Sam’s communication skills were very highly developed for a child who is 40 months of age. She was able to complete all five ASQ communication tasks appropriate for 40-month-old children correctly, as well as tasks that are appropriate for 48-month-old children. According to the literature, this is quite common for the children of parents who are read to constantly at an early age. Sam’s mother mentioned that she loves books and that both she and Sam’s father read books with her in the evening. It is likely that Sam’s well-developed communication skills will enhance her cognitive development more generally.
John’s mother reported that he developed severe asthma when he was a baby, however, it was not evident at all when we were kicking a ball around in the backyard. John’s mother also said that he learned to swim through surf life-saving when he was very young and that he is now on a swim training team at school. While he takes preventive medication and swims regularly he never experiences shortness of breath. It is very likely that swimming has helped John’s breathing and reduced the chance of him having asthma attacks. A number of well-conducted trials have shown the benefits of swimming for people with asthma.
