Child Development & Home Environment

Child Development & Home Environment The conception of child in a mother’s womb is a critical stage for his development, as brain development begins right from the start. The fertilized egg goes through three phases of development, first trimester, second trimester and third trimester, and begins to take a physical shape of a child very rapidly.

By the second trimester, the eyes, mouth, nose, and ears are almost completely formed. By the fifth month, the baby’s senses are developed and he can begin to hear his mother’s voice and other familiar voices. The baby is ready to learn. The mother should interact and talk and read to her prenatal baby. It is interesting to note that the baby is never born as a blank slate. He is constantly picking up information and storing it in his brain. The way parents interact with the baby even before he is born has an impact on the development of the child later in life. A confident person trusts himself because he knows that he has been wanted and loved from the time he was conceived. Communicating with the unborn child provides the stable, supportive environment that every child needs in order to learn and grow and to become a child who is optimistic, confident and with a good demeanor. He can sense his mother’s emotions and this has an impact on his brain. The mother’s nutrition is also very critical to the fetus. Family members play a crucial role in their interaction with and care for the mother. They need to make her feel cared and respected so she can have a peaceful mind throughout the experience. They should try and keep her content, make her feel respected, and ensure that she is nutritiously fed at all times. Remember peace building begins from the child’s conception and sustains throughout his life! If he experiences a peaceful environment from conception and after birth, he is more likely to have a well-balanced emotional growth and grow up to be a peace-loving adult. Another important point to consider is that we need to think and reflect before partnering two lives (man and woman) together. It’s not only partnership or one’s marital status in a society, but rather it has a bigger meaning for the future. The union through a marriage that brings forth a child needs to have a strong basis for a child’s holistic development and a strong foundation for a strong future. However, this can only be possible if the home environment is safe, peaceful and conducive for a child’s growth for a peace-loving mind set in a peaceful society. Written by: Safida Begum

A real engagement in a meaningful activity and creativity.

Grandmothers with their beautiful smile and cheerful faces for their accomplishment of showing their creativity in making toys.

Grandmothers play a pivotal role in raising their grandchildren at Gilgit Baltistan of Pakistan for the following reasons: - Extended / joint family systems so grandparents are supposed to care for their grandchildren. - Culture, norms and tradition of supporting & protecting parents also increases the chance for their responsibilities. Since education and awareness is increasing and men and women try to improve their economical situation so the grandparents become an engine for the change process. Therefore, engaging them in meaningful activity becomes a great motivational factor for the families. - lack of Old age Care System from the Government side also increases a chance for grandparents to play their roles and responsibilities in caring for their grandchildren. This 'Toy Making Session' really contributed alot to grandparents own motivation. They made very interesting comments saying, "We were thinking, we are not educated and we dont have any importance but today, we learned that we also know alot. Thank God,it means, we are not less important so thanks Rupani Foundation for involving us" This session helped families to create a respectful environment at home and that contributed to children's better care at home.

'Toys Making Session by Grandmothers at Agah Walidain (Informed Parents) Program Rupani Foundation, Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan  in 2009.

BENCHMARKS OF DEVELOPMENT

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

1 TO 2 MONTHS	2 TO 4 MONTHS	4  TO 6 MONTHS	6 TO 9 MONTHS	9 TO 12 MONTHS
Responds to positive adult’s speech	Makes gurgling sounds to express emotions	Babbles sounds such as “ba-ba-ba-ba” and “da-da-da-da”but not associate with people	Babbles sounds such as “goo” and “gaa” considered important pre-speech behavior	Says at least one word
		Laughs out loud in response to smile, tickle, gentle bouncing on knee etc	Yells or make loud sounds when tired or happy(ahhhhhh or ehhhhhhh)	Gestures or points to indicate need
			Imitates rise and fall of adult speech in his sounds	Listens to songs, stories or rhymes with interest
			Responds to own name	Imitates sounds like “uh-oh!”
			Understands simple words commands and phrases

BENCHMARKS OF DEVELOPMENT

SOCIAL/EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

BIRTH TO 1 MONTH	1 TO 3 MONTHS	3 TO 6 MONTHS	6 TO 9 MONTHS	9 TO 12 MONTHS
Makes Demanding cries to communicate	Makes sounds	Laughs to get adult attention	Distinguish voices	Feels anxiety on separation from familiar adults
Shows sense of trust	Smiles at sounds of familiar voices	Responds to smiles with smiling	Distinguish voice tones & emotions	Feels anxiety in presence of strangers
Responds positively to caregivers	Tracks moving persons or objects	Pays close attention to older children and their actions	Plays games with adults & older children	Plays with others
Makes eye contact	Cries to demand attention	Calms self-regulate own distress		Appears angry