A.

Mental, Emotional, Social Development Of Children By Age: Chart

Ages

2-3

4-5

6-8

Mental

Emotional

Social

-attention span 3-4 minutes longer

when he enjoys
-short memory
-Actions & objects much easier to
understand than words
-Confuse real & imaginary
-Believes all you say
-Able to choose between two
possibilities Can follow two different
directions

-Extremely curious
-Ritualistic: needs order in daily
routines Repetition
-Doesn't understand teasing
-Meets frustration with crying, kicking,
biting
-Meets correction with temper outbursts

-Completely self-centered
-Willing to conform
-With guidance, recognizes others'
rights and waits briefly for own turn
-Imitates parents in worship
-Attitudes toward others, authority,
parents, & God is formed in these
years
-Wants to help & please
-Nervous system sensitive to overstimulation by noise and confusion

-Have attention span of between 5-10

minutes
-Reasoning is based on appearance,
observation powers not accurate
-No understanding of cause and effect
-Unable to consider the motivation
behind action
-Fantasy is at its height Has a great
imagination

-Learns to develop attitudes concerning

right and wrong
-Tries to sort out real from what is
pretend
-Aware of what people think and say
about him Fears people laughing at him
-Enjoys obedience and thrives on praise

-Imitates adults
-Leadership is beginning to show and
tends to be bossy
-Can learn to share with one or two
others
-Learning to understand fairness

-Have attention span of 15-20 minutes

-Are concrete and literal minded
-Have little realization of chronological
sequence

-Tells you exactly how he feels: sick,

happy, or miserable
-Thrives on praise and acceptance
-He exercises his feelings rather than
self-control
-Self-confidence in his ability to know
what and how things are done

-Are concerned about group

acceptance
-Likes to assert himself. Wants to be
first, best, biggest and to win
-Can begin to give of self. Starts to
demonstrate generosity and kindness
-Protective attitude toward younger
children

9-12

-Have attention span of 30-45 minutes

-Likes to be challenged
-Can learn abstract concepts like sin

-Growing understanding of principles

behind rules
-Self-righteously & rigidly applies his
code of rules
-Sensitive to his own failures and
shortcomings
-Able to see own actions & motives
objectively
-Able to analyze failures & makes plans
to act change

-They want to join, to become

affiliated with the beliefs and values of
the important adults in their lives
-Can begin to sacrifice self-interest for
others
-Can learn not to compare himself with
others

B. Age/Behaviour chart in church services:

See also: How to survive a church service with [your] small children!
Age

What To Do And Expect

0-1

Focus on food, rocking & movement, a soft toy will provide eye and touch stimulation. Clean up any mess. You are
setting a good example and are encouraging many.

1-2

Continue with above except for food. Begin practicing to sit still. Don't let them wander around reserve soft toys for
assembly time only. Remember your actions are teaching your children!

2-3

Can learn to sit quietly, sing, pray & give. Teach to face forward. Teach your children that we are here because we want
to be.

3-4

Can learn to go to washroom before assembly. Bring less toys & more books. Teach them to keep their hands to
themselves. Teach them 'we' are here to learn about God.

A clipboard with a pen that clicks closed will keep them occupied. Don't allow them to draw until the preacher begins
his sermon. Teach them that 'they' are here to learn about God.

Buy easy read Bible as they begin grade 1. Child can start listening to the preacher. Have them check each time a
certain word is used in sermon. Ask the preacher for this word. Teach them that they can only learn about God if they
will listen.

Can be taught to listen. Ask questions after service about what they learned. Talk about lesson with them. Be positive &
encourage them. Teach them they need to learn how to use Bible.

8+

The children can be expected to pay full attention, even taking notes. Teach them that they can find out the answers to
their questions and their problems from God's Word.

Social and emotional development

The first of Eriksons psychosocial stages, basic trust versus basic mistrust, begins at birth and lasts about one-and-a-half to two years.
For Erikson basic trust means that one has learned to rely on the sameness and continuity of the outer providers, but also that one may
trust oneself and the capacity of ones organs to cope with urges,5 Whether children develop a pattern of trust or mistrust depends on
the sensitive care of the babys individual needs and a firm sense of personal trustworthiness within the trusted framework of their
cultures life-style.6
Basic trust develops when children are reared, cared for, and educated in an environment of love, warmth, and support. An environment
of trust reduces the opportunity for conflict between child, parent, and caregiver.
Social Behaviors
Social relationships begin at birth and are evident in the daily interactions between infants, parents, and teachers. Infants are social
beings who possess many behaviors that they use to initiate and facilitate social interactions. Everyone uses social behaviors to begin
and maintain a relationship with others. Consequently, healthy social development is essential for young children. Regardless of their
temperament, all infants are capable of and benefit from social interactions.
Crying is a primary social behavior in infancy. It attracts parents or caregivers and promotes a social interaction of some type and
duration, depending on the skill and awareness of the caregiver. Crying also has a survival value; it alerts caregivers to the presence and
needs of the infant. However, merely meeting the basic needs of infants in a matter of fact manner is not sufficient to form a firm base
for social development. You must react to infants with enthusiasm, attentiveness, and concern for them as unique persons.
Imitation is another social behavior of infants. They have the ability to mimic the facial expressions and gestures of adults. When a
mother sticks out her tongue at a baby, after a few repetitions, the baby will also stick out his tongue! This imitative behavior is
satisfying to the infant, and the mother is pleased by this interactive game. Since the imitative behavior is pleasant for both persons,
they continue to interact for the sake of interaction, which in turn promotes more social interaction. Social relations develop from social
interactions, but we must always remember that both occur in a social context, or culture.
Attachment and Relationships
Bonding and attachment play major roles in the development of social and emotional relationships. Bonding is the process by which
parents or teachers become emotionally attached, or bonded, to infants. It is the development of a close, personal, affective
relationship. It is a one-way process, which some maintain occurs in the first hours or days after birth. Attachment is the enduring
emotional tie between the infant and the parents and other primary caregivers; it is a two-way relationship.
Attachment behaviors serve the purpose of getting and maintaining proximity; they form the basis for the enduring relationship of
attachment. Parent and teacher attachment behaviors include kissing, caressing, holding, touching, embracing, making eye contact, and
looking at the face. Infant attachment behaviors include crying, sucking, eye contact, babbling, and general body movements. Later,
when infants are developmentally able, attachment behaviors include following, clinging, and calling.

