Human Development Unit 5 Early Childhood

UNIT EARLY CHILDHOOD Unit Early Childhood 163 Developmental Task of Early Childhood Initiative . Guilt The trust and autonomy of previous stages develop into a desire to take initiative or to think of ideas and initiate action ( 1982 ) Once children reach the preschool stage ( ages years ) they are capable of initiating activities and asserting control over their world through social interactions and play . According to , preschool children must resolve the task of initiative guilt . By learning to plan and achieve goals while interacting with others , preschool children can master this task . Children may want to build a fort with the cushions from the living room couch or open a lemonade stand in the driveway or make a zoo with their stuffed animals and issue tickets to those who want to come . Or they may just want to get themselves ready for bed without any assistance . Initiative , a sense of ambition and responsibility , occurs when parents allow a child to explore within limits and then support the child choice . To reinforce taking initiative , caregivers should offer praise for the child efforts and avoid being critical of messes or mistakes . Placing pictures of drawings on the refrigerator , purchasing mud pies for dinner , and admiring towers of legos will facilitate the child sense of initiative . These children will develop and feel a sense of purpose . Those who are unsuccessful at this their initiative or stifled by develop feelings of inadequacy and guilt . Behavioral and Emotional One of the places that the developmental task of initiative guilt is negotiated involves preschoolers struggles to learn to control their behaviors and emotions . Behavioral refers broadly to the individuals use to modify their actions . Sometimes , behaviors need to be to so that they are socially appropriate to the context ( minding parents or following preschool rules ) and sometimes so that they better meet an individuals own goals ( getting a fort built or joining a pretend game ) Adaptive behavioral regulation involves staying in touch with your genuine goals while at the same time making intentional decisions about the actions you are going to show in service of those goals . of behavior refers to both . Do regulation The performance of actions desired by others that we don really want to do ( Put away your toys ) and . Do regulation Stopping ourselves from doing something we really want to do ( Do eat that ) During , we see the start of behavioral , and it is one of the central tasks of early childhood , but these processes take many years to fully develop . Executive function refers to processes , such as the ability to inhibit a behavior or cognitive , that enable adaptive responses to new situations or to reach a goal . Executive function skills gradually emerge during early childhood and continue to develop throughout childhood and adolescence . Like many cognitive changes , brain maturation , especially the prefrontal cortex , along with experience the development of executive function skills . As executive function improves , children become less impulsive ( 2015 ) Children show higher executive function skills when parents are warm and responsive , use scaffolding when the child is trying to solve a problem , and provide cognitively stimulating environments ( Meredith , 2014 ) 164

When do children start and what affects how it develops ?

Children start regulating their behaviors in infancy , beginning with physiological regulation and consistency in patterns of behavior , such as sleeping and eating . However , as infants move into , they are faced with the challenge of regulating their behavior as it relates to others in social situations . This type of is typically not seen with any degree of consistency until a second year . However , the capacity to regulate may develop earlier or later depending on . Developmental progress in other areas , such as cognition and working memory , which help children become aware of what constitutes acceptable social behavior . The child temperament , both reactivity and effortful control . The quality of interactions . The quality of the general home school ( environment . Why is important ?

Being good at behavioral ( compared to having regulating one behavior ) is associated with numerous positive outcomes for children , including . More success in the transition to school and better academic achievement once they start school . Higher levels of social competence , as seen in greater success developing peer relationships . Fewer problems with externalizing behaviors such as anger and impulsivity . Higher levels of behaviors as children move from infancy into and early childhood , and increases in behavior throughout childhood . In the now classic Marshmallow Test ( 1972 ) children are confronted with the choice of a small immediate reward ( a single marshmallow ) and a larger delayed reward ( several marshmallows ) Walter and his colleagues over the years have found that the ability to delay at the age of four predicted better academic performance and health later in life ( et , 2011 ) How we study it ?

The developmental trajectory for can be investigated by directly observing the nature and frequency of children compliant behaviors . Compliance , simply stated , is a child cooperation or going along with the rules and standards of behavior for their immediate environment ( home or school ) Internalization ow and compliance develop ?

