Development from Birth to 19 Essay

Physical:- 0-3 Physical development from birth is usually very quick, within the first few weeks of being born a baby will smile and start responding to sounds and environments. Gradually their muscles start to develop and by 6 months they will start reaching for and holding objects. Around the time a baby reaches one year they are beginning to crawl, and can roll from front to back. Using furniture to aid themselves in standing or using adult support to start taking some first steps. They are now able to sit unaided. Hand eye coordination starts improving as they pass objects between both hands. Teeth may start to show and more solid food will be introduced to them. As they move towards the age of two a child will begin walking and using toys to push and pull while they are walking. Picking objects up in different ways, building small towers and starting to show a preference for one hand. Pointing at their choices and waving and using their head to tell you yes or no. Between two and three they will start making marks on paper and developing their fine motor skills. Gross motor skills will develop, kicking balls and throwing them. 3-7 From three years gross motor skills will start advancing, such as jumping and running, stairs will become easier. They will gain more independence. Fine motor skills will be easier and they can start to dress and undress themselves with a small amount of assistance. By the time a child gets to four girls and boys become slightly different. Boy’s gross motor skills will be developed further when it comes to throwing, catching, climbing pedalling etc, however for girls their fine motor skills will be more developed with use of scissors, pens/pencils and threading beads. When children reach the age of five they will have more control with pencils, copying letters and shapes. Gross motor skills will keep on developing and they are able to kick with an aim, learning to hop on one leg and then the other. By six children will start taking risks with jumping from heights and will start riding bikes better as their confidence increases. They learn to do buttons while dressing thems elves and begin to learn laces. 7-12 At seven years old children can walk along a thin line with arms out to the side for balance. They will start riding a bike two-wheeled or possibly roller skates. Stamina will have increased showing in some activities such as swimming and gymnastics. They start to assess their environment when running avoiding objects that are in their way. Catching becomes better, and may even use only one hand when doing so. They are more competent with their writing skills, incorporating colours with their drawings, such as green at the bottom of the page for grass. Children aged eight and nine have a quicker reaction time and their body strength will have increased. They enjoy participating in sports and energetic games. They can control over small muscles and can draw and write with more skill and dexterity and start joining letters in their handwriting. At ten and eleven years girls and boys begin to differ again, girls experience puberty earlier than boys, generally girls are two years ahead of boys. Body proportions become more like those of adults. Writing has become established and they will now have a writing style, usually with joined up letters. 12-19 Physical becomes very different in each child from the age of twelve upwards as they are now in adolescence. Boys and girls have a big difference. Boys will become bigger than girls, body shape will change, muscles will develop and body hair will grow. Strength and coordination will increase. Other changes that happen within puberty will start such as their voices getting deeper, testicles and scrotum will begin to grow. With Girls body shape will change and start to round and become curvy. Their breasts will start to develop, menstruation will start however this can range from eight years until late teens, and the average age is around thirteen. Some girls may become physically mature by the age of fifteen and close to their adult height, however some may still develop larger breasts and a fuller figure. Intellectual:- 0-3 When a baby is born intellect is very simple by imitating and trying new ways of behaviour. For example, imitating adults when opening their mouth and sticking out their tongue. They start to make eye contact and recognise their primary carers and cry in expressive ways. Begin to understand the meanings of words such as bye and mama. By the time they are turning nine months old they will understand their daily routines and follow simple instructions. They will watch a toy be hidden and then look for it (object permanence) and also look in the correct direction for a falling toy. By one year old children will use the trial and error method to learn about objects. They understand simple instructions such as ‘clap hands’ or ‘wave bye’. They will start to learn body parts and will point to them and refer to themselves by name. By two years children begin to understand the consequences of their own actions and of those around them. They follow simple instructions and give empathy to other babies cry and try to provide comfort. Vocabulary will grow to about 1,000 words and will start to put phrases together. 3-7 At three years old children are able to match two or three colours, following instructions will have grown and are fascinated by cause and effect often asking ‘why’. They have grasped the concept of one and lots. At four years old children will talk about things in the past and in the future, their memory skills have increased and can often confuse fact with fiction, they can give reasons and solve problems, and are able to sort objects into groups. By five years old, a child can produce drawings with great detail, they become interested in reading and writing. By six years old, children think in a more co-ordinated way and can hold more than one point of view at a time. They are able to know the difference between reality and fantasy but may still be frightened by supernatural characters. They develop concepts of quantity such as length, volume, capacity and weight. Cultural conventions influence their drawing and writing. 7-12 At seven years old, children will start to become better with technology, using computers for simple word processing using the mouse and keyboard. They start to challenge themselves by using new materials for experiments. They enjoy learning mathematical and scientific concepts and can perform simple calculations in their heads and telling time. Children develop a logical way of thinking but are still limited compared to an adult. At eight and nine years old children have an increased attention span, they understand complex sentences and are able to speak and express their ideas. They learn to plan ahead and evaluate what they do. At ten and eleven, they begin to devise memory strategies, they understand the motives behind the actions of another. Children may become curious about alcohol, tobacco and drugs and want to understand more about them. 12-19 During adolescence teenagers become more responsible for their own thoughts, words and actions, they think about possibilities and their future, occupations and relationships etc. Teenagers form their individual identity with guidance from education, parents and peers. They think through hypotheses and by using their ability they think about situations that are contrary to fact. They use imagination when solving problems and they approach a problem with a systematic method. Communication and language:- 0-3 A child’s language development usually begins within their first three months, babies will watch faces and mouths and try to copy other people’s movement and sounds. They will coo, gurgle and cry in