Child Development

Knowledge of child development is the foundation for work with children, and therefore is a requirement for all those seeking to protect children. It influences every aspect of a child from physical growth and mental abilities, to how they express emotions, think and behave.

Healthy development takes children through stages, whereby they obtain an increasing number of physical, mental, and emotional skills in order to become independent adults. These stages provide benchmarks for determining if a child is developing normally. Without knowledge of the normal developmental stages of a child, a worker cannot identify developmental delays, assess the impact of abuse, or make recommendations regarding the child’s physical, mental or emotional health. Understanding what a child is capable of allows adults to communicate on their level and provide age-appropriate responses and interventions.

Knowledge of early childhood development and attachment behaviour is particularly important for protection workers. The physical health and care a child experiences as an infant will affect their development into adulthood. A child needs to have experienced a positive attachment by the age of 3 in order to develop cognitively, physically, socially, and psychologically. Healthy attachments come from the close bond a child experiences when provided with the responsive and stable care of at least one adult. In a residential home, children are less likely to receive the amount of individual attention from a permanent caretaker that they require. Children under 12, in particular, benefit more from a kinship, foster or adoption placement where they can experience closer relationships.

Observation of a child’s attachment to caretakers will influence the type of care, permanency plan, and level of support services offered. It can also aid in the identification of abuse.

This section contains information on the importance of child development knowledge, guidance on the ages and stages of children, and attachment theory.

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A holistic approach to child development: factors influencing overall development in children in care in Ontario, Canada

Miller, Meagan Greenberg, Barbara Michael, Erik Flynn, Robert J. - University of Ottawa, 2018

This presentation explores the developmental assessment of young children living in out-of-home care using the Ages and Stages Questionnaires® Third Edition.

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Select NCTSN Resources Related to Traumatic Separation and Refugee & Immigrant Trauma

National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 2018

This document from the U.S. National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) identifies existing NCTSN resources related to traumatic separation, refugee and immigrant trauma, and best practices in trauma-informed care for refugee and immigrant children and families.

Nourished and Thriving Children Toolkit

SPOON, 2018

The Nourished and Thriving Children toolkit was designed by SPOON to build capacity among the foster care community in feeding and nutrition topics so that they are equipped to address challenges commonly experienced by foster children.

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Nurturing Care for Early Childhood Development: A Framework for Helping Children Survive and Thrive to Transform Health and Human Potential

World Health Organization, 2018

The Nurturing Care Framework provides a roadmap for action. It builds on state-of-the-art evidence about how early childhood development unfolds and how it can be improved by policies and interventions.

An examination of the social emotional development of young children in care: The Ages and Stages QuestionnaireL Minorities and the ASQ:SE

Greenberg, Barbara; Miller, Meagan; Michael, Erik; Flynn, Robert J. - University of Ottawa, 2018

This exploratory paper’s purpose is to determine the effect of demographic, risk, and protective factors on social-emotional development, as measured by the Ages and Stages Questionnaire Social Emotional (ASQ:SE), in children age 8 months to 5 years in out-of-home care in Ontario, Canada.

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Thrive II: Early Childhood Development Tanzania

Catholic Relief Services, 20 Dec 2017

This video from Catholic Relief Services provides an overview of the Thrive II project, a program designed to enhance parent-child bonds and strengthen early child development.

Living in an Immigrant Family in America: How Fear and Toxic Stress are Affecting Daily Life, Well-Being, & Health

Samantha Artiga and Petry Ubri - The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, 01 Dec 2017

The authors of this study conducted focus groups with 100 parents from 15 countries and 13 interviews with pediatricians to gain insight into how the current political environment in the United States is affecting the daily lives, well-being, and health of immigrant families, including their children.

Do children adopted from British foster care show difficulties in executive functioning and social communication?

Alexandra E Wretham, Matt Woolgar, Alexandra E Wretham - Adoption & Fostering, 24 Nov 2017

In this study, 30 primary school aged UK adoptees without a history of institutionalisation completed an assessment of their intellectual, executive functioning and social communication abilities.

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Effects of early institutionalization on emotion processing in 12-year-old youth

Johanna Bick, Rhiannon Luyster, Nathan A. Fox, Charles H. Zeanah, Charles A. Nelson - Development and Psychopathology, 22 Nov 2017

This study examined facial emotion recognition in 12-year-olds in a longitudinally followed sample of children with and without exposure to early life psychosocial deprivation (institutional care).

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Parenting, Environment, and Early Child Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

Marc H. Bornstein, Diane L. Putnick, Paul Oburu, Jennifer E. Lansford, Kirby Deater-Deckard, Robert H. Bradley, Riku Moriguchi, Pia Rebello Britto - Handbook of Applied Developmental Science in Sub-Saharan Africa, 18 Nov 2017

This chapter describes the contemporary situation of children in sub-Saharan Africa with successive foci on child growth, the home environment, parenting, and discipline using data from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS).

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