Prenatal Development Essay

The prenatal period is the time before a child is born. This period is usually around 280 days or 40 weeks long. Prenatal development is the process of growth and development within the womb of a mother. There are 3 stages of prenatal development which are germinal, embryonic, and fetal. During this cycle, the child depends on their mother for its nutrients. The baby develops from a single cell into an embryo and later a fetus. Throughout prenatal development newborns gain physical, cognitive, and psychosocial life skills. The first two weeks of pregnancy is called the germinal stage. Once conception happens, which is when a sperm fertilizes an egg and forms a zygote, the mother’s and father’s DNA is passed on to the child. A zygote starts

This stage occurs from week 3 to week 8. Once the zygote has divided for about 7-10 days and has about 150 cells, it makes its way down the fallopian tube and attaches itself to the lining of the uterus. This multicellular organism is called an embryo. Blood vessels now start to grow where the placenta will form. The placenta is connected to the uterus and its job is to provide oxygen and nourishment from the mother to the developing embryo or the umbilical cord. The basic structures of the embryo will start to form in areas such as the chest, head, and abdomen. During this stage, the baby’s heart begins to beat and organs begin to form and function. A tube called the “neural tube” begins to form along the back of the embryo which creates the spinal cord and

Cognitive development is the emergence of the ability to think and understand. Researchers have found that young children understand how objects work long before they have experience with the object. An inventor named Jean Piaget invented a theory called Piaget's theory of cognitive development. Piaget’s theory concluded that there are 4 stages to cognitive development that children go through from age 2 and onward. With this theory, children are expected to reach cognitive milestones. These milestones help children obtain new abilities to think, problem solve, and communicate. For example infants should be able to shake their heads no at around 6-9 months. If the infant isn’t doing what it’s supposed to at its age then they need to be taken to the doctor for further