expressive ways, they smile in response to speech. They laugh and vocalise with increasing tone and intensity. At around six months babies babble spontaneously, talk to themselves and squeal with delight. At nine months babies enjoy communicating with sounds, they understand and obey the command ‘no’. At the age of one, children will speak two to six or more recognisable words and show that they understand many more. At twelve months deaf babies stop babbling and begin to learn the special manual gestures of sign language. They start to learn a few body parts. At eighteen months the vocabulary grows to six to forty recognisable words and understand many more than that, using gestures alongside these words. Singing is enjoyable as well as listening to songs and rhymes. At two years old children speak over 200 words and learn new words rapidly, but can understand many more words than they can speak. Phases are used as telegraphic speech some phrases can mean more than one thing. Naming things becomes fun and they spend a great deal of time doing this. ‘Why’ becomes a favourite word and questions are constantly being asked. As a child reaches three years old, they will join in and remember both words and actions to songs, speech progresses into longer sentences and can easily learn new words, names, places and so on. 3-7 As children grow at three years old, if more than one language is being spoken around them they will learn more than one language. They can carry on conversations but often miss link words like ‘the’ and ‘is’ During their singing and speaking they will use pitch and tone. At four years old, children start to talk in past and in the future. They begin to recognise patterns in the way words are formed and apply these when talking however they are unaware that many common words have irregular forms, they may say ‘I runned’ or ‘I goed’. Jokes and play on words become enjoyable. At five years old children will talk with a good knowledge of tense, using the past, present and future in conversation. They are fluent in speech and grammatically correct for the majority. Questions are asked about abstract words like ‘beyond’. Children at six years old gain confidence when they speak and remember and repeat songs and nursery r hymes. They may alternate between wanting stories read to them and reading books themselves. 7-12 At seven years old children understand that words have more than one meaning. Expressing themselves becomes easier in speech and writing. They use compound and complex sentences, and can carry adult-like conversation. At eight and nine, children use and understand complex sentences, they are very verbal and enjoy making up and telling jokes. Spelling becomes understood, and using simple punctuation becomes consistent. They use writing for different purposes, for both imaginative and factual. They use books to find out answers, reading independently for long periods of time, sometimes using the help of adults. Through the ages of ten and eleven children can write moderately lengthy essays, to do this they may use dictionaries, school libraries or the help of an adult to gain the correct information. They will look at work they have done and try to correct punctuation and revising their own writing. 12-19 During adolescents, language skills may still be developing, but with a more complex manner. They may start using sarcasm and wit the older they get. They will have a fast legitimate style of handwriting and will communicate in an adult manner, including increased maturity. Teenagers are able to process text talk and abstract meaning, understanding abstract language and the meaning, figurative language and metaphors. Emotional and Personal:- 0-3 From birth babies respond to adults especially their mother/father’s faces and voices.. At one years old children may show distress or separation anxiety. Objects such as blankets or teddies will be used for comfort. They become emotionally liable, meaning that they are likely to have variable moods throughout the day. From two years old, children want to please adults and become much more independent, but frustration will show when they are unable to complete some tasks without the help of an adult resulting in tantrums. Jealousy begins to show when they are not receiving attention, sharing may become hard for some children, this can be with attention from adults or even some toys. Frustration is now shown more because of not being able to express themselves. Children may also show toilet needs by restlessness or words. 3-7 From three years old, children will begin to learn to share better with other children. They feel more secure are able to cope in new surroundings and new adults for a longer period of time, but still need routine and structure to feel safe. They like to do more things independently and unaided. Affection is shown to siblings whether it be older or younger. Using the toilet independently and dry throughout the night but may still have accidents, although this may be different with each child. Fears may develop for example of the dark, this is because they are capable of pretending and imagining. At four years old children can eat skilfully with a spoon and a fork. Dressing themselves and doing things like brushing their teeth, washing and drying their hands can be done independently but still need help with buttons and laces. Children at five years old have definitive likes and dislikes, but may have small apparent logic, for example they may eat on food when it is only cut a certain way. From the age of six children begin to compare themselves with others around them, thinking that they are like others but in a different way. They carry out simple task and like to get rewarded for doing so, some people may use reward charts to do so. 7-12 At seven years old children learn how to control their emotions, learning that they can keep their emotions to themselves and hide their true thoughts and feelings. Who they would like to be becomes thought about and can be critical of their own work. Children at eight and nine years old can easily be embarrassed, can be discouraged easily and take pride in their own competence. They can become argumentative and bossy however can still be kind and approachable. The feelings and needs of others may not be fully understandable to them but they do begin to see things from somebody else’s point of view. Through the ages of ten and eleven, children have an increasing ability to understand the needs and opinions of others, developing a more defined individual personality. They can become gradually more self-conscious and are able to identify and describe what they are feeling to others. For girls especially those who start puberty early they may have sudden dramatic or emotiona l changes. 