Author: Natasha Boskic

4.5 Ten to Twelve: Social/Emotional Skills

Social/Emotional Skills

Children’s social/emotional skills should be developing quite well during the ages between 10 and 12. Most children this age have a good sense of self and should have a positive self-esteem. Children at this age care a great deal about what others, especially peers, think of them. Difficulties with social/emotional skills should be monitored very closely, because they can and do influence all other developmental domains. This is also the time when some anxiety disorders start to develop in children. It is very important to be aware of the signs of such disorders, in order to take action as soon as possible.

SOCIAL

When it comes to social skills, there are warning signs of delays. A child may:

not take turns, even when asked to do so;
not share, even when asked to do so;
have no friends;
have no “best” or “favorite” friend;
not get invited to gatherings and birthday parties;
be unable to see another person’s point of view;
take things that do not belong to him or her without asking for permission first;
not return borrowed items, despite knowing that he or she should;
steal from others;
threaten or bully others;
hit, kick or bite others;
vandalize property;
be persuaded to join a gang; that is, a group of youth and young adults involved in illegal activities; for example, painting unwanted graffiti, riding stolen cars, carrying knives and other weapons, and end up being in trouble with the law
constantly ignore and break curfews (see full Glossary);
avoid social situations;
prefer to be alone all the time (Fig. 1);
be very fidgety (see full Glossary) in social situations;
not offer comfort to those who need it;
not offer to help to those who need it;
be seen by peers as “weird” or “odd”;
struggle with cause and effect.

Figure 1. Preferring to be alone

EMOTIONAL

When it comes to emotional skills, there are warning signs of delays. A child may:

not have good impulse control (that is, they seem to react to certain situations without thinking first);
be unable to label how they feel (For example: “I am very angry right now.”);
be unable to label the feelings of others (that is, cannot tell when others are sad or hurt by looking at the expression on their faces and/or listening to their tone of voice);
not care when someone is hurt, physically or emotionally;
seem overly preoccupied by self most of the time (that is, seeming to pay too much attention to self);
cry extremely easily;
be very shy, to the point of being withdrawn;
have nightmares and night terrors (that is, have very severe nightmares after which children wake up crying and sweating);
not enjoy hugs and kisses most of the time;
appear to have no self-confidence;
appear to have very poor self-esteem;
cry a lot, many times over routine events and may not be able to explain why;
be overly dependent on others; for example, may not start any chore or daily activity at home, like having their meal unless someone prompts him or her to do it;
destroy his, hers or others’ property;
hurt him or herself, on purpose;
not want to sleep alone most of the nights;
move very quickly from one emotional state to another (that is, being very sad and then suddenly being very happy);

ANXIETY WARNING SIGNS:

When it comes to anxiety, there are some warning signs. A child may:

have an irrational fear of an object (hair brushes), person (a fireman) or situation (being in an elevator);
worry too much (Fig. 2);
excessively wash his or her hands;
want to touch things in a certain way, on a regular basis and in the same way (for example: to touch all walls in the house before going to sleep)
be afraid of things or people that do not exist (for example the boogey man);
panic before certain events or situations (for example, before an exam);
be constantly worried that something horrible is going to happen;
notice even the smallest change in his environment (for example: “Why did you move my clock one inch to the left?”)
be unable to go to sleep or get back to sleep;
be excessively worried when she has to talk in front of others or present something in class;
be worried of failing at school, even though he or she is getting good grades;
feel as if his or her heart is beating too fast;
constantly sweat and feel nauseous;
get suddenly scared of anything for no apparent reason.

Figure 2. Worrying too much

see References

4.4 Ten to Twelve: Motor Skills

Motor Skills

The motor skills of children between 10 and 12 are very similar to those of adults. At this stage, children continue to work on their strength, stamina or endurance, and coordination. In fact, children this age can perform almost any motor activity that a grown-up can. It is highly recommended that a referral to a physical therapist or occupational therapist be made if the child shows some of the symptoms or warning signs described below.

