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Difference between Growth and Development:lGrowth is a whole process which includes
growth of the body as well as growth of various aspects of child‟s personality, e.g., the physical,
emotional, social and cognitive development.lDevelopment is a progressive change the child
undergoes which increases the physical, social, mental and emotional capacities of the child. In
the early stages of life, these changes are constructive and after middle age, there are destructive
changes in the body which lead to old age.
Growth
1.It is quantitative.
2.It comprises of height, weight, size and shape of body organs like brain, etc.
3.It is due to cell division.
4.It is for limited period.
5.It can be measured.
6.It tells about one aspect of personality but in limited scope.
Development
1.It is quantitative as well as qualitative.
2.It comprises of the physical, cognitive, social and emotional changes.
3.It happens due to motor process and their interplay.
4.It takes place till death.
5.It can be observed by matured behaviour.
6.It deals with all the aspect of personality and has a vast scope.
Developmental characteristics at Different Stages of

Development, Growth and development of every child takes place according to his/her
own schedule. This means that every child has his/her own pattern of growth and development.
During the different stages of growth, various changes related to physical, mental, social,
emotional and motor development take place.
The stages of growth can be classified into the following stages along with their characteristics:
1. Infancy: The stage from birth to end of 5 years of age is called infancy. In this stage, the
grasping power of infant‟s brain becomes very fast. The power of memory also increases. The
infant is able to remember the incidents of the past immediately. His/her thinking ability also
increases. The infant understands the language clearly and speaks accordingly. His/her capability
to know new words increases and starts understanding the simple conversation of adults. In this
stage, the curiosity drive of the infant also increases and the infant tries to ask various questions
and are easily satisfied by the answer of elder persons. The infants are emotional in this stage but
they do not have their control over emotions. They usually exhibit or display their emotions
through Imotor skill activities. In daily life, they forget their emotions such as sorrow and
happiness, after some time. In this stage, the behaviour of infants depends upon imagination. In
this stage, the infants learn the activities related to motor skills such as walking, running,
jumping, catching, throwing, etc. In this way, they start using their physical organs, internal
organs and sensory organs in a balanced way. They do whatever they like and leave what they
don‟t like.
2. Childhood: The childhood stage begins from the 6th year and ends by the end of the 12th
year. In this stage, the children are able to have enough control on their muscles. Their
development becomes very fast. Their neuro-muscular coordination becomes efficient. In this
stage, the concentration power of the children increases, but they cannot concentrate for a long
time. Their thinking ability increases at a fast rate. Their power of memory, logic, thinking and
decision making increases remarkably. By the end of this stage, they learn to control their
emotions. During this stage, the social qualities develop in them very quickly. In this stage,
children are more courageous, imaginative and adventurous. They usually follow the persons
whom they admire blindly. In this stage, they have the best motor learning ability.
3.Adolescence: This is a stage of complex changes, which begins after childhood and ends
before adulthood. Generally, it is supposed that the adolescent stage begins from 13 years and