12-19 As teenagers go through adolescents through the ages of twelve and sixteen they may feel misunderstood, they may become self-conscious or anxious about their physical appearance and often compare themselves to others, needing a great deal of reassurance. They may alternate between behaving like a child and behaving as an adult, this is because they will experience big emotional changes and may find them difficult to control. Recognition from peers becomes important to teenagers feeling the need to be accepted, this may influence their clothing styles and interests. Through sixteen and nineteen teenagers may begin to explore their own sexuality, they can start to question their own family’s beliefs, values and attitudes and develop their own. Their peers have less influence on them as it becomes less important to them. Social and Behavioural:- 0-3 From Birth babies enjoy feeding and cuddling. They enjoy the company of others and games like ‘peek-a-boo’ become one of their favourites. They will become shy around others and look to their primary carer for comfort and reassurance. They begin to show a particular temperament, they can be placid or excitable. At around six months babies become more wary of strangers and show distress when their mothers leave, they smile at familiar faces and strangers. From one year, children help with daily routines, such as getting washed and dressed, they enjoy socialising at meal times, trying to master feeding themselves.. They may repeatedly throw objects on the floor during play or because of rejection. Playing by themselves contently but may prefer to be near a family member or familiar adult. At two years old children become curious about their environment and are eager to try new experiences, they like to play with other children but may not like sharing their toys. 3-7 From three years old children can see things from someone else’s point of view and family meal times become very enjoyable. They are willing to share their toys with their peers and begin to take turns when playing, it is interesting to make friends and having them. They are more cooperative with adults and like to help them. At four years old children like to be independent and are strongly self-willed. They like to be with other children but often show sensitivity to others. When a child reaches five years old they are able to amuse themselves for longer periods of time, for example looking at a book or watching a DVD, they show sympathy and comfort to friends who are hurt and are able to choose their own friends. At six years old children choose their friends from their personalities and interests, they hold long conversations with them naturally taking it in turns to speak and listen. 7-12 Children from seven years old start to form close relationships mainly with those of the same sex as them, however adult help may be needed in resolving arguments. Speaking up for themselves becomes easier for example when visiting people like the dentist or doctor. Around this age it is important for children to understand boundaries and why they are there. At eight and nine children make friends rather casually and may change quickly, the majority of friends are still the same sex as them but begin to show interest in the opposite sex. They start to join informal clubs formed by other children themselves but also like to join adult led groups like brownies or cubs, and start to show a sense of loyalty to these groups. Through the ages of ten and eleven children have stronger relationships with friends and usually have a best friend, the friendship will also last longer, these friendships will be formed on the basis of a mix of different shared interests and things that they have in common. Children fall into peer pressure and want to talk, dress and act like their friends, they prefer to spend time with friends and still continue to enjoy belonging to small groups of the same sex. 12-19 During adolescents teenagers start to identify more with friends and the relationship with parents becomes weaker. Because of the emotional need of feeling accepted from their peers, friends influence their interests. Teenagers become more socially skilled and become better at resolving conflicts with others. As they reach the age of sixteen to nineteen relationships with parents become strong again as they can have much more of an adult relationship with them. Friends and others around them influence their behaviour less as they become less important to them.

Problem Solving and Ambition

m Many people have different ambitions in life so the word ambition would have different definitions, depending on whom you ask. To me ambition is an urge desire to achieve your goals or succeed. Ambition leads you to dedication, motivation and time. I have many ambitions to achieve in a set period. Time motivates me to achieve my ambitions. Ambition in other words is the motive force needed to propel all of us to work towards our set cherished goals. . In this essay, I will define â€Å"ambition†, write about the different effects of ambition, and at last, I will talk about my personal experience with ambition.Different people have different ambitions in life. The nature of ambition varies from persons to person. It depends upon one's family background, upbringing, social status and economic condition. Ambition is the motive force needed to propel all of us to work towards our set cherished goals. It force that makes a person achieve things wonderful and beyond one’s n atural abilities, but ambition has the power to corrupt and completely alter one’s sense of reality and morality. In one of the universities in Colombia, one of the students attended a math lecture.He sat in the back of the hall and slept quietly. At the end of the lecture, he wakes up on the students voices leaving the hall. Before leaving, he noticed that the professor has written two mathematical problems on the white board. Therefore, he wrote them down in his notebook and left the hall. When he came back home, he started solving those problems. They were very hard. Therefore, he went to the university's library, picked up some references and started working them out again.After 4 days, he was able to solve the first problem but he was feeling very angry with his professor for giving them such a hard assignment. In the next lecture, the professor did not ask about the assignment, he was very surprised about that. Therefore, he went up to the professor and told him that th e first problem took him 4 days and 4 pages to solve it. The professor was very surprised; he told the student that he did not give any assignments. The two problems that the doctor wrote on the white board, was an example of the mathematical problems, which the greatest scientist could not work out at all.As we saw in this case, the student was motivated by his ambition to solve the problem; as mentioned earlier that ambition is eager or strong desire to achieve something, he's ambition here was to solve the question although it took him humongous effort and time. The solution of this problem with its four pages is still exhibited there in this university. Ambition is defined as an eager or strong desire to achieve something, such as fame or power. Every human being needs ambition to succeed in life. It is the driving force in life, which motivates us to compete and be the best. A person without ambition is like a boat without a rudder.Ambition is the backbone of this world as it l ed many great men throughout history to extravagant achievements. Ambition is a good character if utilized correctly. Without ambition, life will be boring, monotonous and uninteresting. There are many different situations in which being ambitious can be a good characteristics. Nothing can be accomplished without some sort of ambition. For example, if you are trying to reach a goal, such as going to college, you must have ambition. You must have the ability and desire to accomplish your goal. But ambition requires hard work. You must do your best and put in all your time and effort.If you don't have that ambition, you won't succeed or accomplish your goal. Ambition can also bring out the worst in people. In Julius Caesar, Cassius’ ambitious nature drives him to kill his lifetime friend another example is Adolf Hitler had a vision that one day the world would be without Jews. This desire gave him the ambition to kill all of the Jews, is a form of negative ambition. Being ambit ious can be a good and bad trait. It can bring out the best and worst in people. It can show people's true colors and their true interests. We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents.We do not choose our historical epoch, or the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. Nor do we choose the time or conditions of our death. But within all this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we shall live: courageously or in cowardice, honorably or dishonorably, with purpose or in drift. We decide what is important and what is trivial in life. We decide that what makes us significant is either what we do or what do refuse to do. But no matter how indifferent the universe may be to our choices and decisions, these choices and decisions are ours to make.We decide. We choose. And as we decide and choose, so our lives formed. In the end, forming our own destiny is what ambition is about. bibliographies: 1. Rescuing Ambition by Dave Harvey and C. J. M ahaney (Apr 14, 2010) 2. Activating Your Ambition: A Guide to Coaching the Best Out of Yourself and Others by Mike Hawkins (Jul 14, 2009) 3. Ambition: How We Manage Success and Failure Throughout Our Lives by Gilbert Brim (Sep 22, 2000 4. The way of ambition by Robert Smythe Hichens (Sep 10, 2010 5. http://en. wiktionary. org/wiki/Ambition

