The first year of a child's life is the most important time for his mental and physical development. Moreover, at this age it is primarily physical development, which determines the development of the nervous system.
Lefrançois argues that children’s development originates in stages which dependent upon definite age. The author notes that children's thinking does not develop entirely smoothly: instead, there are certain points at which it begins and moves into completely new areas and abilities (2012).
Max Robson was born on 25 May 2015. He has gone through different developmental milestones during his first year of life.
The first month of life the newborn was the period of adaptation. Almost 70% of the time Max slept. Sleeping is essential for an infant: it is important not only for resting but also for growth and development (Lefrançois 2012). Toward the end of the first month Max has already been able to focus his eyes on bright toy, adults, hear the conversation of others. At birth, the baby had congenital reflexes, due to which he adapted to the environment. But during the first months of life some of them disappeared, and the permanent reflections took place: blinking, sneezing, yawning etc.
Next couple of months of a child's development could be called a period of liveliness; during this period he developed the ability to distinguish and react to mother’s emotional state, whether she was happy, calm or sad. Max has also improved his coordination of movements; he has already found his hands and was having fun exploring them, trying to taste them. There were noticed the first attempts to reach the object.
Six month is a new leap in the development of a child (Lefrançois 2012). During this period Max started to roll from side to side, began the attempts to sit, to get on his feet and a bit later crawl. At that age the child has already been able to distinguish his name. At that period the baby was very emotional, his mood has changed constantly, he screamed when was displeased and laughed out loud when parents were playing with him. The child distinguished objects around him and, if asked, could point to some of them (like watches, some toys, a pet fish).
At about ten months Max could independently get up and move around a familiar room grasping the closest chair or a sofa. He usually fell, cried and got back again. He was trying to climb up on the sofa, chair, armchair, opening drawers and to explore new territories. During this period a child was learning to walk on their own, and by the age of eleven months he succeeded and made his first steps.
At this age, the child imitated the movements of adults and animals. He was able to play with his toys independently, confidently holding them in his hands. He could perform such actions as opening and closing, hiding, collecting. At that stage he tried to show independence: insisted on eating on his own with a spoon, drinking from a cup, dressing himself with socks and shoes. Very clearly responded to a new toy, to an unfamiliar environment, strangers; began waving his hand to express parting, nodding and shaking his head in order to express approval or disapproval.
At one year old Max began to walk confidently without any support. He started to be more actively involved in the process of feeding, bathing and dressing. The child's development has been shown with his caring for the toys: he fed them and put them to bed. He tried to imitate sounds that he heard in the street, on TV or at home.
Max’s usual day at the age of one looked like this: he woke up at seven o’clock, had breakfast, and played with his toys for half an hour ad went for an hour morning walk with his mother. After walking in the park Max was usually sleeping from ten to twelve a.m. He had lunch right after sleeping and went for an afternoon walk. After the second walk Max often slept again till half past four. At five o’clock Max usually ate and played with his father. At eight p.m. the child was bathed, fed and then the book reading usually began. At about half past nine Max usually fell asleep.
During the first year the child has made huge essential steps in his physical and mental development: Max learned to distinguish colors, sounds, sit, eat some solid food, imitate animals, understand some instructions and walk. Next several years he will continue to improve his abilities and on the ground of these ones will start developing new ones
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References
Lefrançois, G. R. (2012). Children’s Journeys: Exploring Early Childhood. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education Inc.
