Course Overview

Units of Study:

Ch. 1: Basic Concepts in the Study of Child Development and the Family

Early approaches; studying the lifespan; an emerging consensus; domains and periods of development; influences on development

Ch. 3: Forming a New Life: Conception, Heredity, and Environment

Becoming parents; mechanisms of heredity; nature and nurture

Ch. 4: Pregnancy and Prenatal Development

Stages of prenatal development; environmental influences on prenatal development; monitoring prenatal development

Ch. 5: Birth and the Newborn Baby

The birth process; characteristics of the newborn baby; monitoring baby’s health; newborns and parents

Ch. 6: Physical Development and Health During the First Three Years

Patterns of growth; molding the brain; early sensory capacities; motor development; health

Ch. 7 (Part 1): Cognitive Development During the First Three Years

Approaches to studying cognitive development- includes part of chapter 2

Ch. 7 (Part 2): Language development- includes parts of chapters 10 and 13

            Influences on language development from birth to early childhood

Ch. 8: Psychosocial Development During the First Three Years

Emotions and temperament; developing attachments with caregivers; developing autonomy in toddlerhood; sociability with siblings and non-siblings

Ch. 9 and 12: Physical Development and Health in Early and Middle Childhood

Nutrition; motor development; health and safety

Ch. 10: Cognitive Development in Early Childhood

The preoperational stage; memory development; intelligence; early childhood education

Ch. 11: Psychosocial Development in Early Childhood

            Self-concept, gender differences, parenting, relationships with other children

Ch. 13: Cognitive Development in Middle Childhood

The concrete operational stage; memory and processing; assessment of intelligence; the child in school

Ch. 14: Psychosocial Development in Middle Childhood

Self-esteem; family structure; peer relationships; mental health