Physical Growth in Children

See if you can answer the following seven questions about children's physical growth?

1. What percentage of North American children are obese (fat)? Approximately one-third of American elementary school children are overweight.

2. What is the typical physical growth of children from ages 6 to12? Although most girls are almost an inch shorter than boys at age 6, they have caught up by age 11 and are slightly taller than most boys by age 12. At 6 years, girls are usually 1–3 pounds lighter than boys, and just like height, they do not catch up until about age 11. However, by age 12, they are 3 or more pounds heavier than boys. Even though there is a gradual decrease in fat and an increase in bone and muscle development, girls tend to retain more body fat than boys. Still, obesity is the number one health problem for American children.

3. How many inches does the typical elementary child grow a year? For every year during elementary school, most children grow 2–3 inches.

4. What is the typical weight gain each year of an elementary school child? Most children ages 6–12 gain from 5 to 7 pounds per year.

5. What is the most common nutritional problem for this age group in the United States? As already mentioned, it's obesity.

6. How do infectious diseases in elementary school children compare to infectious diseases in preschool children? Children in elementary school do not get nearly as many respiratory infections as preschoolers do. In fact, this is the healthiest period in a person's life span. Why is that? In the preschool years, children are more vulnerable to childhood diseases or infections and are more likely to run in front of a car or have an accident because they haven't learned the dangers yet. When children reach adolescence, there are other dangers such as motorcycle or car accidents or injuries due to contact sports.

7. What happens with motor development for this age group? By the time children reach elementary school, motor development differences are often noticeable between boys and girls. Boys tend to increase in physical strength more than girls do. Boys can usually out jump girls after about age seven. Boys are generally better than girls at batting, throwing, kicking, catching, running, and broad jumping. However, girls tend to do better than boys at such things as rhythmic movement, hopscotch, gymnastics, jumping rope, flexibility, and balance.