by making a face when he/she smells something fouls
STANDARD 3_ The child has adequate stamina to participate in daily activities

o Pushes and/or pulls moderately heavy objects (e.g. chairs, large boxes)
o Walks without tiring easily
13-18 months
 Play without tiring easily, able to keep pace with playmates
 Participates actively in games, outdoor play and other exercises
19-24 months
 Sustains physical activities (e.g. dancing, outdoor games,
swimming for at least 3-5 minutes.
MOTOR SKILLS DEVELOPMENT (Gross Motor Skills)
STANDARD 1_ The child shows control in coordination of body movements involving large muscle
groups.
0-6 months
 Holds head steadily
 Moves arms and legs equally to reach at dangling object
 Rolls over
 Bounces when held standing, briefly bearing weight on legs
 Sit with support
 Starting to crawl but not yet very good at this

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PHYSICAL

The infants learn to use their “UPPER LIMBS” before their

The muscular control of the

PHYSICAL their body weight within a couple of weeks of birth. (Due to

In general, an infant’s length increases by about 30% in the

Low percentages are not a cause for alarm as long as infants

Shortly after birth, a baby’s brain

COMMON REFLEXES BABIES HAVE

CAN NEWBORNS HEAR?

CAN NEWBORNS FEEL PAIN? DO THEY RESPOND TO TOUCH?

Intermodal perception is the ability to relate, connect and integrate

FINE MOTOR SKILLS

STANDARD 3_ The child has adequate stamina to participate in daily activities

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