WJEC GCSE Health and Social Care, and Childcare

Developmental norms Developmental norms, or ‘milestones’, typically refer to the points in a person’s life where particular changes are expected to happen. The average age at which a child walks, learns to talk, or reaches puberty would be a standard or developmental norm. The table below outlines examples of age-linked developmental norms that occur in the human life cycle. Examples of developmental norms. Did you know? A person is not abnormal if they achieve growth or development at slightly different times to the expected pattern. Growth and development can be different to the ‘norm’ for a variety of reasons. Age Ability 3–4 months Infants start on solid foods, develop better head control, can roll from side to side, reach for objects 6–9 months Teething begins, learn to sit unaided, lift their heads and look around, use thumb and index finger to grasp objects 9–12 months Infants can crawl, chew food, use their hands to explore, can walk holding onto parent or furniture (‘cruising’), may say a few words, know their name and start to understand their parents’ or caregivers’ words 12–18 months Toddlers learn to feed themselves, walk unaided, can understand simple requests – ‘give it to me’ – develop better memory and concentration 18–24 months Toddlers can run, turn pages of a book, use simple sentences, have temper outbursts and can say their own name 10 years (girls) 12 years (boys) Puberty begins 45–55 years (women) Menopause occurs Though human growth and development follow quite a predictable pattern, it is important not to think of this as an exact timetable that ‘normal’ people follow. Andrea is 40 years old. She is the mother of Sally, aged two, and Lizzie, aged five. She has been married to Gareth, aged 44, for ten years. Maureen, who is 75 years old, is Andrea’s mum and lives with the family in Pembrokeshire, west Wales. Gareth’s parents, Elwyn, aged 79, and Anwen, aged 75, live in Llangefni, north Wales. 1. Which life stages are Sally and Lizzie in now? 2. Name the people who are in the later adulthood life stage. 3. How many people in the case study are in the adulthood life stage? 1. What life stage is a four-year-old in? 2. What are ‘developmental norms’? 3. Explain what the term P.I.E.S refers to when discussing human growth and development. 4. Alice is 12 months (one year) old. Which of the following milestones would she be expected to reach by now: a) Able to sit unaided. b) Able to run. c) Able to ask a question. Case study Check your understanding Differing life stages. Puberty The process of physical change through which a child’s body matures into an adult body capable of sexual reproduction. Key term 14 1.1 Human development across the life cycle