Download Casey Thomas EDCO240 Professor Julie Jay January 13, 2015

Casey Thomas
EDCO240
Professor Julie Jay
January 13, 2015
Reading Summary
The term ‘multiples’ refers to more than one developing fetus in a given pregnancy.
Fraternal twins (dizygotic twins) will occur when two sperm fertilize one ova. This means that
each fetus will have its own placenta and these twins are no more genetically similar to one
another than typical siblings. Identical twins (monozygotic twins) will occur when a single
fertilized ovum splits during the first two weeks after conception, which results in two zygotes. If
the ovum splits within two days of conception, the twins will have two separate placentas. If the
ovum splits between three and eight days, there will only be one placenta. If it splits between
nine and twelve days, there will be one placenta that has vascular communication between the
two fetuses. Lastly if the ovum splits more than 12 days after conception, conjoined twins will be
the result. The rate of twins in the United States occurs once in every 250 births. One problem
with giving birth to multiples can be premature delivery. There have also been research to show
that twins and triples show some mental and physical delays, yet half of those babies will catch
up to their peers within one year of birth. Identical twins are good to study heredity vs.
environment due to the fact that they share the same heredity and environment.
There are a number of different reproductive technologies including fertility treatments,
cloning, and using stem cells. Fertility treatments can include fertility-enhancing medications
that stimulate egg production, intrauterine insemination (IUI), and assisted reproductive
technologies (ART). ART includes in vitro fertilization (IVF), gamete intrafallopian transfer
(GIFT), and zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT). These all in some form fertilize the egg
outside of the fallopian tubes in a laboratory setting. Then at a given point following conception,
and dependent on what method was used, the zygote is placed in the uterus or fallopian tube
before implantation. Cloning is the processing of making an identical copy of something, which
has been successful with a female sheep. Most medical, political, and religious leaders state that
cloning should be used with caution. Many malformed embryos have been formed which leads
to a high proportion of offspring dying within a few days after birth. There has been a lack of
understanding about human reproductive cloning and many find it unethical to attempt to do so.
There are no studies on how a cloned human’s mental development would be, which would
affect intellect and mood. Lastly, stem cells have originated as either embryonic stem cells,
nonembryonic stem cells, or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Stem cells can differentiate
into many types of cells, such as brain or muscle cells and can be used to treat many different
diseases. Yet there are some people who believe that embryos are lives that are valuable. They
believe that destroying them to harvest the stem cells violates the sanctity of life. All
reproductive technologies need to be researched more and used with caution.
The stages of prenatal development can be broken up into three different stages: the
germinal stage (fertilization to two weeks), the embryonic stage (two weeks to eight weeks), and
the fetal stage (nine weeks to birth). The germinal stage begins with conception, when the sperm
and egg cells unite in one of the fallopian tubes. The fertilized egg, or zygote, moves towards the
uterus and cell division begins 24 to 36 hours after conception. The zygote will divide into two
cells, then four, eight, sixteen, and so on. At the eight cell point, the cells will start differentiating
and take on the characteristics that will determine which type of cells they will become. The
outer cells will become the placenta while the inner cells form the embryo. Cell division
continues and then develop into the blastocyst: the ectoderm, the endoderm, and the mesoderm.
The blastocyst now arrives at the uterus and attaches to the uterine wall, also called implantation.
When that is successful, hormonal changes will stop a woman’s menstrual cycle and there will
be a number of physical changes.
The embryonic stage begins the third week after conception and the mass of cells
becomes a distinct human begin. The embryo will divide into three layers each of which
becomes an important body system. The mother’s cervix will form a cervical plug which protects
the growing baby from foreign substances and her breasts will enlarge to prepare for lactation. 22
days after conception the neural tube forms and will later become the central nervous system. At
the fourth week, the head begins to form followed by the eyes, nose, ears, and mouth. The
cardiovascular system is where the earliest activity begins and during the fifth week buds form
that will later become the arms and legs.
Lastly is the fetal stage and it starts when cell differentiation is almost complete; the
embryo is now known as a fetus. This begins during the ninth week and will last until birth. The
early body structures and systems continue to develop and the neural tube develops into the brain
and spinal cord while neurons form. Sex organs will begin to appear during the third month of
gestation and the fetus continues to grow in length and weight. The sex organs then start to
differentiate and by the end of the month all part of the body are formed. During the second
trimester, the heartbeat grows stronger and other body systems develop further. Fingernails, hair,
eyelashes, and toenails form. The fetus is now six times in size and the brain and central nervous
system becomes responsive. Around 28 weeks, the brain will start to mature. From seven months
until birth the fetus will continue to gain weight and starts to prepare for life outside of the
womb. The lungs expand and contract and prepares the muscles for breathing.
There are certain things that can affect the developing fetus. Teratogens are any disease,
drug, or other environmental agent that can harm a developing fetus or embryo. The effects of a
teratogen harms the developing baby the worst when that structure is forming and growing most
rapidly. Not all embryos or fetuses are equally affected by certain teratogens, but they should
still be avoided as much as possible. Timing, duration, and amount are the three things to
remember about exposure and the long-term effects of a teratogen depends on the quality of the
postnatal environment. Some teratogens are maternal illnesses and diseases (such as rubella,
HIV, diabetes, etc.), chemical and illegal drugs (caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, heroin, etc.),
prescription and nonprescription drugs (antidepressants, aspirin, diet pills, etc.), and
environmental hazards (lead, radiation and x-rays, carbon monoxide, PCBs, etc.). Fathers can
influence the unborn child as well with second hand smoke and DNA mutations due to increased
age.
