Page 2 - LESSION 6.pmd

Growth and Development

To understand growth, write down the features which indicate that a child is
growing well, in the space given below.
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What you have just listed are indicators of growth.

Growth refers to quantitative changes in the body. The main indicators of growth
are increase in height, weight and changes in the body structure and body
proportions. Changes continue to occur in all domains of development but changes
that take place in the physical development of children become most visible and
apparent. One of the important features of growth is that these changes are
measurable. The sequence, pattern and direction of changes in growth are common
to all children although the rate of growth may vary from one child to another. In
some cases, like in the case of children with special needs, you may find deviations
in different domains of development.

Growth is rapid during the first two years of life. You will be surprised to know
that between birth and first year of life, well-nourished children can undergo a 50
percent increase in height. However, not all parts of the body grow at the same
rate. After the first two years of life, growth curve begins to level off and the rate
of growth slows down until puberty. Puberty is marked by a growth spurt i.e.
relatively fast increase in height and weight in adolescents. The table below shows
the pattern of growth in terms of height and weight increments from birth till
eight years in healthy children.
Average height and weight of girls/boys at different ages

Age Weight (kg) Height (cm)

Birth 3.3 50.5
3 months 6.0 61.1

6 months 7.8 67.8

9 months 9.2 72.3
1 year 10.2 76.1

2 years 12.3 85.6

3 years 14.6 94.9

76 EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND EDUCATION