GROSS MOTOR

When a child experiences delays in gross motor skills, he or she may:
not have a good sense of balance (that is, falling down and bumping into objects a lot);
be unable to ride bikes without training wheels;
be unable to throw, catch and kick a ball of any size;
struggle with complex sports that require keeping score, such as hockey or soccer (Fig. 1).

Figure 1. Hockey

FINE MOTOR

When a child experiences delays in fine motor skills, he or she may:

not have good posture when reading and writing;
hold pens and pencils with their whole hands rather than use of the tripod position;
be unable to tie knots and secure bows;
be unable to unlock the dead bolt at home;
be unable to use scissors to cut complex shapes;
be unable to use an eraser without tearing the page;
be unable to paste or tape two things together;
be unable to type several sentences on the computer keyboard.

see References

4.3 Ten to Twelve: Language Development

Language Development

The language that 10 to 12 year olds use is almost as complex as the adults’ language. Children this age are now playing with words and delight in the use of word-based problems. They are able to change the complexity of their language to fit the audience they are speaking to and the situation they are in. In fact, there is very little that children at this age cannot do, when it comes to language. They can understand figurative speech, and ironic remarks and comments. Any delay in any area of language at this age should be taken seriously. The child who is exhibiting such delays should be referred to a speech and language pathologist or a psychologist, for a full evaluation.

EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE:

There are warning signs when it comes to expressive language delays. A child may:

still be unable to speak in full and complex sentences;
struggle with the use of negation; for example, “I cannot go today;”
struggle with the use of “wh” questions (for example: what’s for dinner?);
be unable to use the passive form (For example: “The cat was chased by the dog.”);
be unable to use figurative language (For example: “It is raining cats and dogs.”); and may actually look at the sky to see if cats or dogs are coming down;
be unable to use “ironic” statements;
continue to struggle with irregular plurals (For example, mice and feet);
continue to struggle with the irregular past tense (For example: “He ate and then slept”);
talk repeatedly about the same topic, over and over again;
be unable to explain his or her ideas, in more than one way;
be unable to give complex directions (for example: to get to my house, take a left on Pine street, then a quick right at Oak street and then another quick left at Fir street);
forget what word he or she wanted to use, using a “generic” word instead (for example, forgetting the breed of dog the neighbors have, like a Labrador or Lab, and using the word “dog” instead);
struggle with the use of abstract terms (such as “justice” and “freedom”).

RECEPTIVE LANGUAGE

When a child experiences delays in receptive language, he or she may:

be unable to understand complex directions (for example, “Please take the book that is on the shelf and put it under the table.);
be unable to understand the main topic in a conversation;
be unable to understand figurative language (for example, “zip it” and may appear confuse and want to fix his or her zipper);
be unable to understand ironic statements;
miss the meaning behind a “joke”;
struggle with understanding of the passive form (for example, “The book was carried by the teacher.”).
get mixed up between male and female terms (he versus she, or him versus her);
seem to understand only the first part of a complex or long sentence;
struggle with the understanding of abstract terms (such as “freedom” and “justice”).

PRAGMATICS

There are warning signs when it comes to delays in pragmatics. A child may:

be unable to carry on a ten-minute conversation with adults;
be unable to carry on a ten-minute conversation with peers;
be unable to wait for his or her turn in a conversation;
be unable to stay on topic and will instead go off on tangents (that is, the child starts talking about cars and then suddenly shifts to talking about the weather);
struggle with the understanding of para-verbal cues (saying hmmm) and with non-verbal cues (nodding in agreement);
be rather quiet when around others most of the time;
get too close to others when talking to them (unless appropriate to do so, in the child’s culture); for example, some parents have described this as “breathing constantly on someone” when child needs to communicate something or share something with adults or other children;
only talk about things that are of interest to him or her;
attempt to join a conversation even if he or she has been given clear signals that she is not welcome to do so.

