Childhood: what is it, stages and characteristics

What is childhood?

Childhood is one of the stages of human development and, in biological terms, it covers from the moment of birth to the entrance of adolescence.

However, as stated in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, approved by the UN in 1989, an infant is any person under the age of 18. As this convention has been adopted by most of the countries of the world, it is also stipulated in their respective laws.

The term childhood comes from the Latin infantia , which means “inability to speak”, alluding to the early phase of this stage in which the child does not have the ability to articulate words, but also to the fact that in the past it was considered that only adults could speak in public.

Childhood characteristics

During childhood vital physical and psycho-emotional changes take place. However, one of the most relevant features of this stage is the development of cognitive qualities, which are what help shape intelligence.

All these changes are progressive, and occur in two stages:

Early childhood

It is the stage of development that goes from birth to seven years. The main characteristics of this phase are:

• Absence of abdominal development, so the abdomen still looks very round. Erect posture. Height gain: about 7 to 12 cm per year, on average Weight gain: about 2 kilos per year, on average. Increased brain mass: in fact, it is the stage of greatest brain development. Interaction with the environment using his own body: the child climbs stairs and descends stairs, tries to climb chairs, uses his hands and the strength of his arms to reach relatively heavy objects in proportion to his size and weight, etc. Sphincter control: Although in early childhood the child manages to control his urination, he can sometimes have urinary problems while his adaptation process ends. Speech development: between 12 months and 2 years the infant begins to communicate through short words. Hand-eye coordination is fine-tuned so you can grab, reach, and put objects together. Development of the ability to make basic classifications: the child begins to group objects by color or shape.

See also:

• Stages of human development. The 4 stages of development of Piaget.

Second childhood

For many authors, second childhood is another stage of development called childhood, while others maintain the concept that childhood ends with adolescence. In any case, this phase includes changes that arise from the age of seven to adolescence, which ranges from 11 to 13 years on average.

These are some characteristics of second childhood:

• Significant increase in vocabulary: the number of words used is increased as a consequence of greater social interaction and entry to formal education. Increased ability and desire to explore the environment: At this stage, children continue to recognize their own physical abilities, and use them to interact with the outside world and with others. There is a clear differentiation between the child and the mother figure: he already understands that he is an individual with his own thoughts. Fantasy thinking predominates: in this phase children may continue to be attracted to playful activities related to fantasy (storytelling, games, performances) but they can differentiate them from the real world. The development of logical thinking begins, and the ability to perform basic mathematical operations.

See also Childhood.