As a childs ability to develops , so does the nature of compliant behavior . Let use getting ready to eat a meal as an example . When behavior is beginning to emerge , compliant behavior requires a high degree of caregiver support A very young child will need assistance with hand washing , putting on a bib , and getting seated . Compliance needs less support as continues to develop . A child of two may be able to perform these tasks with less or no assistance , but will likely require a reminder and perhaps direct supervision to do them . Compliance needs very little direct support as children develop more and more skills . competence An older child will be able to get ready for a meal without prompting or assistance . In other words , as a child develops the ability to their behavior , the nature of compliance shifts from assisted , externally motivated behavior to independent , internally motivated behavior . The development of independent , internally motivated compliance is referred to as internalization and represents a child acceptance and understanding of , and willingness to behave in accordance with , the rules and standards of their environment . Emotional . Emotional refers to an individual ability to recognize and name how they are feeling , and to express their emotions constructively . Adaptive emotion regulation involves staying in 165

touch with how you are genuinely feeling while at the same time making intentional decisions about how you are going to express those feelings . and learn new ways of expressing their feelings verbally . They also learn how to cope with negative emotions in ways that make themselves feel put their heads down to reduce sensory input that may be overwhelming or unpleasant , they talk out loud to reassure themselves that things will be okay , and they recalibrate their goals or desires to match the options that are available to them , rather than to continue asking for something they can not have ( Thompson , 2007 ) These strategies , and others , reduce the frequency and severity of tantrums , feelings of loneliness , and other unpleasant emotional responses . They can also help children remain calm when they are very excited or happy . The same cognitive processes related to and executive function ( response initiation , response inhibition , delayed , effortful control , and cognitive ) are responsible for regulating children emotions . However , caretakers can help facilitate adaptive behavior regulation by using language ( want , need , don like ) in everyday conversations , by validating children goals and preferences as real and important , by explaining strategies that allow everyone in a given transaction to have their goals and preferences taken into consideration ( eg . by taking turns or sharing ) and by being patient . Compared with children with poor behavioral regulation skills , those who learn adaptive behavioral and emotional regulation strategies learn more , like school better , and are disciplined less frequently . They are also less anxious and stressed , more empathetic , and get along better with parents , teachers , and peers ( Chang et , 2003 et , 2006 et , 2005 Morris et , 2011 et , 2007 et , 2006 ) Social and Emotional Competence Social and personality development is built from social , biological , and representational . These result in important developmental outcomes that matter to children , parents , and society a young adults capacity to engage in socially constructive actions ( helping , caring , sharing with others ) to curb hostile or aggressive impulses , to live according to meaningful moral values , to develop a healthy identity and sense of self , and to develop talents and achieve success in using them . These are some of the developmental outcomes that denote social and emotional competence . These achievements of social and personality development derive from the interaction of many social , biological , and representational . Consider , for example , the development of conscience , which is an early foundation for moral development . Conscience consists of the cognitive , emotional , and social that cause young children to create and act consistently with internalized standards of right and wrong ( 2002 ) It emerges from young experiences with parents , particularly in the development of a mutually responsive relationship that motivates young children to respond constructively to the parents requests and expectations . temperament is involved , as some children are temperamentally more capable of motivated ( a quality called effortful control ) than are others , while some children are more prone to the fear and anxiety that parental disapproval can evoke . The development of conscience is by having a good between the child temperamental qualities and the ways parents communicate and reinforce behavioral expectations . Conscience development also expands as young children begin to represent moral values and think of themselves as moral beings . By the end of the preschool years , for example , young children develop a moral self by which they think of themselves as people who want to do the right thing , who feel badly after misbehaving , and who feel uncomfortable when others misbehave . In the development of conscience , young children become more socially and emotionally competent in a manner that provides a foundation for later moral conduct ( Thompson , 2012 ) 166

Required Reading . Moral Development To learn about moral development during early childhood , please read the following article from Open University Moral Behaviour References Chang , Schwartz , Dodge , 2003 ) Harsh parenting in relation to child emotion regulation and aggression . Journal of Family Psychology , 17 ( doi , Hardy , Albert , 2006 ) Early of in middle childhood . Infant and Child Development , 15 ( 2005 ) Associations of regulation with language skills , emotion knowledge , and academic outcomes . New directions for child and adolescent development , 2005 ( 109 ) Marsh , Swann , 2005 ) The conceptualization of impulsivity Bipolar disorder and substance abuse . Psychiatric Times , 22 ( 1982 ) The life cycle completed . NY Norton Company . Meredith , 2014 ) Parenting on executive function in early childhood A review . Child Development Perspectives , 2002 ) Mutually responsive orientation between mothers and their young children A context for the early development of conscience . Current Directions in Psychological Science , 11 ( Casey , 2011 ) Willpower ' over the life span Decomposing . Social Cognitive Affective Neuroscience , 1972 ) Cognitive and attentional mechanisms in delay of . Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , 21 , Morris , Silk , Morris , 2011 ) The influence of emotion regulation strategies on children expression of anger and sadness . Developmental psychology , 47 ( 213 . Robinson , Bradley , 2007 ) Developmental trends in among toddlers . Social Development , 16 ( Posner , I . 2011 ) Developing mechanisms of in early life . Emotion review , Thompson , A . 2012 ) Whither the child ?

