Child Development and Care II – JSS3 Home Economics Lesson Note (First Term)

Child development and care is the work of keeping a baby healthy, clean and comfortable, which includes laundering the baby’s clothes, treating common ailments and giving immunisation.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. give reasons for laundering a baby’s clothes;
2. state the steps in laundering a baby’s clothes;
3. state the causes and treatment of diarrhoea and constipation, and describe colic;
4. list the ingredients for preparing oral rehydration therapy (ORT);
5. name the diseases prevented by immunisation and state the age at which each vaccine is given.

Why should we launder a baby’s clothes?

We launder a baby’s clothes to keep them clean, safe for the skin and long lasting.

• Durability: laundered clothes last longer.
• Neatness: clean clothes make the baby neat and attractive.
• Comfort: clean, soft clothes make the baby comfortable.
• Health: removing dirt, urine and milk residue helps prevent skin rashes and infection.

What are the steps in laundering a baby’s clothes?

Laundering a baby’s clothes starts with stain removal, then follows the laundry process of sorting, washing and rinsing.

1. Remove stains: treat each stain according to its type, for example milk, vomit, urine or stool, before washing.
2. Sort: separate white clothes from coloured ones and the baby’s clothes from the rest of the family’s.
3. Wash: wash with mild soap in clean water.
4. Rinse: rinse until no soap is left, because soap residue can irritate the skin.
5. Dry and iron: dry the clothes in the sun, then iron them if possible.

What are the common ailments in children?

The common ailments of babies and young children include diarrhoea, constipation and colic.

What is diarrhoea?

Diarrhoea is an illness in which waste matter is emptied from the bowels much more often than normal and in liquid form.

What are the causes of diarrhoea?

• Unsuitable food: food that is not right for the child’s age.
• Overfeeding: giving the child more food than is needed.
• Infection: germs in the bowel.
• Food poisoning: food or water contaminated with harmful germs.

How is diarrhoea treated?

• ORT: give oral rehydration therapy after each stool to replace lost water and salts.
• Medical help: take the child to the doctor if the diarrhoea persists.

What are the ingredients for preparing ORT?

Oral rehydration therapy (ORT) is a mixture of salt, sugar and clean water given to replace fluid lost in diarrhoea.

• Salt: 1 level teaspoon.
• Sugar: 10 level teaspoons.
• Water: half a litre (1 beer bottle or 2 Fanta bottles).

1. Wash your hands and the container.
2. Measure the water into the container.
3. Add the salt and the sugar.
4. Stir until both dissolve completely.

What is constipation?

Constipation is a condition in which a child passes hard stool or none at all.

• Cause: at a certain stage a child forms a pattern of bowel movement, and a change in the pattern may cause constipation.
• Signs: the child passes hard stool or no stool.
• Who is affected: it is common in artificially fed babies.

How is constipation treated?

1. Give the child enough clean water to drink.
2. Add glucose, sugar or honey to the food.
3. Give fruit juice, for example orange or pineapple juice.
4. Take the child to the hospital in serious cases.

What is colic?

Colic is a painful cramp in a baby’s intestines that makes the baby cry hard.

• Effect: it is painful and makes the baby uncomfortable.
• Sign: the baby cries hard.
• Age affected: babies in the first 3 to 4 months are the most affected.

What is immunisation?

Immunisation is giving a vaccine to protect children aged 0 to 2 years and expectant mothers against diseases.

• Main purpose: to reduce the death rate (mortality rate) from the diseases below.

Which diseases does immunisation prevent?

1. Diphtheria: a throat infection.
2. Tetanus: a disease that causes painful muscle stiffness.
3. Whooping cough: a disease with long bouts of coughing.
4. Polio: a disease that can cause paralysis.
5. Smallpox: a serious disease that left scars on the skin.
6. Measles: a fever with a skin rash.
7. Tuberculosis: a lung disease.

What is the immunisation schedule?

The immunisation schedule shows the age, disease, doses, interval and vaccine for each immunisation.

Evaluation

1. Give three reasons for laundering a baby’s clothes.
2. State the common ailments in children and the causes of diarrhoea.
3. State four ways of treating constipation in a child.
4. At what age is the DPT vaccine first given, and which diseases does it prevent?

Assignment

Write out the ingredients for preparing ORT, and state the age at which the BCG vaccine is given and the disease it prevents.