Adult speech has a special fascination for infants. Interestingly enough, given the choice of listening to music or listening to the human
voice, infants prefer the human voice. This preference plays a role in attachment by making the baby more responsive. Infants attend to
language patterns they will later imitate in their process of language development; they move their bodies in rhythmic ways in response
to the human voice. Babies body movements and caregiver speech synchronize to each other: adult speech triggers behavioral
responses in the infant, which in turn stimulate responses in the adult, resulting in a waltz of attention and attachment.
Multiple Attachments
Increased use of child care programs inevitably raises questions about infant attachment. Parents are concerned that their children will
not attach to them. Worse yet, they fear that their baby will develop an attachment bond with the caregiver rather than with them.
However, children can and do attach to more than one person, and there can be more than one attachment at a time. Infants attach to
parents as the primary teacher as well as to a surrogate, resulting in a hierarchy of attachments in which the latter attachments are not
of equal value. Infants show a preference for the primary caregiver, usually the mother.
Parents should not only engage in attachment behaviors with their infants, but they should also select child care programs that employ
caregivers who understand the importance of the caregivers role and function in attachment. High-quality child care programs help
mothers maintain their primary attachments to their infants in many ways. The staff keeps parents well informed about infants
accomplishments, but parents are allowed to discover and participate in infants developmental milestones. A teacher, for example,
might tell a mother that today her son showed signs of wanting to take his first step by himself. The teacher thereby allows the mother
to be the first person to experience the joy of this accomplishment. The mother might then report to the center that her son took his first
step at home the night before.
The Quality of Attachment
The quality of infantparent attachment varies according to the relationship that exists between them. A primary method of assessing
the quality of parentchild attachment is the Strange Situation, an observational measure developed by Mary Ainsworth (19131999) to
assess whether infants are securely attached to their caregivers. The testing episodes consist of observing and recording childrens
reactions to several events: a novel situation, separation from their mothers, reunion with their mothers, and reactions to a stranger.
Based on their reactions and behaviors in these situations, children are described as being securely or insecurely attached (see below).
The importance of knowing and recognizing different classifications of attachment is that you can inform parents and help them engage
in the specific behaviors that will promote the growth of secure attachments.
Individual Differences in Attachment
Secure Attachment
Secure infants use parents as a secure base from which to explore their environments and play with toys. When separated from a
parent, they may or may not cry; but when the parent returns, these infants actively seek the parent and engage in positive interaction.
About 65 percent of infants are securely attached.
Avoidant Attachment

Avoidant infants are unresponsive/avoidant to parents and are not distressed when parents leave the room. Avoidant infants generally
do not establish contact with a returning parent and may even avoid the parent. About 20 percent of infants demonstrate avoidant
attachment.
Resistant Attachment
Resistant infants seek closeness to parents and may even cling to them, frequently failing to explore. When a parent leaves, these
infants are distressed and on the parent's return may demonstrate clinginess, or they may show resistive behavior and anger, including
hitting and pushing. These infants are not easily comforted by a parent. About 10 to 15 percent of infants demonstrate resistant
attachment.
Disorganized attachment
Disorganized infants demonstrate disorganized and disoriented behavior. Children look away from parents and approach them with little
or no emotion. About 5 percent of children demonstrate disorganized attachment.
Mental development usually begins during an infant's childhood, not too long after they are born actually. During this time, a child's
mentaldevelopment will increase as they begin to use their sense, motor skills and muscles. These will work together to help the child
gain a better understanding and become more aware of the strange world that surrounds them.
Infancy.
The period of time of a child's life that is known as infancy is usually defined as the time between birth and when the child is able to walk
properly. This is the time where children begin to develop mentally, as well as physically and socially. Once a baby begins to walk, they
are no longer considered to be an infant, they are a toddler. The majority of babies start walking between the age of 10 and 14 months.

Sensory development.
When a child is still in the infancy period, their sensory development will increase dramatically. They will begin to perceive sounds and
sights, which can be shown by them reaching and grabbing objects.

When they reach the age of around nine months, infants will begin to recognize familiar faces that appear most often, as well as being
able to identify familiar objects. They will also start to recognize certain events such as meal times and be able to expect them in future.

Misconception.

A lot of people seem to believe that because children have limited braindevelopment, they are not able to know what is going on around
them. However this is quite incorrect as a baby will be able to tell when something is wrong. It is often thought that a baby will be able
to tell if an argument is going on for example, and not just because of the possible shouting.
Limitations.
Although a baby's brain develops well when they are an infant, they are still unable to multi task as their small brain is only able to
handle one process at a time.