Toward a moral development theory . Child development perspectives , 167 Thompson , 2007 ) Taming the tempest in the teapot . development in the toddler years Transitions and transformations , 2015 ) Improving executive function in childhood Evaluation of a training intervention for children . Frontiers in Psychology , OER Attribution Lifespan Development A Psychological Perspective Second Edition by Martha Lally and Suzanne is licensed under a Lifespan Development by Lumen Learning is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution International License Additional materials ( Behavioral and Emotional Regulation ) by Ellen Skinner Eli , Portland State University is licensed under a Child Growth and Development by College of the , Jennifer Paris , Antoinette Ricardo , and Dawn and is used under a BY international license 168

Cognitive Development Stage Building on the accomplishments of the stage of cognitive development , which takes place during infancy and involves sensorimotor regulations , preschoolers enter the second stage of cognitive development , called the stage , which is organized around symbolic regulations . According to , this stage occurs from the age of to years . In the stage , children use symbols to represent words , images , and ideas , which is why children in this stage engage in pretend play . A child arms might become airplane wings as she zooms around the room , or a child with a stick might become a brave knight with a sword . Children also begin to use language in the stage , but they can not understand adult logic or mentally manipulate information . The term operational refers to logical manipulation of information , so children at this stage are considered . Children logic is based on their own personal knowledge of the world so far , rather than on conventional knowledge . The period is divided into two stages . The symbolic function substage occurs between and years of age and is characterized by gains in symbolic thinking , in which the child is able to mentally represent an object that is not present , and a dependence on perception in problem solving . The intuitive thought substage , lasting from to years , is marked by greater dependence on intuitive thinking rather than just perception ( Thomas , 1979 ) This implies that children think automatically without using evidence . At this stage , children ask many questions as they attempt to understand the world around them using immature reasoning . Let us examine some of assertions about children cognitive abilities at this age . Pretend play . Pretending is a favorite activity at this time . A toy has qualities beyond the way it was designed to function and can now be used to stand for a character or object unlike anything originally intended . A teddy bear , for example , can be a baby or the queen of a faraway land . believed that pretend play helped children practice and solidify new schemata they were developing cognitively . This play , then , reflected changes in their conceptions or thoughts . However , children also learn as they pretend and experiment . Their play does not simply represent what they have learned ( Berk , 2007 ) Symbolic representation . In addition to ushering in an era of Figure pretend play , the development of symbolic representation revolutionizes the way young children can think and act . Representational capacities underlie the emergence of language which opens up channels of communication with others and provides young children words and concepts for their inner experiences ( like emotion labels ) Symbolic capacities also scaffold the development of memory , and allow young children to remember and discuss autobiographical events . They become very interested in two dimensional representations , like photographs and computer screens , and can interact with grandparents and others using these tools . As seen at the end of the sensorimotor period , toddlers begin to use primitive representations to solve problems in their heads . During the preschool years , cognitive advances allow them to get better and better at trying out strategies Cognitive Development 169