ARTICULATION

In addition to difficulties listed for children between 5 and 10 years old There are warning signs when it comes to delays of articulation. A child may:

not be able to pronounce all sounds in their native language, including the difficult ones (for example: the “zh” sound in “pleasure”).

see References

4.2 Ten to Twelve: Cognitive Development

Cognitive Development

Between ages 10 to 12 years, cognitive skills are in full bloom. Children are refining the skills that they’ve been developing since they were born. They are now able to perform mental operations, think in simple abstract terms and perform many tasks in an automatic manner. Children who continue to struggle with basic cognitive skills at this age should be seen by a specialist as soon as possible. Children who are slow to mature have had plenty of time to catch up with their peers. If they haven’t, caught up, they could be experiencing cognitive delay. A referral to a licensed psychologist for a full psycho-educational assessment is highly recommended.

When it comes to cognitive skills, some warning signs a child might show are:

being unable to make simple inferences;
being unorganized both at school and at home;
struggling with attention; for example, finding it hard to engage, focus and/or complete in most activities he or she initiates;
being unable to understand simple cause and effect relations (“the reason the glass is broken is because I left it on the edge of the table and it fell”); (note added quotes)
struggling with class inclusion (see full Glossary), a basic concept in math;
struggling with the ability to classify objects based on three or more characteristics (for example: picking up objects that are big, red and square-shaped);
being unable to tell time, even with a digital watch or clock;
being unable to access prior knowledge, if and when needed; for example, how to put the laundry clothes in the laundry machine and start the wash –even if he or she has done this several times with assistance;
being unable to use newly acquired information; for example, how to send an email;
being unable to get started with a task, and needing constant reminders to do so;
being unable to finish a task that was started;
struggling with advanced qualitative concepts (for example: “smooth”, even if understands a related concept, like “soft”);
struggling with advanced spatial concepts (for example: underneath) (Fig. 1);
struggling with advanced quantitative concepts using comparisons(for example: “less than, even if understands a related concept like “less”);
struggling with figurative language (for example: thinking that someone is going to die because they said “my back is killing me”);
being unable to come with simple solutions to simple problems; for example, “My shirt got wet, I need to change it, and wear a dry shirt instead;”
being unable to come up with ideas on his or her own; for example, “I will make a card or buy some cookies for my friend’s party;”
getting caught up in the details and missing the “big picture”; for example, “I cannot wear a jacket with a small stain even if feeling cold because one does not wear “dirty” clothes;”
often forgetting what he or she was doing, or about to do;
complaining that he has nothing to do (all the time) but resisting suggestions of what he can do;
getting low grades in school for most of the term or the school year;
being unable to come up with the correct answer to a question, even though he or she knows the answer;
confusing the sequence of events (that is, not knowing what happens first and what happens last).

Figure 1. The cat is underneath the table

see References

4.1 Ten to Twelve: Adaptive Skills

Adaptive Skills

By 10 to 12 years of age, a child’s basic adaptive skills are very similar to those of adults. They are expected to take care of their hygiene on their own. They are expected to pick what they will wear, know when to shower and brush their hair and teeth. Difficulties with adaptive skills are very likely to affect other developmental areas, especially the social/emotional domain. They are also very likely to indicate delays in all other areas at this age. Any delay in any area of adaptive development should be noted.

When it comes to adaptive skills, some warning signs a child might show are:

needing help when bathing or showering;
being unable to get dressed and undressed on their own (this includes fastening snaps, tying shoe laces, and buttoning small buttons);
not understanding why they should brush their hair and their teeth;
being unable to prepare a snack or simple meal by themselves (for example: frying an egg);
being unable to care for minor cuts;
being unable to use real, as opposed to toy tools (such as a screw driver or hammer) (Fig. 1);
being unable to use a minor appliance (e.g. a can opener or blender) (Fig. 2);
continuing to struggle with basic eating utensils (like forks, knives and chopsticks) (Fig. 3).

