Growth and Development Paper

Paper Requirements:

1. The minimum length of the paper is 4 pages (not including the title or reference pages). The typical length required to cover all the rubric area thoroughly is 4-6 pages.
2. Utilize the course textbook as the main cited reference and use at least one other resource. The additional reference should be from an authoritative or scholarly resource and published within the last 5 years. See example resources in the planning worksheet.
3. Adhere to all APA style guidelines, such as cover and reference page formatting, spacing, font size, margins, page numbers, and in-text citation formatting.
4. The quality and effectiveness of your writing is important. Please use professional/scholarly language that follows basic grammar and punctuation rules and maintains accurate spelling. Please avoid overly casual or conversational language.

Assignment Instructions:

Read the detailed instructions and view the planning resources below prior to completing your Growth and Development Paper. Submit your completed paper as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf file.

1. Select a subject who is at least 3 years old and who you know well (i.e. family member or close friend) to complete this developmental assessment.
2. Provide a brief overview of the subjects biographical information, including information such as their age, gender, family structure and living environment, education or employment setting, family socio-economic status, religious affiliation, ethnicity, or cultural elements etc.
3. Identify and report the subject’s current age period of development per the textbook based on their chronological age. Ex. Early childhood, Middle to Late Childhood, Adolescence etc.
4. Review the developmental information in our textbook for the subjects age period and select a minimum of 3 topics in each of the 3 developmental domains (physical, cognitive, and psychosocial) that you believe are relevant to the individual.
5. For each topic, you will thoroughly define and describe the theory, concept, or norm/milestone to clarify what is expected for the subjects current age period. Then, compare this information to a relevant observation about the subjects functioning to help determine if they have met the developmental expectation.
6. Identify and suggest at least 2 measures to assist in the healthy development of an unmet or delayed topic area discussed in the paper. Or if no areas of development are found to be unmet or delayed, suggest at least 2 measures to maintain or further strengthen an already achieved topic area. The suggested measures to assist or maintain need to include clear reasoning supported by normative information – i.e., include a statement regarding why the measure to assist would likely help address the particular developmental objective.

Note: The assessment is not a chronological lifespan report of development from the viewpoint of a single theorist. It should focus on the subjects current period of life, examining a variety of theories, concepts, and/or milestones across the 3 domains of development (physical, cognitive, and psychosocial). However, if the subject has unmet tasks, you can examine earlier periods of life influential to the delay.

Required Textbook(s)

Lally, M., & Valentine-French, S. (2022). Lifespan development: A psychological perspective. (4th

ed.). https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/540