Sometime around the 40th week of pregnancy, the fetus is ready to be born and both the
mother and child will undergo the birthing process. Two to four weeks before labor begins, the
head of the fetus will “drop” into the pelvic cavity. The mother will lose the cervical plug around
this time as well. The process of giving birth is divided into three processes: dilation, expulsion,
and afterbirth. Dilation begins when the mother experiences contractions in her uterus that are
around ten to fifteen minutes apart and her cervix is fully dilated. Dilation also goes through
three different stages: the latent phase (with mild, infrequent contractions), the active phase (the
cervix is three to four cm dilated and the contractions are longer and closer together and the
water will break in this stage), and the transition phase (the cervix fully dilates and the
contractions are stronger and even closer together and the mother is ready to push). The second
stage of labor, the expulsion, starts when the fetus’s head passes through the cervix into the
vagina and will end when the baby is out of the mother’s body. The last stage, afterbirth, consists
of the mother pushing out the placenta.
Having a loving, supporting family is essential for a child during their first three years of
life. For young infants (birth through eight months) they need to develop security with their
primary caregivers. Between the ages of nine and 18 months infants need to be able to safely
explore and 18 to 36 months children learn to become more independent. Children who are
between the ages of three to five start going to preschool. They are growing in their motor
development, language and vocabulary, and abstract representations, plus many other milestones.
Piaget states that each child will pass through four different stages of cognitive development. If a
child misses the right time to learn and develop a certain skill, they will lack in that skill and be
behind their peers. It may not be impossible for them to learn it at a later age, but they will be
severely lacking in their skills.
A healthy newborn should weight around 5 ½ to 10 pounds and be around 20 inches long.
They will be developing in five major areas: physically, cognitive, emotional and social,
language, and sensory and motor skill development. Physically they will be gaining weight and
growing, cognitively their brain is developing rapidly, and emotionally and socially they will be
wanting to communicate with their parents by crying to signal what they need. Their eyes will
track your movement and their face will brighten when you cuddle or talk soothingly to them.
Their language is developing by listening to and absorbing people speaking around them and
their sensory and motor skills are growing. If newborns are not properly taken care of they can
be vulnerable to certain diseases. If they are not made to lie on their back in a safety approved
crib, they could die from sudden infant death syndrome. These are just some of the
vulnerabilities that can happen to them. Some babies can have health issues due to low birth
weight and they could spend their first few months at the hospital in an incubator. Right when a
baby is born, they undergo a couple of APGAR tests, which test to see how their heart rate,
respiratory effort, muscle tone, reflex response, and skin coloration are. A high, passing score
means that the baby is healthy but if there is a low score early intervention can take place. This is
by no means a complete list of a newborn’s capabilities, vulnerabilities, health issues, reflexes,
and screenings but just the beginning.
Developmentally, infants and toddler are growing rapidly. Their perceptual development
includes experiencing, organizing, and interpreting the world through their senses (sight, touch,
taste, hearing, and smelling). They develop depth perception and their sense guide motor
activity. Their cognitive development is growing and Piaget believed that it follows from action
and occurs in a sequence of stages. The sensorimotor stage where infants start crawling, pulling
themselves up to stand, and walking. The preoperational stage includes language development,
thinking about things symbolically, and developing memory and imagination. The concrete
operational stage has children demonstrating concrete, logical reasoning. They realize that their
thoughts and self are unique and are becoming aware of external events. Lastly the formal
operational stage includes children who are able to logically use symbols related to abstract
concepts, they can consider hypotheses, and consider multiple possibilities. Emotionally and
socially children are able to search and use emotional cues from others that help to guide their
responses. They start to get a certain temperament, or unique personality characteristics and learn
self-regulation. They learn a health attachment relationship while they explore the world around
them. Finally their language and fine motor skills are greatly developing as well. They develop a
vocabulary of around 60 to 80 words and start to imitate in speech. They are able to build a tower
with blocks, can hold toys and crayons, feed themselves and hold their own cup, and use their
finger and thumb to pick up small objects. Everything and everywhere are learning opportunities
for them and they are developing quite quickly.
My virtual son is developing along the lines of a typical child his age. He gets along well
with other children, cooperates very well with others, and he is securely attached to myself and
my partner. He is shy and nervous around new adults and needs to get to know new adults
slowly. He is usually in a positive mood unless something doesn’t go his way, then he can
become irritable or impatient. He scored above average on all aspects of language development
and his memory is pretty good. He also scored above age-norms for building a block tower that
was modeled after one an examiner made and other spatial skills such as copying shapes,
coloring within the lines, and solving picture puzzles. He scored above average for his gross
motor development and is able to concentrate on activities for 10-15 minutes, which is age
appropriate. Continuing along with the parenting style that I have, I believe that my virtual child
will develop quite rapidly and be very successful socially, emotionally, and in his education.