mentally before taking action . Hence , planning and become central activities . can be used to facilitate physical play ( planning how to build a castle ) solve interpersonal ( two children want the same toy ) or out how to comfort oneself when one is sad . Mental representations are also key to the advances in executive function and described earlier . When children can hold goals in their minds that are different from the ones that spontaneously emerge , they use representations of what they are supposed to do to modulate or manage what they want to do . Young children show an outpouring of representational activities , including language , pretend play , story telling , singing , drawing , looking a photos , and discussing the past and present . They love to engage in joint and be read to , often asking for the same book or video over and over again , pouring over and discussing the story , until they can repeat every word . Despite the many advances that symbolic thought brings to young children , there are still several limitations to their thinking , including egocentrism , perceptual salience , and animism . When parents see behaviors typical of the stage , it is important that they correctly interpret their meaning . Young children are not being hard to get along with . These behaviors are the result of genuine limitations in their cognitive functioning . Young children can understand many ideas and follow rules , but for the best developmental outcomes , adults should temper their expectations and demands so that they are reasonable , and explain their thinking using language that is developmentally attuned to children current cognitive capacities . Egocentrism . Egocentrism in early childhood refers to the tendency of young children not to be able to take the perspective of others , and instead the child thinks that everyone sees , thinks , and feels just as they do . Egocentric children are not able to infer the perspective of other people and instead attribute their own perspective to everyone in the situation . For example , birthday is coming up , so her mom takes Kenny to the toy store to choose a present for his sister . He selects an Iron Man action for her , thinking that if he likes the toy , his sister will too . classic experiment on egocentrism involved showing children a model of a mountain and asking them to describe what a doll that is looking at the mountain from a different angle might see ( see Figure ) Children tend to choose a picture that represents their own , rather than the dolls view . By age children are less . However , even younger children when speaking to others tend to use different sentence structures and vocabulary when addressing a younger child or an older adult . This indicates some awareness of the views of others . Perceptual salience . Perceptual salience means that children , reason , not based on what they know , but based on what they perceive ( see and hear ) in the present local context . This . cognitive limitation is on display every Halloween , when A parents dress up , especially if they use masks . For a child , the mask is so perceptually salient that Figure what dues dolly See ?

even if the parent continues to talk and the child can recognize their voice , their experience is overwhelmed by the transformation of the parents face , that they react to the masked parent as if they were a stranger . At this age , children understanding is halfway between the reasoning based on action of the sensorimotor period and the reasoning based on logic of the concrete operational period . During the period , reasoning is based on empirical reality , that is , information provided by the senses . Animism . Animism refers to attributing qualities to objects . The cup is alive , the chair that falls down and hits the child ankle is mean , and the toys need to stay home because they are tired . Cartoons frequently show objects that 170 Cognitive Development

appear alive and take on lifelike qualities . Young children do seem to think that objects that move may be alive , but after age three , they seldom refer to objects as being alive ( Berk , 2007 ) Intuitive substage ( age years ) During the intuitive substage , children begin to move toward logical thinking . They show some signs of logical reasoning , but ca explain how or why they think as they do . This is an age with questions , as children begin to make sense of their worlds . Parents should know that children ceaseless why ?

questions do not require detailed explanations . They are looking for brief and simple explanations . For example , if children ask Why do I have to wear a helmet when I ride a bicycle ?

they are not looking for a lecture on legal issues , but just a simple To keep your head safe . Likewise , if they come back from a bike ride and say Well , I didn fall down , so now I don need to wear a helmet any more , you can explain the idea of risk through an everyday example , saying , You have to wear it every time , because you could fall down . If you want to try a metaphor , you could explain , Your head is like a glass , it could get broken . Does a glass break every time you drop it ?

No . But does that mean that it a good idea to drop it ?

No . We want to keep your head safe . The primary limitation of thought during the intuitive substage is called . means that understanding is dominated ( centered on ) a single the most perceptually salient one . At this age , children can not hold or coordinate two features of an object at the same time . demonstrated this aspect of thought in a series of experiments . They showed that young children do not yet have the logical notion of conservation , which refers to the ability to recognize that aspects like quantity remain the same , even when over transformations in appearance . Inability to conserve . Using Kenny and again , dad gave a slice of pizza to and another slice to Kenny . Kenny pizza slice was cut into pieces , so Kenny told his sister that he got more pizza than she did . Kenny did not understand that cutting the pizza into smaller pieces did not increase the overall amount . This was because Kenny exhibited when he focused on only one characteristic ( the number of pieces ) to the exclusion of others ( total amount ) Kenny reasoning was based on his pieces of pizza compared to his sister one piece even though the total amount of pizza each had was the same . was able to consider several characteristics of an object than just one . Because children have not developed this understanding of conservation , they can not perform mental operations . The classic experiment associated with conservation involves liquid ( Crain , 2005 ) As seen on the left side of Figure , the child is shown two glasses which are to the same level and asked if they have the same amount . Usually the child agrees they have the same amount . The experimenter then Figure . Conservation of Liquid . Does pouring liquid in 41 pours the one glass to taller and glass ( 35 . make it have ?