Montessori method of education Essay

Dr. Maria Montessori is the founder of the Montessori method of education. She started her first classroom â€Å"Casa dei Bambini† or Children’s House in 1907. Montessori method of education stresses the importance of respecting children – â€Å"Help me to help myself†. Montessori education celebrates its 100th year in 2007. The goals of a Montessori education were to develop sensory training, language acquisition, arithmetic, physical education, practical life skills and abstract thought through the teaching of the whole child and the integration of the family into the early education system. Montessori began her educational experiences by working with special needs children. At the time of Montessori, special needs children were thought of as a â€Å"lost cause†. They could not learn how to become members of society because intelligence was fixed. She strongly opposed to the perceptions on cognitive abilities of these children at the time, and believed that they could learn how to become members of society through special teaching techniques that utilized sensory education and hands-on experience. Her aim was to teach children academics through practical life experiences and to â€Å"†¦to develop the whole personality of the child through motor, sensory, and intellectual activity† (Hainstock, 1997, 35). Montessori – The Montessori classroom is a meticulously prepared environment designed specifically to meet the needs of the child both physically and emotionally. One aspect of the prepared environment includes the Practical Life activities. Many Practical Life activities are tasks the child sees routinely performed in the home. They each serve a meaningful purpose as the child masters each piece of work such as tying shoes, pouring water, sweeping, or sewing and cooking. Through Practical Life activities, a child will also develop and refine social skills. These skills developed through Practical Life build self-esteem, determination and independence. The student learns to take care of him and the surrounding environment. Maria Montessori explains in, The Discovery of the Child, â€Å"Through practical life exercises of this sort the children develop a true  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœsocial feeling,’ for they are working in the environment of the community in which they live† (5, pg. 97). Additionally, fine motor skills are improved through use of the Practical Life materials. Through repeated tasks which enable a child to refine concentration, coordination, independence, and order, a child’s sense of self-worth grows. The Practical Life skills are an essential component in the Montessori classroom. Not only do they provide a link between home and school for the new Montessori student, but they provide a foundation for life-long love of While appearing quite simple and repetitive, Practical Life activities are highly purposeful. A child engaged in such activities demonstrates high levels of concentration, sense of order, and refinement of fine motor skills. Also, they show a sense of independence through caring for oneself and the environment. Furthermore, they show respect for classmates and teachers and develop a sense of pride. Not only are these skills and qualities necessary to progress in the Montessori classroom, but they are also needed as an individual develops into adulthood. Practical Life activities can be divided into six main categories. First, are Preliminary Exercises which assist in creating routine and order in the environment and are prerequisites for other activities. How to a roll a mat, carry a chair, or how to open and close a door are examples of Preliminary Exercises. Practical life exercises also include Fundamental Skills such as pouring, spooning, or tonging. As with all lessons in the Montessori classroom, these activities follow a sequential order and ideally, each lesson builds upon the last. Another category is Care of Self. Activities such as washing hands, buttoning, or tying shoelaces assist the child to become physically independent. Care of Environment is another category involving activities such as sweeping, watering, cleaning, etc. Control of Movement is an area of Practical Life which encompasses lessons such as walking the Line and the Silence Game. Additionally, social Grace and Courtesy lessons are introduced to the child. These may include lessons on how to say please and thank you, interrupting someone, or introducing friends and acquaintances. Montessori stressed the relationship of these exercises to the general happiness and well being of the child. â€Å"A child who becomes a master of his acts through long and repeated exercises [of  practical life], and who has been encouraged by the pleasant and interesting activities in which he has been engaged, is a child filled with health and joy and remarkable for his calmness and discipline† (The Discovery the Child, 5, pg. 93). Varying types of presentations can be used by the teacher to introduce Practical Life activities. First is a collective introduction given the children at once. This could include proper table manners, how to interrupt someone, how to speak with an inside voice, or how to turn the page of a book. Another method is a group presentation given to a small gathering of children. The last method of introduction is Individual, given only to one child at a time. Montessori believed the prepared environment is directly correlated to the child’s development. The classroom is a specifically designed area arranged solely for the children. There should be a variety of movement and activity and all work operates together through the disciplines. Montessori also believed in the importance of aesthetically pleasing classrooms. Children respond well to beauty, order, and quality in their environment. Through the Practical Life activities in the Montessori classroom, a child not only learns concentration, coordination, independence and order, but also how to interact with others and gain an understanding and appreciation of the environment. The child begins to build himself from within while learning to treat him and others with respect and dignity. These understandings ultimately prepare the child for entry into society and a lifetime of self-respect and self-worthiness. Practical Life activities in the Montessori classroom ultimately provide the foundation for success in all areas of life. Movement – Montessori said- â€Å"one of the greatest mistakes of our day is to think of movement by itself, as something apart from the higher functions†(The absorbent mind, pg 151) – it is not equally clear as to how scientists and teachers have failed to note the supreme importance of activity in the  building up of the man to man be! It was during the time of Dr Maria Montessori who felt it was time to emphasize more on