What to Expect at a School-Aged Well Check at 7–9 Years Old
From ages seven to nine, regular health assessments become crucial in tracking a child’s ongoing development. A school-aged well check visit is critical in this journey, focusing on a child’s physical, mental and social health. Guidance from a Cumming pediatrician can allow parents to better understand everything from growth patterns and physical fitness to emotional well-being and academic progress.
Well Check Stages for School-Aged Kids Ages 7 to 9
Tracking developmental milestones is as important for school-aged kids as it was when they were younger. By monitoring physical and mental changes, pediatricians can identify issues (if they exist) and take vital steps to avoid health issues further down the road. Here are some of the main factors examined during a well check visit.
Health and Nutritional Guidelines as a 7 to 9-Year-Old Child
BMI is a measure of weight adjusted for height and helps us accurately assess the level of body fat and overall health of your child.
- Underweight is < 5th percentile
- Healthy weight is in the 5th–85th percentile
- Overweight is 85th–95th percentile
- Obese is > 95th percentile
- Morbidly obese is > 99th percentile
As always, it is important to remember children should never cut calories or diet. This can result in a disruption in their normal growth patterns. We strongly encourage that they learn to make healthy choices, eat appropriate portion sizes, and stay active.
School-age children are consuming 10% of dietary energy in the form of juices, soft drinks, and sports drinks. These high-calorie beverages should be treats and not a part of your child’s daily diet.
Exercise is an important part of your child’s health. A good goal for children is to exercise 45 minutes, 4 days a week.
Sleep Habits for Your School-Aged Child
Sleep is very important to overall health and well-being in children – a typical school-aged child requires about 10 hours of sleep every night. They still need predictable bedtime routines and downtime that is not interrupted by television or any other stimulation (computers, cell phones, caffeinated drinks).
Developmental Expectations for a Child in School
Your child begins to look outside family for new ideas and activities. Peer group becomes increasingly important. Support friendships outside the family such as school activities, scouts, sports, art activities. If your child is in an after-school program or with a caregiver, be sure they are in a good environment. Attend parent-teacher meetings and school functions to ensure this.
- Encourage personal responsibility – making the bed, picking up clothes, setting tables, helping with meals, brushing their teeth, etc.
Safety Concerns for a Child Aged 7 to 9
Well-child checkups are important for school-aged kids as they monitor many physical and emotional factors. However, it’s also important that examining social aspects of a child’s life forms part of the visit. At this age, the factors to be aware of include the following safety concerns.
Road Safety
Continue stressing safe street habits – stopping at the curb, looking left, right, and left again. Also, always insist on appropriate safety equipment when biking, skating, skiing, or other physical activities.
Water Safety
Children this age still need supervision around water, even if they know how to swim. NEVER leave your child alone in fast-moving water. Along with this, continue to put sunscreen on your child 30 minutes before they go outside to swim or play.
Fire Safety
Install smoke detectors on every level in your house and test the detectors every month. Change batteries annually.
Gun Safety
The best way to keep our child safe from injury or death from guns is to never have a gun in the home. Guns should be kept unloaded and in a locked place with ammunition locked away separately. Keep the key in a place where the kids do not have access. Remember that children do not understand how dangerous guns can be despite your warnings.
Ask if there are guns in a home where your child plays. If so, make sure they are unloaded and locked away separately from the ammunition.
Stranger Safety
Discuss with your children that they are never to get in a vehicle with an unauthorized adult for ANY reason. Additionally, teach your child that it is never alright for an adult to tell a child to keep secrets from parents, to express interest in private parts, or to ask a child for help with his or her private parts.
Seat Belt Safety
The AAP recommends booster seats until the child is 4ft. 9in. tall (between 8 and 12 years of age) and children younger than 13 should ride in the rear of the vehicle.
Technology Safety
Limit screen time (ALL electronics – TV, computer games, handheld device, and phones) to 2 hours or less a day. Monitor emails and websites your child visits frequently to make sure they are appropriate and safe.
Contact Us for Well-Child Visits in Cumming
At Vickery Pediatrics we offer well checks for infants, toddlers, preschool and school-aged children. We work closely with families across the local area, including Cumming, Buford, Dawsonville, Gainesville, Johns Creek, Sugar Hill, Suwanee and Forsyth County. For assistance, call (678) 990-2501 or request an appointment today.
