Child

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Two little girls.

Bouguereau's A Calling.

Boy showing tongue.

A child (plural: children). Precise definitions vary; is the offspring, of any age, of two people. The American Heritage Dictionary defined a child as an individual who has not yet reached puberty.

The term "child" is also a counterpart of parent: adults are the children of their parents despite their maturation beyond infancy; for example "Benjamin, aged 46, is the child of Tobias, aged 73". Similarly in a generalized sense, see child node.

Legal definition of child

The Convention on the Rights of the Child defines a child as "every human being below the age of 21 years unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier".

Development

Child development is the study or examination of processes and mechanisms that operate during the physical and mental development of an infant into an adult. Pediatrics is the branch of medicine relating to the care of children. It encompasses ages from prenatal to teenagers and even young adults (ages 0-21 years).

Terms for stages of age-related physical development are listed below. Approximate age ranges are shown, but conceptions about the boundaries between different stages of life vary between cultures and periods. The age ranges and terms listed reflect 21st century conceptions in the developed world.

• Zygote, the point of Conception, fertilization
• Embryo; in the later stages also called fetus
• Birth
• Child:
  • Infant (baby) (ages 0 - 1.5)
    • Neonate (newborn) in the first month of life
  • Toddler (ages 1.5 - 4)
  • Middle childhood (schoolchild (or schoolboy or schoolgirl)) - Primary school/Elementary school age (ages 4 - 11)
    • prepubescence, a subset of the above (ages 10 - 11, approximately)
  • Preadolescence (preteen, or late childhood) - in the United States, middle school age (ages 10 - 12, approximately. Note overlap with prepubesent stage of middle childhood.)
• Adolescence and puberty (teenager) (13-19)
• Young adult (21-25)

See also

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Child

Adopted children Adult offspring Aggression in children Attachment in children Autistic children Boy, Girl Child abduction Child abandonment Child abuse Child abuse reporting Child attitudes Child care Child custody Child discipline Child labor Child prodigy Child neglect Child self care Child sexual abuse Child murder Child psychiatry Child psychology Child psychopathology Child psychotherapy Child pornography

Child sexuality Child soldiers Child support Child visitation Child welfare Childcare Childhood Childhood development Childhood play behavior Childhood play development Child of Deaf Adult Children and divorce Children of alcoholics Children of military personnel Children who murder Children's culture Children's Health Care Childrens recreational games Children's street culture Children's geographies Childrens rights

Defense of infancy Education, School Educational psychology Fathers' rights Foster children Illegitimate children Military brat Military use of children Only children Parenting Parental Alienation Syndrome Parental leave Pedophilia Playing Prostitution of children Street children Taking Children Seriously Toy Trafficking of children UNICEF Visitation Auxology Indigo children Françoise Dolto

External links

• CDC's "Learn the Signs. Act Early.” campaign - Information for parents on early childhood development and developmental disabilities

Preceded by: Toddlerhood

Stages of human development Childhood

Succeeded by: Preteen

Human development: biological - psychological

Stages: Infancy | Childhood | Adolescence | Adulthood - Early adulthood | Middle adulthood | Late adulthood

Child development | Youth development | Ageing & Senescence

Theorists-theories: John Bowlby-attachment | Jean Piaget-cognitive | Lawrence Kohlberg-moral | Sigmund Freud-psychosexual | Erik Erikson-psychosocial