â€Å"movement† in educational theory – Mental development must be connected with movement. Like man’s nervous system is divided into three parts- Brain Sense organs- collect impression and pass them to the brain Muscles – the nerves transmits nervous energy to the muscles and this energy controls the movements of the muscles. Movement is the final result to which the working of all these delicate mechanisms leads up and it is because of movement that personality can express itself(The absorbent mind, pg 148)! The great philosophers must use speech or writing to convey his ideas and this involves muscular movement. What would be the value of his thoughts if he gave them no expression? This he can only do by making use of his muscles. Psychologists regard the muscles as a part of the central nervous system (works as a whole to put man in relation with his surroundings) and this whole apparatus of Brain ,Senses and Muscles is called – the system of relationship- it puts man in touch with his world (living or non living and with other people) and without its help a man could have no contact with his surroundings or his fellows. The vegetative systems only help their owner to grow and exist. It is the system of relationship which puts him into contact with the world! There is nothing in the world which plays no part in the universal economy, and if we are endowed with spiritual riches, with aesthetic feelings and a refined conscience, it is not for ourselves, but so that these gifts shall be used for the benefit of all, and take their place in the universal economy of spiritual life. Nature has given us many abilities and these must be developed and used. We know that for the enjoyment of good health, heart, lungs and stomache must all work together. We must apply the same rule to the system of relationship, the central nervous system†¦..if we have a brain, sense organs and muscles, all these must cooperate. The system must exert itself in all its parts, none of them being neglected for example we want to excel in brain power but to succeed in this we must include the other sides too. To perfect any giv en activity â€Å"movement† will be needed as the last stage of the cycle. In other words a higher spirituality can be reached only through action and this is the point  of view from which movement has to be judged. one of the greatest mistakes of our day is to think of movement by itself, as something apart from the higher functions, we think of our muscles as organs to be used only for health purposes. We â€Å"take exercise† or do â€Å"gymnastics† to keep ourselves fit, to make us breathe or to eat or sleep better. It is an error which has been taken over by the schools .It is just as though a great prince were being made the servant of the shepherd. The prince – the muscular system –is only being used to help the vegetative life. Such assumptions will lead to enquiry†¦there comes about a separation between the life of movement and the life of thought. Since the child has a body and mind both, games must be included in the curriculum so as to avoid neglecting any part of nature’s provision. To keep thinking abou t the mind on one hand and the body on other hand is to break the continuity that should reign between them. This keeps action away from thought. The true purpose of movement is to serve the ends of existence – that is the development of the mind(The absorbent mind, pg 151). All movement has most intricate and delicate machinery, but in man none of it is established at birth. It has to be formed and perfected by the child’s activity in the world. Movement and activity are natural functions of childhood and learning comes through them .Activity becomes increasingly important to development. It is the movement that starts the intellect working†¦ Till now all educators have thought of movement and the muscular system as aids to respiration, or to circulation, or as a means of building up physical strengthen our new conception the view is taken that movement has great importance in mental development itself, provided that the action which occurs is connected with the mental activity going on. Both mental and spiritual growth are fostered by this, without which neither maximum progress nor maximum health (speaking of the mind) can exist. A child is a discoverer. He is an amorphous splendid being in search of his own form. For example in the development of speech, we see a growing power of understanding go side by side with an extended use of those muscles by which he forms sounds and words. Observations made on children – the world overconfirms that the child uses his movements to extend his understanding. Movement helps in development of mind and this finds renewed expression in further movement and activity(The absorbent mind, pg 154). The child gains experience through exercises and movement. He coordinates his own movement  and records the emotions he experiences in coming into contact with the external world. The importance of physical activity or movement in a psychic development should be emphasized. The child has an internal power to bring about cordinations, which he creates himself, and once these have begun to exist he goes on perfecting them by practice. He himself is clearly one of the principal creative factors in thei r production. The movements the child acquires are not chosen haphazardly but are fixed. In the sense that each proceeds out of a particular period of development. When the child begins to move, his mind being able to absorb, has already taken in his surroundings. He Is directed by a mysterious power, great and wonderful that he incarnates little by little. In this way, he becomes a man. He does it with his hands, by experience, first in play then through work. The hands are the instruments of man’s intelligence. He constructs his mind step by step till it becomes possessed of memory, the power to understand and the ability to think. â€Å"The child’s mind can acquire culture at a much earlier age than is generally supposed, but his way of taking in knowledge is by certain kinds of activity which involves movement†¦.†(Montessori notes) It is very interesting to study the mechanical development of movement, not only because of its intricacy but because each of the phases it passes through is clearly visible. Man’s foot can be studied from three points of view: the psysiological, the biological and the anatomical and all of them are most interesting. The hand is in direct connection with the man’s soul, but also with different ways of life that men have adopted on the earth in different places and at different times. The skills of man’s hand are bound up with the development of his mind, and in the light of history we see it connected with the development of civilization. The hands of man express his thought and from the time of his first appearance upon the earth traces of his handiwork also appear in the records of history. Hence, the development of manual skill keeps pace with mental development. We are told that St. Francis of Assisi – perhaps the simplest and purest of human souls used to say – â€Å"Look at these great hills! They are the walls of our temple and the aspiration of our hearts!