COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN THE
      PRESCHOOL YEARS


       By: Daniella Leon
Piaget’s Stage of Pre
             operational Thinking
Preschool years is an important time of stability and change. Piaget
suggested that preschoolers from the age 2-7 years go through a stage
called Pre operational stage.

This stage lasts all through the preschool years ranging from 2-7. During
this stage children’s use of symbolic thinking grows, mental reasoning
emerges, and the use of concepts increases. They begin to grow less
dependent on sensorimotor activity. Although this does not mean that
they are capable of operations.

Instead of being totally capable of operations they deal with a Pre
Operational thought called symbolic function. Which is the ability to
use mental symbols, an object to represent something as an example.
Subsets linking to Pre Operational Thinking
   - The Relation Between Language and Thought
                  - Centration
                 -Conservation
   -Incomplete Understanding of Transformation
                  -Egocentrism
       -The Emergence of Intuitive Thought
The Relation Between Language and
               Thought
Children in preschool make great progress in language
skills.
Children using language allows them to think above
and beyond, out side the box.
Language and thought are linked (according to Piaget)
and because of this it improves the type of thinking
children do. Going back to thinking out side the box.
Piaget believes that improvement during the earlier
sensorimotor period are necessary for language
development.
Centration: What You See Is What You Think




 Centration: The process of concentration on one limited
     aspect of a stimulus and ignoring other aspects

*Preschoolers won’t consider all the information provided, they instead will concentrate
     on the obvious provided element/s on what they see and go by that intuition.
                       *They tend to focus more on appearance.
Conservation: Learning That
   Appearances Are Deceiving
 Conservation: The knowledge that quantity is
 unrelated to the arrangement and physical appearance
 of objects.

Most kids at this age group have not yet developed this
trait. Which allows them to understand the change in
                      appearance.
Piaget believes that this happens because of their lack
    of centration prevents them from putting their
           attention on relevant appearances
Incomplete Understanding of Transformation
Transformation: The process whereby one state is changed
                     into another.
 -Meaning: That children in the pre operational stage do
  not comprehend or don’t recall the steps in between.
Egocentrism: The Inability to
         Take Others’ Perspective
     Egocentrism: Thinking
     that does not take the
     viewpoints of others
     into account.
-This means that children do not have any remorse of
      the effect something may have on others.
-2 Forms of Egocentrism: One, the lack of awareness
that others see things from a different point of view.
   Two, that others might have a different physical
                 perspective as well.
Intuitive Thought
     Intuitive Thought: Thinking that
        reflects preschoolers’ use of
     positive reasoning and their avid
      acquisition of knowledge about
                 the world.
     -This means that children, naturally, are curious.
        -By becoming curious and trying things out
      children begin to push towards the end of this
     phase and begin to learn functionality, and they
                also begin to show identity.
All together Piaget’s
          Approach...
Pre Operational period is far from idle. There are many
cognitive skills preschoolers still have to master.
And even though Piaget believed and suggested all
these things recent studies have found that he
underestimated these young little rascals and that they
are very capable to do some of the things he mentioned
at an early age.
Resources

Child Development (Fifth Edition) Robert S.Feldman
Google Images

Cd1 cognitive

  • 1.
    COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT INTHE PRESCHOOL YEARS By: Daniella Leon
  • 2.
    Piaget’s Stage ofPre operational Thinking Preschool years is an important time of stability and change. Piaget suggested that preschoolers from the age 2-7 years go through a stage called Pre operational stage. This stage lasts all through the preschool years ranging from 2-7. During this stage children’s use of symbolic thinking grows, mental reasoning emerges, and the use of concepts increases. They begin to grow less dependent on sensorimotor activity. Although this does not mean that they are capable of operations. Instead of being totally capable of operations they deal with a Pre Operational thought called symbolic function. Which is the ability to use mental symbols, an object to represent something as an example.
  • 3.
    Subsets linking toPre Operational Thinking - The Relation Between Language and Thought - Centration -Conservation -Incomplete Understanding of Transformation -Egocentrism -The Emergence of Intuitive Thought
  • 4.
    The Relation BetweenLanguage and Thought Children in preschool make great progress in language skills. Children using language allows them to think above and beyond, out side the box. Language and thought are linked (according to Piaget) and because of this it improves the type of thinking children do. Going back to thinking out side the box. Piaget believes that improvement during the earlier sensorimotor period are necessary for language development.
  • 5.
    Centration: What YouSee Is What You Think Centration: The process of concentration on one limited aspect of a stimulus and ignoring other aspects *Preschoolers won’t consider all the information provided, they instead will concentrate on the obvious provided element/s on what they see and go by that intuition. *They tend to focus more on appearance.
  • 6.
    Conservation: Learning That Appearances Are Deceiving Conservation: The knowledge that quantity is unrelated to the arrangement and physical appearance of objects. Most kids at this age group have not yet developed this trait. Which allows them to understand the change in appearance. Piaget believes that this happens because of their lack of centration prevents them from putting their attention on relevant appearances
  • 7.
    Incomplete Understanding ofTransformation Transformation: The process whereby one state is changed into another. -Meaning: That children in the pre operational stage do not comprehend or don’t recall the steps in between.
  • 8.
    Egocentrism: The Inabilityto Take Others’ Perspective Egocentrism: Thinking that does not take the viewpoints of others into account. -This means that children do not have any remorse of the effect something may have on others. -2 Forms of Egocentrism: One, the lack of awareness that others see things from a different point of view. Two, that others might have a different physical perspective as well.
  • 9.
    Intuitive Thought Intuitive Thought: Thinking that reflects preschoolers’ use of positive reasoning and their avid acquisition of knowledge about the world. -This means that children, naturally, are curious. -By becoming curious and trying things out children begin to push towards the end of this phase and begin to learn functionality, and they also begin to show identity.
  • 10.
    All together Piaget’s Approach... Pre Operational period is far from idle. There are many cognitive skills preschoolers still have to master. And even though Piaget believed and suggested all these things recent studies have found that he underestimated these young little rascals and that they are very capable to do some of the things he mentioned at an early age.
  • 11.
    Resources Child Development (FifthEdition) Robert S.Feldman Google Images

Editor's Notes