Stages of Development in Infant and Toddlers

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As we know, infants and toddlers are such a joy to be around. They bring a certain type of happiness to not only their parents, but family, friends and those who come in contact with them. Infants and toddlers do not stay babies for very long. As soon as a child enters out of its mother’s womb, he or she begins the developmental process. Infants and toddlers grow quickly, or should I say “in a blink of an eye”. Infants and Toddlers go through different types of stages during the developmental process. Infants and toddlers do not have the full ability to verbally express their feelings and thought. Therefore, infants and toddlers interact with the world through physical, cognitive, social, emotional and motor development. Jean Piaget best described the stages from birth to two years in what he called the sensorimotor stage. It is a stage based on infants and toddlers cognitive development. An infant uses his or her senses and motor abilities to understand the world, beginning with reflexes and ending with complex combinations of sensorimotor skills (Boeree, G.C. (2009). During the first four months of life, according to Piaget, infants interact with the world through primary circular reactions. This just means a baby will suck his or her thumb, and things of that nature. In Piaget’s secondary circular reaction stage, an infant is between the age of four and twelve months. During this time, he or she will develop object permanence and may try to find the hidden object. The last of the sensorimotor stage is the tertiary circular reaction. A toddler is about twelve to twenty four months when the tertiary circular reaction takes place. He or she will develop mental representation. In the sensorimotor study, Piaget wanted to know when children acquired object permanence. Piaget hid a toy under a blanket, while the child was watching, and observed whether or
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