Physical & Motor Development of Children

Crawling is a typical stage in a baby's physical and motor development.

It can almost seem like a miracle: watching a baby grow from a helpless infant to a wobbly toddler and then to a child who can cut deftly with scissors, hit a home run and write neatly in cursive. Children follow predictable patterns as they develop physical and motor skills. For example, they must be able to stand before they can begin walking.

Definitions

Physical development refers to all physical changes and growth as a child grows. For example, a child growing taller is part of physical development. Motor development is a type of physical development. It refers specifically to children's abilities to use and control their bodies and to develop movement patterns and skills. Motor development includes both large motor skills, like running, climbing and throwing, and small motor skills like writing, cutting and threading a needle.

Patterns

Physical and motor development follow specific patterns. For example, large muscles such as those in the trunk, arms and legs develop before small muscles in the eyes and fingers. This is why children can walk before they can write. In addition, muscles develop from head to toe and from the inside to the outside. This means that neck muscles develop before leg muscles and that muscles around the trunk develop before muscles in the arms.

Milestones

Parents like to look for milestones in their children's development, such as starting to walk. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers a chart of developmental milestones parents can look for as their children grow from 3 months to 5 years old. Different children develop at different rates, so parents should use milestone charts as a guideline only. If they are concerned that their child is not reaching a milestone, they should discuss it with their pediatrician.

Encouraging Physical Development in Infants and Toddlers

While children develop at their own pace, parents can encourage their development by providing children opportunities to move and exercise their muscles. For example, they can make sure infants have time each day to play on a blanket on the floor. They can also encourage crawling by placing a favorite toy out of reach and walking by providing pull toys that make noise.

Encouraging Physical Development in Preschoolers

To encourage physical development in preschoolers, parents can play catch with their children, dance with them, let them climb and jump at the park and encourage them to do somersaults. Parents can also encourage fine motor skills by letting children color and write, cut up old magazines, and use tweezers or tongs to sort small objects.

References

• North Dakota State University Agriculture and University Extension: Understanding Physical Development in Young Children
• Missouri Families: Physical Development: Infancy through Preschool
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Child Development and Public Health

Resources

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Developmental Milestones