Deck 8: Seciton 1: Early Childhood: Biosocial Development

Question 1

Name at least three of the primary types of dangers to children aged 2 to 6 years. Explain the three levels of injury prevention and provide an example of each.

Answer 1

Preschoolers are most likely to be injured by 1) autos, 2) drowning, 3) poisoning, and 4) falling. They are at risk because of their poor impulse control and their inability to assess risk due to their immature prefrontal cortex.
Primary prevention makes a safer situation to reduce the likelihood of injury, such as using streetlights instead of stop signs.
Secondary prevention reduces risk in high-risk situations, such as adding flashing lights at crosswalks.
Tertiary prevention provides a remedy after an injury has occurred, such as quick triage in the emergency room.

Question 2

Describe at least four ways in which the growth in the corpus callosum improves children's capabilities.

Answer 2

The corpus callosum connects the two hemispheres of the brain through a band of nerve fibers. This connection offers 1) greater eye-hand coordination and 2) better coordination of the brain and body. This helps 3) improve motor abilities and 4) determines handedness. It also offers children 5) the ability to think before they act, thus 6) reducing the number of childhood accidents they suffer.

Question 3

Explain the roles of the prefrontal cortex and limbic system in early childhood. What are their functions? How do they differ? What changes occur in a child's behavior as a result of the maturing limbic system and prefrontal cortex?

Answer 3

The prefrontal cortex is the executive of the brain, essential to planning, analyzing, and complex thought. The limbic system controls the expression and regulation of emotions and processes memory. As the prefrontal cortex matures, the child's ability to plan increases and impulsiveness decreases. As the limbic system matures, memory improves while nightmares and irrational fears decrease.

Question 4

Define child maltreatment and mention the reasons for discrepancies between reported and substantiated child maltreatment.

Question 5

Monique wants to help her 3-year-old son develop healthy eating habits. Advise her about what to expect in her son's eating behavior and how her mealtime routines can affect that behavior. What actions could Monique take to create peaceful mealtimes?

Question 6

Name three immediate problems and three long-term consequences that can result from child maltreatment.

Question 7

Discuss the role of the corpus callosum in children's brain development. What is it, what does it do, and what happens if it does not develop correctly?

Question 8

Define gross and fine motor skills, providing at least two examples of each.

Question 9

How could one intervene at each level of prevention to address child maltreatment? Provide an example of each and describe the difficulties that one might encounter in the implementation of these interventions.

Question 10

Discuss how growth rate affects the eating habits of preschool children, and name at least three of the most common nutritional problems of preschoolers.

Question 11

Explain the important function of myelination in the nervous system. Mention at least four factors.