Theories of Child Development

[kirsty1900]

Theorists

Physical Development Gesell Gesell’s theory is known as a maturational-developmental theory. It is the foundation of nearly every other theory of human development after Gesell. Early in the 20th century, Dr. Gesell observed and documented patterns in the way children develop, showing that all children go through similar and predictable sequences, though each child moves through these sequences at his or her own rate or pace.

Cognitive Development Jean Piaget Piget says children get an understanding of the world through their active involvement and interactions. Jean believes children think differently at different stages.
Emotional /Psychological development Lev Vygotsky's Vygotsky's theories stress the fundamental role of social interaction in the development of cognition, as he believed strongly that community plays a central role in the process of "making meaning." Vygotsky argued, "learning is a necessary and universal aspect of the process of developing culturally organized, specifically human psychological function" . In other words, social learning tends to precede (i.e. come before) development.

“Ref: by Saul McLeod published 2007, updated 2014”
It is believed that there is a normal sequence for physical developments and the age range at which children should be able to do certain things physcially, for example, roll over, sit up, crawl, walk, babble, talk etc. These age norms are still used today to study child development, and by those working in medicine, psychology and child-related fields.

Social Development Albert Bandura Development is a sequence of specific conditional behaviours. The main emphasis is on the environment, not heredity. They considered observable behaviours to be most important. Bandura’s social learning theory focuses on the imitation of behavours by children. They will imitate their caregivers and peers, thus learning much about our society and how is operates.
Language Development Noam Chomsky In the 1960s, linguist Noam Chomsky proposed a revolutionary idea: We are all born with an innate knowledge of grammar that serves as the basis for all language acquisition. In other words, for humans, language is a basic instinct. The theory, however, has long been met with widespread criticism.

[Lorina]

Yes, I think you're on the right track with your response.

Here is some more information for your reference:

Child Theorists

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Lorina