Body Growth

Middle childhood spans the years between early childhood and adolescence, children are approximately 6 to 11 years old. These children come in all shapes and sizes: height, weight, abilities, etc. Physical growth rates are generally slow and steady during these years. However, growth spurts can occur during middle to late childhood (Spreen, Riser, & Edgell, 1995). Children tend to slim down and gain muscle strength and lung capacity making it possible to engage in strenuous physical activity for long periods of time. In addition, the rate of growth for the extremities is faster than for the trunk, which results in more adult-like proportions. Long-bone growth stretches muscles and ligaments, which results in many children experiencing growing pains, at night, in particular.

Children between ages 6 and 9, show significant improvement in their abilities to perform motor skills. This development allows children to gain greater control over the movement of their bodies, mastering many gross and fine motor skills that were beyond that of the younger child. Riding a bike that is bigger or running longer and further is a big improvement in gross motor skills. Hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills allow for children to become better at writing and cutting. Sports and extracurricular activities may become a bigger part of the lives of children during middle childhood due to their physical growth and capabilities.

Brain Development

The brain reaches its adult size at about age 7. Then between 10 and 12 years of age, the frontal lobes become more developed and improvements in logic, planning, and memory are evident (van der Molen & Molenaar, 1994). The school-aged child is better able to plan and coordinate activity using both the left and right hemispheres of the brain, which control the development of emotions, physical abilities, and intellectual capabilities. The attention span also improves as the prefrontal cortex matures. From age 6 to 12, the nerve cells in the association areas of the brain, that is those areas where sensory, motor, and intellectual functioning connect, become almost completely myelinated (Johnson, 2005). This myelination contributes to increases in information processing speed and the child’s reaction time. The hippocampus, which is responsible for transferring information from the short-term to long-term memory, also shows increases in myelination resulting in improvements in memory functioning (Rolls, 2000).

The human brain. [Image by _DJ_ is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0]

Changes in the brain during this age enable not only physical development, but also allow children to understand what others think of them and dealing socially with the positive and negative consequences of that. Within this development period, children may struggle with mental health disorders or other health problems. As children are growing and becoming more capable, adults need to remember that children don’t grow physically in isolation. The development of their bodies isn’t separate from the changes that are occurring socially, emotionally, and cognitively. Awareness and understanding of their other developmental domains and needs will support the child during these changes.

Attributions

“Chapter 10: Middle Childhood – Physical Development” by Jean Zaar, Child Growth and Development is licensed under CC BY-NC 3.0

“Lifespan Development: A Psychological Perspective” by Martha Lally and Suzanne Valentine-French is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0