Communication And Behaviors With Children

Professor Hopkins

COM 135

18 December 2007

Communication and Behavior with Children 4-12

There are many different stages that occur in a human’s life. Those stages occur from birth to death. The stages are newborn, infant, child, teen, young adult, adult, and senior. We are going to only focus on the child stage. Within the stages there are many sub stages because of the age limits within the stages. The sub stages in the child stage of a humans life are “Growing Self Reliance”, “Leaving the Nest”, “The Big first Grader”, “Half-way up the Stairs”, “The Pre-adolescent”, “Declaration of Independence”. In each of these stages there is different developments that occur and different was to help parents with parenting and caring for their child going through the changes.

The first sub stage is “Growing Self Reliance”. In this sub stage the four year-old develops more independence and self-confidence. The main thing that happens during this sub stage is the developing of the child from an infant to a child. Some of the child’s developments are: “Speech is almost always understandable, can usually count from 1 to 10, can walk on tiptoes, climb a ladder and ride a tricycle, knows their own name, they can often engage in a conversation, can express feelings, and start to play with other kids.” (http://www,kidsgrowth.com/resources/articledetail.cfm?id=322). By the age of four most kids are potty trained but there are some that are not quite there yet. “By age four, 95 percent of children are bowel trained and 90 percent of children are dry in the daytime and 75 percent at night.” (http://www,kidsgrowth.com/resources/articledetail.cfm?id=322). Parents have to realize that for the child to communicate with adults is going to be possible but they will not understand completely. Parents have to remember that the four year-old really enjoys playmates along with many other things such as:

At this sub stage the toddler will begin to play cooperatively with others, also their child may continue to use a security object (such as a blanket, favorite stuffed toy, night light, etc.). This is normal and the youngster will give up the item when he or she is ready, and that they should let the child participate in setting and cleaning up the table. Always praise them for a job well done. (http://www,kidsgrowth.com/resources/articledetail.cfm?id=322).

Also a very important thing is that children are very amused with the television and will want to watch it all day. It is very important that you encourage the child to go and play outside instead of watching TV all day. On the discipline aspect of things discipline should be firm and consistent, but at the same time loving and understanding. You should always praise your child for his or her good behavior and accomplishments. Continue to allow your four year-old to make choices whenever possible, these choices should be limited to those you can live with. For example, what color shirt do you want to wear red or green? Do not ask a yes or no question unless you don’t care what the outcome is because chances are that they are going to say the opposite of what you want them to. “Always provide your four year-old with clearly stated limits along with an explanation of the consequences if rules are broken. Making children stand in the corner for a "time out" by themselves for four minutes is usually an effective punishment.” (http://www,kidsgrowth.com/resources/articledetail.cfm?id=322). This is an effective punishment because no four year-old wants to be by themselves for any period of time. Parents must also remember that a child’s mind is like a sponge and that they are going to see adults doing things and saying things and if you don’t want them saying those things or doing those things then you should explain to them the rules or don’t do or say anything you will regret around them.

The second sub stage in the child stage is called “Leaving the Nest”. This sub stage is for the five year-old only. It is called the “Leaving the Nest” sub stage because the five year is going to a real school for the first time. They are going to be without their parents for part of the day. Just because the child is five does not mean that they are ready for school. “They should be able to follow directions and rules and pay attention for short periods of time to adult-directed tasks.” (http://www.kidsgrowth.com/resources/articledetail.cfm?id=326). That is a big part of school, also they should be able to:

work independently for short periods, knows his or her full name as well as the name of his or her parents, easily makes changes and accepts adult supervision and help, able to play in small groups with other children, begins to share with others, listens to stories without interrupting, speaks clearly with age-appropriate language skills; Talks in complete sentences of five to six words, understands that actions have both causes and effects, shows understanding of general times of the day, is able to cut with scissors, is able to recognize authority, identifies some alphabet letters and most colors, follows through when you give him or her one or two directions, and at least to attempt to write their name. (http://www.kidsgrowth.com/resources/articledetail.cfm?id=326).

For the most part there are not of a lot of developments that occur it is just that parents want to make sure that their child is ready to leave them for a while. Although there are some developments that occur such as they learn to throw a ball over hand, they are usually able to brush their teeth and wash their hand by themselves, they begin to understand games and the rules of the game and are able to dress themselves. As a parent this is the sub stage where you introduce reading but not big you do a little bit once a week. In this sub stage as well as in the other you have to continuously explain right from wrong and explain why it is wrong. The discipline is the same no five year-old is going to want to be by themselves for a long period.

The third sub stage of the child stage is “The Big First Grader”. A youngster at this age is eager to act independently, but they are not yet able to consistently make wise decisions. A six year-old needs parental approval, understanding, praise and encouragement. This is the age where the child is now six years-old and is in the