Whats going on behind those smiling faces

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Whats going on behind those smiling faces?

• Getting to know your fourth and
• fifth-grade students
• Sandra Kepko

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Physical DevelopmentFourth and Fifth-Grade
Students

• Most children are not yet experiencing the
  hormonal imbalances that occur during puberty.
• As a result, physical changes are typically
  steady instead of drastic.
• The average child will experience steady growth
  of about 2 to 3 inches in height and 5 to 7
  pounds in weight.
• Both boys and girls become leaner and stronger.
• Boys perform better at sports-related motor
  skills.
• Girls perform better at flexibility, balance and
  rhythmic motor skills.
• Both boys and girls have the ability to sit
  quietly for extended periods of time and focus on
  intellectual tasks.

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Physical DevelopmentCurrent Practices In
Education

• The difference between girls and boys, with
  respect to motor skills, may be a result of
  current socialization practices rather than an
  innate ability.
• Classroom practices should not stereotype
  activities by gender.
• Teachers should encourage participation in a
  variety of activities by both genders.
• Any physical change of a student should be
  recognized with sensitivity.
• Students at this age are aware and critical of
  physical changes they may experience.

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Social DevelopmentFourth and Fifth-Grade Students

• Children become less egocentric and are better
  able to understand the perspectives of others.
• Develop a deeper sense of social interaction and
  more of an interest in friendships.
• Develop more advanced social problem-solving
  skills as a result of the ability to understand
  others perspectives.
• Comparison to classmates and other peers is
  common and plays a large role in developing the
  students self-image.
• Students with a poor self-image are at risk for
  delinquent behavior and lower academic
  performance.
• Children begin looking to their peers, instead of
  adults, when deciding standards of behavior.

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Social DevelopmentCurrent Practices In Education

• Many current theories suggest that learning
  occurs as a direct result of social interaction
  and encourages its use in todays classrooms.
• Examples include
• Social constructivism
• Vygotskys Sociocultural theory
• Community of learners
• Guided social interaction helps students develop
  social problem-solving skills, improving their
  relationships with peers and elders.
• As a result, a students self-image can be
  improved. This, in turn, helps improve academic
  performance.
• Adult participation and guidance is critical.

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Emotional DevelopmentFourth and Fifth-Grade
Students

• Preadolescent hormones become present in some
  students, causing them to
• Challenge authority more frequently
• Develop stronger opinions
• Have more frequent shifts in mood
• Begin to develop an interest in the opposite sex
• At this age, most children dont have a developed
  sense of their emotions.
• They may not know why they feel the way they do
  or how to appropriately handle their emotions.
• Industry vs. Inferiority life-span stage
• Students learn to feel competent through a
  pattern of success.

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Emotional DevelopmentCurrent Practices in
Education

• During the Industry vs. Inferiority life stage,
  it is critical that teachers create opportunities
  for students to experience competence and
  success.
• Self-image is constructed by the student based on
  their self-concept, as well as the way they view
  their abilities as compared to classmates.
• Though students challenge authority and become
  opinionated, they feel safe and desire an
  environment that is controlled with positive
  reinforcement.
• Do not make acceptance of a child contingent on
  behavior.
• Positive behavior techniques include
• Reinforcers Token Economy
• Shaping Removal of antecedents

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Intellectual DevelopmentFourth and Fifth-Grade
Students

• Children are in the midst of Piagets Concrete
  Operational stage of development
• Able to think logically about concrete objects
• Competent with tasks that involve
• Inclusion Seriation
• Conservation Simple memory skills
• Transitivity Symbolic representation
• Moving toward Piagets Formal Operational stage
  of development
• Students are beginning to think in the abstract
  and hypothetical.

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Intellectual DevelopmentCurrent Practices in
Education

• Instruction should be focused around concrete
  examples of concepts that students can see and
  experience.
• However, teachers should ask questions that
  expose students to abstract concepts so that they
  may develop formal operational thinking skills.
• Teachers should implement a variety of
  instructional strategies to reach all learners,
  examples include
• Building on prior knowledge
• Connecting lesson to real-world experience
• Hands-on activities
• Study and note-taking strategies
• Critical thinking skills
• Current theories recommend a movement away from
  the teacher-centered classroom to a more
  community-style learning environment.

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References

• Eggen, P.D., Kauchak, D.P. (2007). Educational
  psychology windows on classrooms. New Jersey
  Pearson Education, Inc.
• LaForge, A.E. (1999). What really happens in
  school a guide to your childs emotional,
  social, and intellectual development, grades k
  5. New York Hyperion.
• Meece, J.L. (1997). Child and adolescent
  development for educators. New York McGraw-Hill
  Companies, Inc.
• Sigelmn, C.K., Rider, E.A. (2006). Life-span
  human development (5th ed.). California Thomas
  Wadsworth.
• Snowman, J., Biehler, R. (2006). Psychology
  applied to teaching. Boston Houghton Mifflin.