Oh, Baby! Prenatal and Newborn Development
We often think of human development in terms of milestones and various ages, but development actually begins in the womb. This week, you will continue to support Paul and Amy from Week 1 and provide them with information to help support them in their parenthood journey. Remember, a Milestones Table appears at the end of each age division of the text.
To prepare for this discussion,

Read Chapter 3: Prenatal Development
Read Chapter 4: Birth and the Newborn Baby
Read Preparing the EnvironmentLinks to an external site.
Read Reflective Exercise: Experience Your Space From the Perspective of an Infant or ToddlerLinks to an external site.
Watch Science of BabiesLinks to an external site.

For this discussion, you will utilize the case study below:
Case Study
Paul and Amy have learned that they are expecting a baby. They could not be more thrilled, but like most newly expectant parents, they are trying to learn as much as they can before their newborn arrives. They have been reading many different resources to better understand the various factors that will influence the development of their child while in the womb and how to manage those first few weeks with a newborn.
In your initial post,

Discuss whether you think newborns are more competent than you thought they were before you read Chapter 4 of the course text.
Describe which of the newborn capacities (i.e., reflexes, states of arousal, or sensory capacities) were the most surprising to you.
Describe two factors, within and beyond the family, that can help families feel supported during the prenatal and newborn stages of development.