†(The absorbent mind, pg 163) The truth is that when a free spirit exists, it has to materialize itself in some form of work and for this hands are needed. (The absorbent mind, pg 163) The hand are connected with mental life, allows the mind to reveal itself and enables the  whole being to enter into special relationship with its environment. His hands under the guidance of his intellect transform this environment and thus enable him to fulfill his mission in the world. The education of the movements is very complex, as it must correspond to all coordinated movements which the child has to establish in his physiological organism. The child if left without guidance is disorderly in his movements and these disorderly movements are the special characteristics of the little child. The child is seeking the exercises in these movements which will organize and coordinate the movements that are useful to a man. The child follows direction/instructions and if his movements are made a little definite then the child grows quiet and contended and becomes an active worker, a being calm and full of joy. This education of movements is one of the principal factors in producing t hat outward appearance of â€Å"discipline† to be found in the â€Å"children’s house†.(Montessori notes) Importance of movement:- Movement leads to: Muscle development, both fine and gross – need freedom for movement to take place Stimulates the mind Stimulates the senses Develops concentration Develops independence Develops confidence (through agility/balance and co-ordination) Develops discipline and will Develops language Leads to normalization Results in a healthy body and mind Emotional and intellectual development through movement:- Emotions are the affecting mental stages, organized by external ideas of situations and always act while accompanied by bodily and mental excitement. However, when we talk about emotional development in children, we find that children show a wide range of emotional reactions. Sometimes they are excited and exuberant and at other times they are depressed and sullen and some other time they are just angry, throwing tantrums. We find various shades of emotions in them even at an early age. The word emotion originates  from the Latin word â€Å" Emovere† which means to be excited. So, an emotion implies that state of mind which excites a person when man is influenced by emotion he gets excited and his natural state of equilibrium is lost. Pattern of emotional development – if we have to understand the emotions of a child of school age, it is essential to take into consideration his emotional development during the early years. Sometimes, newly born infants behave as though they are violently aroused. If such vigorous behavior means the intensity of his feelings, then we must conclude that emotional experiences can be as intense during this early period as at any later stage of growth. Again we see that a new born child is relatively unresponsive to many stimuli which are likely to arouse him in later stages. Children are capable of rich and varied emotional experiences in the course of their development till they are adults. Children from birth to 2 years go through a variety of emotions and goes through many emotional experiences that may influence his attitude towards life. Studies show that at birth there are general excitements mostly concerning his hunger and comforts, after 2-3 months the child shows definite signs of distress along with delight. By 6 months with his exposure of different kinds of stimuli the child starts showing other shades of emotions like distress or discomforts develops into fear, disgust and anger. With the satisfaction of his needs he feels delighted and by the time child completes one year this delight differentiates itself from affection. the child recognizes emotions in others and responds to it clearly. But his emotions are not so strong as regard to joy and happiness when he turns one as they are at the age of 2.Therefore we conclude that by the end of 2nd year the child has already developed various emotions and feelings. Factors affecting emotional development – There are many factors that affect the emotional development among children, the major ones are – Fatigue – tired and exhausted child Ill health Order of birth Intelligence Environment Parental attitudes The child’s emotions are still pure of contrasts. He loves because he takes in, because nature orders him to do so. And what he takes and absorbs to make it a part of his own life, so as to create his own being(The secret of childhood, pg 80). The child follows the grownups and the words of a grownup are supernatural stimuli. The child is enchanted and fascinated by his actions and words. What the grown up tells him remains engraved in his mind like words incised by a chisel on a stone. The adult should count and measure all his words before the child, for the child is hungry to take from him, he is an accumulator of love. The developing child not only acquires the faculties of man: strength, intelligence, language, but at the same time, he adapts the being he is constructing to the conditions of the world about him. The child has a different relation to his environment from ours. The things he sees are not just remembered; they form part of his soul. He incarnates in himself all in the world about him that his eyes see and his ears hear. In us the same things produce no change but a child is transformed by them. This vital kind of memory which absorbs is called â€Å" Mneme†. In this process of absorption, learning,acquiring,adapting the child is constructing not only physically but emotionally or psychic as well. The moment the child understands his environment he learns to work and adapt to it and then further wants to master in it which leads to modifications accordingly. In this complete process the following emotions are built; Self esteem Confidence Feeling of capability Sense of achievement Thus, children enjoy process not purpose! The distinct difference between man and animal – Montessori tends to adopt a different standpoint from many modern psychologists. Most of the psychologists place great emphasis upon the â€Å"inherited tendencies to behavior† which man has in common with animals. They maintain that everything we do is based on the instinctive urges of human act.Thus; the love of knowledge is but the sublimated instinct of curiosity. For Montessori, she believes that man differs from animal creation not only in degree but also in kind. She states that the most significant thing about  the child development is not instinctive tendencies that are in common with animals, but the capacity to reason which distinguishes us from them. Here, she is not trying to deny or belittle the significances of their findings, but she is saying that these elementary psychic forces are only a part of the question and a lesser part, her conviction is – â€Å"Animals have merely to awaken their instincts towards their specified behavior and their psychic life is limited to this. But in man there is other fact –the creation of human intelligence (Montessori, notes). Unlike man, one can predict the behavior of animals, whereas for man, what he will do in the future, no one can tell. â€Å"For man there is no limit†(Montessori notes). Man is a rational animal to be most â€Å"like to God† whose image we are made. Man alone possesses â€Å"that capable and god-like reason which enables us to do what no animals has ever achieved –i.e. to rise to a consciousness of our being i.e. self consciousness, to the knowledge that â€Å"I am I†. It is with this gift of reason or intellect as foundation that we are able to build our individual characters. How soon does a child begin to reason? According to Montessori, it begins as early as a baby where the child starts from nothing. Its reason revolves round his internal working like a little bud, developing and assuming concrete form from the images it absorbs from the environment. According to Montessori at her lecture in 1944, it was stated that the first year of a child’s life is the period where greatest psychic activity can develop by the human being. This is evident because we know that the brain is one thing that is active during the first y ear. That the reason why the head of a one year old has doubled in size since its born. At the third year, its brain is already half that of the adult- at four years