Figure 1. Screw driver

Figure 2. Can opener

Figure 3. Utensils

see References

4.0 Ten to Twelve: Academic Skills

Ten to Twelve: Academic Skills

Post author By Natasha Boskic
Post date May 6, 2012
No Comments on Ten to Twelve: Academic Skills

Most children undergo through changes that are related to their physical growth and development between 10 and 12 years and go first through puberty and then towards pre-adolescence or the “pre-teen” years (for more information, please visit the following website). Some children experience get very tall, almost suddenly in the eyes of their parents or caregivers. Other children gain weight and tend to look “chubby.” They may feel very self-conscious about their physical appearance. This, in turn, may have an impact on the way they view themselves and on their relationship with school work. This is why it is important to consider the physical, cognitive, social and emotional changes at this stage while reviewing the following sections describing signs of atypical development for children between 10 – 12 years old.

Academic Skills

The ages between 10 and 12 years are a very important time for academic skills. All typically developing children who are between 10 and 12 should be reading, writing, spelling and engaging in math operations, such as adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing multiple digit numbers and fractions (Fig. 1). If a child is not at least engaging in these activities, he or she should get help, as soon as possible.

Figure 1. In the classroom

READING SKILLS

When it comes to reading, there are a number of warning signs. A child may:

avoid reading activities;
avoid storytelling activities;
be able to read, but only very slowly;
struggle with reading comprehension;
be unable to use their skills to sound out new words with two- and three syllables; for example, “cart-ridge” and “ma-jes-tic”
be unable to finish reading a paragraph;
be unable to summarize what they just read;
be unable to predict “what will happen next” in a story being read or told;
be unable to self-correct when he or she makes a mistake while reading;
fail to understand paragraphs that contain “implicit” messages.

WRITING SKILLS

There are warning signs when it comes to delays in writing. A child may:

have very unintelligible penmanship (Fig. 2);
be unable to write long sentences and paragraphs;
struggle with prepositions (for example: at, in), pronouns (for example: I, you), and possessives (for example: mine, yours);
struggle with basic punctuation, such as periods and commas;
be unable to use capital letters where needed;

Figure 2. Unintelligible penmanship

make many spelling mistakes, even when writing simple paragraphs;
make the same spelling mistake, over and over again;
be unable to organize a document into “introduction”, “body”, and “conclusion” sections;
be unable to use a dictionary (Fig. 3) when needed;
continue to reverse letters (for example: “deb” for “bed”);
continue to invert letters (for example: “we” for “me”);
continue to omit phonemes from basic and familiar words (for example: “chool” for “school);
continue to add phonemes to basic and familiar words (for example: (“pelease” for “please”).

Figure 3. Dictionary

MATH SKILLS

There are warning signs when it comes to delays in math. A child may:

struggle with complex multiplication problems using more than 2 digits, (for example: 952 X 852);
struggle with complex division problems, (for example, 1549 / 350)
struggle with complex math word problems (for example: “A train travels from one city to the next at the speed of 100 miles per hour. If it takes the train 4.5 hours to get to its destination, how many miles will it travel?);
struggle with fractions;
struggle with decimals (for example: 3.14);
struggle with the understanding of percentages (for example: 90%);
struggle with the understanding of comparative concepts (for example: “this rope is longer than that rope”).

see References

3.5 Eight to Ten: Social/Emotional Skills

Social/Emotional Skills

A child’s social/emotional skills are developing quickly at this age. They now have friends and are able to understand their emotions as well as the feelings of others. They can also play well with others without supervision and without getting into trouble (Fig.1). But this is also the time some children develop a wide range of anxiety-based disorders. Being aware of these signs and recognizing them is very important. The earlier we recognize these signs, the earlier the child can get help.

