SAR HP 252 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Cerebral Cortex, Imaging Technology, Motor Cortex
2 May 2018
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CHAPTER 4: PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN INFANCY
Patterns of Growth
• Cephalocaudal Pattern – the sequence in which the earliest grown always occurs at the
top (the head) with physical growth and the differentiation of features working their way
down from the top to bottom
o This occurs both head and neck-down
▪ ex: the top parts of the head (ex: eyes and brain) grow faster than the
lower parts (ex: jaw)
o Motor Development follows this principle as well
• Proximodorsal Pattern – the sequence in which growth starts at the center of the body and
moves towards the extremities
Height and Weight
• Most North American newborns are between 18-22 inches long and 5-10 pounds
• Most newborns lose 5-7% of their body weight before they adjust to feeding by
sucking/swallowing/digesting
• They then grow rapidly and double their weight by the first 4 months and triple it by 12
months
• Growth slows considerably in the second year of life
The Brain
• An infant at birth is estimated to have a brain that contains 100 billion nerve cells
(neurons)
• Extensive brain development continues after birth
• Brain Imaging technology that can be used with adult brains cannot be used with babies
o ex: babies cannot control movements, radiation dosages (which may be innocuous
to adults but harmful to babies)
• Mapping the Brain
o Forebrain – the portion furthest from the spinal cord
▪ This region includes the cerebral cortex and structures beneath it
o Hemispheres – two, left and right
o Lobes:
▪ Frontal Lobes – involved in voluntary movement, thinking, personality,
intentionality/purpose
▪ Occipital Loves – involved in vision function
▪ Temporal Lobes – involved in hearing, language processing, memory
▪ Parietal Lobes – involved in registering special location, attention, motor
control
▪ Lateralization – where a specific type of information handled by neurons
depends on whether they are in the left or right hemispheres
• The repeated use of neurons in a specific area often makes people
stronger in certain areas
• Changes in Neurons
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