eight –tenths of its ultimate size. Montessori further elaborated that it is during the first period that the human being grows principally in intelligence: the rest of its growth during this period, being subordinate to this developing psychic life. The three characteristics we can observe about a child during this period are – The child creates his own mind –Since intelligence is what distinguishes man from all other animals, the first characteristic is the creation of intelligence. As said before he first constructs himself by absorbing everything from the environment by his unconscious mind. With these multitudinous impressions, the child continues  to build his conscious intelligence. Montessori said ; to build up this conscious intelligence, the work of the hand plays an important and essential pa rt. The intelligence builds its own instrument –Second fact is while constructing his own intelligence he also begins to construct his own bodily instruments of expression. The child’s power of movement will develop in subordination to this superior aim i.e. of psychic development. Its activity will not be confined within the narrow limits of instinctive behavior, but will function as an instrument of a free moral agent. His eternal destiny is placed within his own hands. Marvelous adaptive powers of the child –The third characteristic of this period, are the marvelous adaptive power possessed by the child. Montessori illustrated this point by comparing man to animals. Example – if a cat is born in France, England or India, it would meow just the same way wherever it grows up. However for a child he will speak French in France, English in England and Hindi or any other dialect in India. This is because of its â€Å"inner construction†. Movement and mental assimilation leads to integration of personality – The child constructs himself through movement .The value of movement goes deeper that just helping in acquisition of knowledge. It involves the development of child’s personality -in 1st year baby establishes his physical his physical development through movement. He learns to use his limbs and whole body to carry out movements such as crawling, standing and walking and sometimes running. In the next few years he refines his gross motor skills through movement. He continues to develop his fine motor skills through activities that involve movements. As the child interacts with his environment, he absorbs the environment into his psychic life. Through repeated use of materials in the environment he learns to compare, discriminate, differentiate and judge the qualities of the materials. As the child gains experience through exercises and movements, he co-ordinates his own movement and records the emotions he experienced in coming into contact with the external world. He learns self help skills, taking and sharing. This is the social and emotional development of the child. It is also not sufficient to allow children to learn without giving him the opportunity to work or explore with the materials. When children work with the materials, it involves creative movement. When teaching children, it is not sufficient for them to hear the things which we wish him to learn. â€Å"We must give no more to eye & ear than we give to the hand†(Montessori notes) For example, in teaching children ,the idea of dimension, it is no good to show them a diagram of objects of various sizes, instead we need to provide children with concrete materials such as the knobbed cylinder, pink tower, brown stairs, long rods and knobbles cylinders. They must be given the opportunity to explore and experiment with the materials. This is so with all Montessori materials whether it is the four operations in arithmetic, parts of speech or learning of lands and water. It always involves movement. The child as an individual presents two aspects –the center and the periphery. The center is seen as the innermost citadel of the personality from which action proceeds .At this center the child increases his mental powers by seeking out sensation and movement which takes place at the second part of his personality i.e at the periphery. The periphery is that part of the child’s personality which comes in contact with the external world .It involves the senses, movements and the outward manifestations of his choice. Through continuous interaction of the center and the periphery, the mind of the child develops and expands. The directress should be concerned with the periphery as it is that part of the child that is accessible to her. The other methods of teaching aims at getting to the center directly. The teacher’s business is to feed the periphery. The teacher prepares the environment that meets the child’s inner needs and in his exploration of the materials, he abstracts ideas from them. As both center and periphery interacts, the child builds his mind. The objects in the environment cannot be chosen at random. Each material possesses an idea or concept to be realized, not to be announced by the teacher. At the child explore with the materials, this concept/idea become presented. In practice, we often find that even if the directress has prepared the  environment and presented the materials to the children, there do not seem to be a click of the center and the periphery. The child does not seem to be interested and his act seems to be in a disorderly manner. According to Montessori, the answer to this missing link is the â€Å"Point of Contact†. To explain this, Montessori used the example of teaching the appreciation of music. If the teacher tries to play music morning till night and children are allowed to move about to move about anyhow and anywhere in a disorderly manner, there is a lack of contact. To resolve this problem, the muscles, which move, should move in response to the musical rhythm thus establishing a psychic bridge between the soul of the child and the external reality of music. The moment the child understands that there exists the connection (i.e between the music and his movement), then the point of contact is established. So if the music changes its rhythm, then the child becomes aware of it and changes his movement accordingly, and he is on the road to perfect himself. This reality may be either material or spiritual; but movement must always accompany the child at any rate. Let’s look at an example to understand how the point of contact helps development. In their presenting of the sensorial materials, children were given new sounds, new shapes etc.The main purpose of it is not just bring new sounds, new shapes but to bring order into this new impression. The difficulty or the error that the child is to discover and understand must be isolated in a single piece of material. For example the long rods will present to the child only a variation in length and not in colour and design. Such isolation will help child focus on the problem more readily. It is through this method, that it leads the child to be interested in dimension, and develop him to observe them in the world around. Montessori calls her material â€Å"keys to the Universe† –it is important to constantly remember that it is through this point of contact limited and exactly but real work, helps the child to summon the mind to wonder at large in fantasy to something real which opens up a new pathway. With younger children, however, it was observed that the exercises in practical life will play an important part, but always the point of contact will be established through movement. An example was to get up from a chair and carry it from one place to another without any sound. The children would  be presented this concept of self perfection and would seek to do the same as it corresponds to his soul. Again, we see the truth of Montessori’s maxim that â€Å"education begins through movement†.

