1. Summarise the main development of a child from the age range 0-2 years, 3-5 years and 5-8 years.

Development refers to the process of learning new skills and abilities, and acquiring emotional maturity. All development changes are the result of both genetic and environmental factors. Genetic factors and diet are in the main responsible for growth, whereas environmental factors such as quality of the diet and disease are responsible for the emotional growth.

‘Child development’ is the term given to the growth of babies through childhood. Although all children will go through the same stages of development, they will do so at varying speeds. There are five key stages of development that take place during the first eight years of a
Between 3-6 months they learn to laugh and copy the sounds they recognise. In between 9-12 months they can response to simple instructions. At their first birthday they will have begun to say basic words like ‘mama and dada’. A child of two years will have developed a vocabulary of fifty words although they only use number of words themselves.

3-5 years: Children at three years are able to speak full sentences. They enjoy listening to stories and singing nursery rhymes. At the age of four children are very interesting to know more and more and ask many questions. At five they have a full set of vocabulary and they are very confident in their speech.

5-8 years: Between the ages of 5-8 they will able to describe things accurately. They will be able to speak using tenses.

Emotional Development:
0-2 years: Between the ages of 0-12 months they will start smiling at familiar faces and then slowly become wary of people they don’t know and may become distressed. At the age of one they will have become aware of the moods of other people and will often react accordingly. As they grow they become easily distressed about things they are unsure of.

3-5 years: A three years old child is aware of their emotions and feelings. At the age of four they are more capable of expressing their emotions. At five they are able to hide their feelings and know other people’s feelings too.

5-8 years: