WJEC GCSE Health and Social Care, and Childcare

Adolescence Many basic physical skills have been mastered through learning and practice by the end of childhood. Despite this, adolescents generally have better physical skills and abilities than children. This is partly because adolescents are more physically mature than children but also because adolescents have had more time and opportunity to use and practise their fine and gross motor skills. It’s also important to know that physical development doesn’t occur separately from intellectual, emotional and social development. An adolescent is likely to be a better tennis player, swimmer or footballer than when they were a child also because they now have more brain power and better emotional composure. Adulthood A person has generally stopped growing by the time they reach adulthood. This doesn’t mean their physical development has stopped though. Most people achieve their maximum physical performance during early adulthood. You may have noticed that athletes and sports professionals tend to be young adults. It’s also noticeable that athletes and professional sports people tend to get slower and gradually lose their ability to perform at the highest level as they reach their early thirties. Adolescents are able to use their bodies with greater skill and precision than children. Did you know? A lot of physical development occurs in early adulthood as people use and refine their physical potential and abilities. By the end of early adulthood, a person’s stamina, balance and coordination will have declined, affecting their physical skills and performance. Physique, fitness and physical ability slowly decline with age. 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 80> 70–79 60–69 50–59 Age group (years) Metres 40–49 30–39 19–29 Men (mean distance in metres) Women (mean distance in metres) The distance a person can swim in one hour declines with age. Source: Based on statistics from Bongard, V., McDermott, A.Y., Dallal, G.E., & Schaefer, E.J. (2007). Muscle mass Middle age Fatty tissue 19 3 Understanding physical development