YMTP²
Developmental Considerations
Younger Children PK-2nd Grade
Physical
• Fine motor not well developed
• Learn through large muscle activity
• Energetic and active
Social Emotional
• Easily redirected
• Learn social skills through role play
• May begin to become oppositional
• Need consistent routines
• Extreme criticism can be traumatic
Cognitive
• Short attention spans
• Learn independence and responsibility through carefully taught routines • Very curious
• Enjoy learning through games, songs
Older Children 6th – 8th Grade
Physical
• Very energetic
• Stays up late, wants to sleep late
• Frequent growth spurts
• Puberty- affecting body and emotional state
Social Emotional
• Adult personality may emerge, may try on different personalities
• Enthusiastic and spontaneous
• Cares more about peers’ opinions than teachers’ or parents
• Moody and sensitive
• Feelings easily hurt
• Increased use of sarcasm in humor
Cognitive
• Increasingly able to plan thoughts and work and sets short term goals
• More able to think abstractly
• Likes and dislikes more pronounced
• Able to think about many sides of an issue
Middle-Aged Children 3rd – 5th Grade
Physical
• Full of energy, in need of physical release through outdoor play
• Growth spurts lead to awkwardness in coordination
• Restless, can’t sit still long
Social Emotional
• Likes socializing during individual and group work
• Loves group activity
• Wants peer approval as much as teacher’s Impatient and easily frustrated
• Often worried or anxious
• Adjusts well to change, bounces back from mistakes or disappointments
• Critical of self and others
• Competitive
• Likes to Negotiate
• Appreciates being noticed and praised for effort
Cognitive
• Industrious but with shorter attention spans
• Enjoys responsibility
• Can handle increasingly complex tasks
• Trouble understanding abstractions
• Exploring issues of fairness and justice
• Often take on more than they can handle
• Full of ideas – likes to talk, explain, exaggerate
• Can concentrate for longer period of time
Older Children High School
Physical
• Body changing/ puberty affect behavior
• Preoccupied with body image
• May be athletically inclined or lacking coordination
• Need at least 9 hours of sleep a night
Social Emotional
• Interested in social interaction and socialization
• Self-conscious about judgement from others
• Pressure to conform
• Romantic relationships may begin
• Bullying and harassment online may occur
• Intense emotions from hormone changes
• Exert independence and challenge authority • Need structure and routine to feel safe and secure
• Empathy develops and grows
• Develops image of self and self-worth
Cognitive
• New ability to think about their own thinking: metacognition
• Improved abstract thinking ability and vivid imagination
• Believes their ideas are true and that adults and peers should respect them
• Can imagine future consequences for their actions
Information from Yardsticks: Child and Adolescent Development Ages 4 – 14 by Chip Wood