Читать книгу Lifespan Development - Tara L. Kuther - Страница 199

Perhaps the most obvious change that infants undergo during the first year of life is very rapid growth. Growth during the prenatal period and infancy proceeds in two systematic patterns. Cephalocaudal development refers to the principle that growth proceeds from the head downward. The head and upper regions of the body develop before the lower regions. For example, recall the fetus’s disproportionately large head. During prenatal development, the head grows before the other body parts. Even at birth, the newborn’s head is about one fourth the total body length, as shown in Figure 4.1. As the lower parts of the body develop, the head becomes more proportionate to the body. By 3 years of age, the child is less top-heavy. Proximodistal development refers to the principle that growth and development proceed from the center of the body outward. During prenatal development, the internal organs develop before the arms and legs. After birth, the trunk grows before the limbs and the limbs before the hands and feet.