DEVELOPMENTAL PROFILE
FOR 5TH GRADE STUDENTS
AGE 10

Physical Development

• Gross motor coordination (large motor functions such as running and jumping) and fine motor coordination (functions such as cutting with scissors) become united for greater overall coordination.
• Feelings of being skillful and in control of the self are often evident.
• This is generally a time of good health - the child may recall illnesses in a retrospective manner.
• Interest in sex continues and may increase, but awareness or curiosity is seldom shared with adults.
• A few girls may begin to acquire secondary sex characteristics (e.g., breasts, pubic hair).
• It is less likely that a boy actively enters puberty at this age.
• Competitive use of physical skills is typical.  Youngsters often enjoy team participation and may join formal team sports.

Emotional Development

• This is considered an age of emotional equilibrium or balance that often lasts until age 16.
• There is usually a feeling of well-being that allows the child to be moderately expansive (attempt new things).
• The child often expresses a sense of wholeness and being pleased with the self.
• Mental health and juvenile records indicate that this is a common age for children to first enter into delinquency and neurotic behavior patterns that may continue through life.  If a child demonstrates behaviors which are consistently atypical (not normal) and inappropriate, seek professional help through referral and follow it up.
• This is also the age of the dreamer-- dreams of future greatness, becoming president, being the world’s greatest pitcher in the future.

Philosophical/Moral Development

• The child is firmly set in black and white "fairness" morality (extremes of right and wrong with no gray area in between).
• Fair tends to mean, "Am I getting the best end of the deal?", since the child is only dabbling in seeing others outside of personal meaning.
• Deal making becomes pleasurable.
• Payback begins to be valued highly.
• This is an excellent time to introduce and use natural and logical forms of consequences (e.g., if you lose your watch because you were careless, you work to buy a new one).
• Generally, the child is relatively willing to obey and to conform to adult expectations or requests.
• Classroom or family meetings can be run using democratic process with excellent results.

Social Development

• This is usually the last age that children express total confidence in parents and other adults.
• This age child is often called pleasant, docile, obedient, and happy.
• This is a great time for things like belonging to clubs, secret codes and disappearing ink.
• The pressure to conform in these groups is usually not the cohesive glue-- rather the intense pleasure this age child finds in "belonging".
• Generally, this age child is friendly when approached and expects others to exhibit kindness as well.
• Younger children and siblings are usually refereed to as a bother or a tag-along.
• If the older child is held to a standard of taking a young sibling along, there will be a heightened sense of anger, rivalry and actual blows may be exchanged.

Intellectual/Cognitive Development

• Although the child is generally involved in concrete operations (the ability to use logical reasoning rather than relying on perceptions), the initial sense of intuitive logic signals entry into the formal operations stage (mental operations can be performed without concrete objects and abstract thinking begins).
• The student may begin metacognition (being able to "think" about one’s own thinking).
• Student is better able to share ideas and insights with fellow students.
• Many youngsters begin to pursue education outside of school for personal satisfaction.
• Information conveyed in conversations flows more clearly.
• Excitement for science may generate pursuit of a science-related club membership.
• Learning styles (a student prefers and learns best when information is presented in particular ways, e.g., visually or auditorialy) become evident.