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Dirty Water Bill - Assignment Example This may lead to more damage downstream as these pollutants begin to accumulate. This policy as stated in the public outcry is literally similar to the notion of whatever happens in Vegas should stay in Vegas so this policy would fail quickly (Carter, National Wildlife Federation). H.R. 2018 bill was likely to threaten water quality in American rivers, streams, and lakes. The ability of federal and state governments would be limited in terms of ensuring that all American citizens can access clean water. The bill would limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s capability of revising an agreed water quality standard; this would happen only if the state agrees. It would prohibit the EPA from disallowing a water quality certification that is granted by a state. It would hinder the EPA from limiting federal financial aid for the state water quality program if a state does not comply with the water quality standards. Protected waters, aquatic waters would become degraded since the H.R. Bill 2018 renders EPA as somewhat meaningless. This includes weakening permit reviews that normally determine alternatives that do not harm the environment, do not go against laws, and do not degrade waters. H.R. Bill 2018 would lead to harm to the environment in the short ru n and long run. United States. Congress. House. Committee on Rules. Providing for Consideration of the Bill (H.R. 2018) to Amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to Preserve the Authority of Each State to Make Determinations Relating to the States Water Quality Standards, and for Other Purposes: (to Accompany H. Res. 347). Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2011.

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Professionalism in Practice - Essay Example Therefore, taking up a teaching profession is not by chance in most cases. Most practicing teachers believe that to become a teacher is a ‘calling,’ where one just feels indebted to take up a socially responsible profession that would help shape the society in a positive and generally accepted way. Thus according to Howard Sharron (1987), by virtue of being a teacher, one would have committed him/herself to answer the calling of helping others gain knowledge. In most cases, it is out of love of doing good things that would promote peace and tranquility in the society. Basically, one main reason for an individual to decide to take up the teaching profession is the need to instill good morals and values in pupils so as to create a habitable environment comprising of knowledgeable people who use the power of reasoning in conducting themselves in their daily lives. Instilling discipline among children is one of the core tenets of teaching as this would contribute towards the development of a generation that can distinguish between what is wrong and good. This would be the stepping stone of creating a crime free environment as in most cases people are redeemed by education from behaving in a rogue manner. Haim Ginott, (1972:9), sums it all when he says, â€Å"school is a perfect preparation for the world.† Another reason of becoming a teacher is the commitment to be part and parcel of developing the educational background of pupils hence improving the country’s literacy rate. A country that has got a higher literacy rate stands better chances of economic development and growth because educated people are enlightened in most of the things hence they are able to make informed decisions that would benefit them. 2. A teacher in every school is expected to uphold some values that define the profession. First and foremost, a teacher has a great responsibility of molding the values of children since they spend a great

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Factor of Implementation that Caused Toyota Company - Assignment Example Toyota is a company that started in the year 1937 is successful globally. It is among the largest, known auto manufacturers in the world. It manufactures high-quality vehicles through the setting of high standards in the production. The company ensures that there is efficiency in the day-to-day life of all the people in the world. Since the company started, it has sailed through as a successful business through innovation and coming up with unique and modern products that do well in the foreign market. For the past 47 years since the company started, it showed the best sales income in all months. This success is attributing to the good implementation of the strategies set for the growth of the company. A lot of innovation took place in order to produce new and unique products that attracted customers. In the race of achieving the mission and vision of the company, the problem of poor implementation of one of the factors of strategic implementation led to a safety scandal of the products. The factor that the company did not realize that there was no proper implementation is the control factor. This lead to the production of vehicles with mechanical problems associated with braking systems that lead to acceleration when the driver is least aware. Control involves checking of the quality of the products produced. For the production of high-quality products, production system and management are vital and important. However, the quality of the production system and the materials used during production must reach the highest level of quality. Though the mission of the company is all about quality, safety, and expansion of the company globally, the company failed in ensuring that quality control was as before (Mohin, 2012). In the process of production, something went wrong in the fixation of the floor mats that made the brake pedals ineffective and caused unwanted acceleration that caused injuries and deaths to the users of the vehicles.