Figure 1. Girls playing

Social Skills

A child with social development delays may:

have very few or no friends;
prefer to be alone;
not get invited to outings and birthday parties;
be left out of group play activities at school (Fig. 2);
not be able to understand someone else’s point of view;
not understand others’ right to privacy (this is very dependent on the child’s culture);
constantly interrupt others;
have trouble waiting for his or her turn when wanting to play with a certain game;
be overly defiant of others;
avoid social situations;
hurt others’ feelings on purpose (for example, making fun of someone because they wear glasses, even after being told that doing so would hurt that person’s feelings);
not say “sorry” and apologize when making a mistake or if hurting others’ feelings;
get into too many fights;
hit, bite or kick others;
refuse to share with others;
be unable to follow the normal flow of a conversation;
appear to have no sense of humor;
be inflexible and wanting things done his or her way only.

Figure 2. Left out

Emotional Skills

A child with delays in emotional development may:

overreact to small problems (for example, getting very upset if they lose a sock);
have very poor impulse control (for example, getting upset too quickly and maybe hitting someone or breaking something);
be unable to label their feelings (for example, being unable to tell the difference between being sad or angry);
be unable to identify the feelings of others (for example, being unable to tell if someone is sad or angry);
need a lot of encouragement to start a task;
have poor self-esteem;
move from one extreme emotional state to the next (that is, being really happy then suddenly becoming extremely upset);
have trouble sleeping most nights, even when going to bed early;
appear overly anxious (Fig. 3);
excessively worry about anything and everything;
have a hard time when there is a change in routine (for example, not being able to go to a swimming lesson because it is snowing);
not like to try new things or new foods;
get easily overwhelmed by certain situations;
be excessively afraid of certain situations and objects;
not feel guilty after being told that she did something wrong;
panic for no apparent reason (that is, child appears really anxious in a situation seen by others as normal);
be overly self-conscious (for example, constantly worrying about what they look like);
be excessively shy;
have a narrow range of interests (for example, being only interested in toy cars);
struggle with the understanding of cause and effect situations (for example, not understanding that the reason an object is broken is because it was thrown on the floor).

Figure 3. Anxious

see References

3.4 Eight to Ten: Motor Skills

Motor Skills

The motor skills of children between the ages of 6 to 10 years are very well developed. In fact, children this age can do anything that adults can. At this stage, they will be mastering their balance and refining their coordination. Some of them may work on building strength and resistance for some activities, including sports games.

GROSS MOTOR

A child with gross motor delays may:

be quite awkward when running (that is, they seem to lack coordination when running and may even run into things or frequently trip and fall);
constantly lose his or her balance, when walking;
avoid sports and rough-and-tumble play;
be unable to kick, catch or throw a ball;
be unable to ride a bike without training wheels;
have difficulty or taking a long time going up and down the stairs.

FINE MOTOR

A child with fine motor delays may:

struggle when holding a pencil or paint brush;
have unclear printing or writing;
be unable to type a word or sentence on the computer keyboard;
be unable to tie a knot;
be unable to tie a secure bow;
be unable to cut complex shapes with scissors (Fig. 1);
have poor eye/hand coordination (that is, they may struggle with writing or eating);
avoid arts and crafts activities because of motor difficulties;
struggle with basic eating utensils, such as forks or chopsticks (Fig. 2);
struggle with buttons, snaps and zippers.

Figure 1. Cutting with scissors

Figure 2. Eating with chopsticks

see References

3.3 Eight to Ten: Language Development

Language Development

Most typically developing 8 to 10 year olds have very complex language skills. In fact, their language skills are almost as complex as those of adults. Language skills are very important on their own, but they are also quite important because they are influenced by social, cognitive and academic skills. It is extremely important that children’s language skills be monitored very closely and that a referral for an evaluation be made if language delays are observed.

EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE

A child with expressive language may:

speak in very simple sentences;
be unable to give details when talking about their own experiences (that is, using just a few sentences to talk about their experiences, even though they have a lot to say);
be unable to give details when retelling a story;
not talk very much;
use a lot of generic terms to describe specific objects or situations (for example, saying “animal” instead of “dog” and “meal” instead of lunch);
be unable to get their point across with oral language;
be unable to give simple directions (for example: “this is how you play this game”);
be unable to invent a story;
struggle with irregular plurals (for example: saying “mouses” instead of “mice”);
struggle with the irregular past (for example: saying “eated” instead of “ate”);
use very literal language and avoid figurative speech (for example: “it is raining cats and dogs”);
struggle with pronouns (for example: using “he” and “she” interchangeably);
leave out the beginning or ending of a word (for example: saying “chool” for “school).

RECEPTIVE LANGUAGE

A child with receptive language delays may:

not understand what others are telling him or her;
struggle with figurative speech (for example, it is raining cats and dogs);
have trouble following complex directions;
not understand jokes;
appear not to understand the “message” behind a story;
appear not to remember a story that he or she was just told;
struggle with the understanding of complex terms (such as: “I am baffled”);
not know minor body parts (for example: “knee,” “forehead”).

PRAGMATIC LANGUAGE

A child with pragmatic language delays may:

end a conversation by just walking away and not letting the other know why or what happened;
constantly interrupt others and not realize he or she is doing this;
get too close to others when talking to them (unless appropriate to do so in the child’s culture);
talk about several topics at once without sticking to the topic at hand when conversing with others;
have difficulty establishing and maintaining eye contact with others (if appropriate to do so in his or her culture);
have difficulty changing language to be right for his or her audience (that is, may use the same level of complexity when talking to a small child and a grown-up);
speak too loudly;
constantly blurt out things (that is, say things before it is his or her turn to do so);
only talk about things that are of interest to him or her.

ARTICULATION

By age 7, most children have mastered 100% of the sounds in their native language. A child experiencing delays in articulation, may:

struggle with the pronunciation of any sound in the English language.

see References

3.2 Eight to Ten: Cognitive Development

Cognitive Development

Children between 8 and 10 years of age are developing their cognitive skills. They are in Piaget’s concrete operations stage, which means they are performing operations, even if only at a concrete level, (as opposed to an abstract level of thinking). Signs of cognitive delay at this age can be quite serious and must not be taken lightly. It is very important that those working with children this age be aware of signs of cognitive delay (see the list below). Intervention must start as soon as possible if such a delay exists (Fig. 1) to help children succeed to the best of their abilities.

Figure 1. Early intervention

Children experiencing delays in cognitive skills may show these signs on a daily basis:

not be able to pay attention for more than a few minutes;
need help figuring out simple problems (for example, the washroom on this floor is out of order, so I should go to a different floor in this building, or ask someone for help);
avoid games and activities that stimulate cognitive development (games like “can you guess who”);
avoid games that contain letters and numbers (for example: Monopoly);
be unable to give a lot of detail when talking about something (for example, using very few sentences to describe a great trip. The child has a lot to say, but may not have the words to say it);
struggle with complex classification (for example, put the small green triangles in the small bin and the big red squares in the large bin);
be unable to identify different parts of a story (for example, this happened at the beginning, this does not happen until the end);
struggle with basic class inclusion (for example, a rose is a flower and flowers are living things);
confuse past with future events;
not know in which province they live;
not know the capital of the province in which they live;
struggle to remember directions with multiple steps;
not be able to try something new when a certain approach to problem solving does not work (for example, putting this piece of the puzzle in this location does not work. I will keep trying until it works, instead of trying to put it in a different part of the puzzle.);
appear to have good ideas but being unable to use words to describe them;
miss the “big picture” in certain situations (that is, they may not understand what the point is, in a certain story);
not finish tasks that are already started;
not show initiative (that is, they do not start things on their own, they wait for others to start something and then they may follow);
be quite impulsive (that is, they have trouble waiting for their turn);
not be able to tell which event happened first and which event happened last (for example: first I woke up, then I had breakfast and last I went to school).