shown in the center of Figure ) The child is again asked if the two glasses have the same amount of liquid . The child will typically say the taller glass now has more liquid because it is taller ( as shown on the right side ) The child has on the height of the glass and fails to conserve . errors . children also demonstrate when they have understanding that an object can be in more than one way . For example , if shown three white buttons and four black buttons and asked whether there are more black buttons or buttons , the child is likely to respond that there are more black buttons . They focus on the most salient feature ( black buttons ) and can not keep in mind the the general class of buttons , so they compare black versus white buttons , instead of part versus whole . Because young children lack these general classes , their reasoning is typically , that is , making faulty inferences from one specific example to another . For example , daughter stated she had not had her nap , therefore it was not afternoon . She did not understand that afternoons are a time period and her nap was just one of many events that occurred in the afternoon Cognitive Development 171

( Crain , 2005 ) As the child capacity to mentally represent and coordinate multiple features improves , the ability to classify objects emerges . Critique of . Similar to the critique of the sensorimotor period , several psychologists have attempted to show that also underestimated the intellectual capabilities of the child . For example , children experiences can when they are able to conserve . Children of pottery makers in Mexican villages know that reshaping clay does not change the amount of clay at much younger ages than children who do not have similar experiences ( Gordon , Ramirez , 1969 ) Crain ( 2005 ) also showed that under certain conditions children can think rationally about mathematical and tasks , and they are not always as egocentric as implied . Research on theory of mind ( discussed later in the chapter ) shows that some children overcome egocentrism by or years of age , which is sooner than indicated . As with sensorimotor development , seemed to be right about the exact sequence and the processes involved in cognitive development , as well as when these steps are typically observable under naturalistic conditions . But current research has provided more accurate estimates of the exact ages when underlying capacities emerge , which could only be revealed by working with children in experimental conditions that removed barriers to their performance . Sociocultural Theory Changes in Thought with Guidance Modern social learning theories stem from the work of Russian psychologist Lev , who produced his ideas as a reaction to existing conflicting approaches in psychology ( 1990 ) ideas are most recognized for identifying the role of social interactions and culture in the development of thinking skills . His theory is especially valuable for the insights it provides about the dynamic interdependence between individual and social processes in the construction of knowledge ( 1996 , 192 ) views are often considered primarily as developmental theories , focusing on qualitative changes in behavior over time , that attempt to explain unseen processes of development in thought , language , and thinking skills . Although intent was mainly to understand higher psychological processes in children , his ideas have many practical applications for learners of all ages . Three themes are often with ideas of sociocultural learning ( human development and learning originate in social , historical , and cultural interactions , the use of psychological tools , particularly language , the development of higher mental functions , and ( learning occurs within the Zone of Proximal Development . While we discuss these ideas separately , they are closely interrelated . Sociocultural theory . sociocultural theory emphasizes the importance of culture and social interaction in the development of cognitive abilities . contended that thinking has social origins , social interactions play a critical role especially in the development of thinking skills , and cognitive development can not be fully understood without considering the social and historical context within which it is embedded . He explained , Every function in the child cultural development appears twice , on the social level , and later , on the individual level between people ( and then inside the child ( 1978 , 57 ) It is through working with others on a variety of tasks that a learner adopts socially shared experiences and associated effects and acquires useful strategies and knowledge ( Scott . 2013 ) 172 Cognitive Development

( 1990 ) refers to this process as guided participation , where a learner actively acquires new culturally valuable skills and capabilities through a meaningful , collaborative activity with an assisting , more experienced other . It is critical to notice that these culturally mediated functions are viewed as being embedded in sociocultural activities rather than being . Development is a transformation of participation in a sociocultural activity not a transmission of discrete cultural knowledge or skills ( 2015 , 315 ) For example , young children learn skills , not by sitting alone at a desk trying to solve arbitrary problems , but by working alongside parents or older siblings as they work on actual tasks , like preparing a family meal or repairing a fence . Working together , the dyad or group encounter social or physical problems , and discuss their possible solutions before taking action . Through participation in joint , young children develop these skills . Language as a developmental tool . In his sociocultural view of development , highlighted the tools that the culture provides to support the development of higher order thought . Chief among them is language . For , children interact with the world through the tool of language . For , children use that they construct and organize on the mental plane , but for , language , a social medium , was the mechanism through which we build knowledge of the world . He believed that with development , the language we acquire from our environment shapes the ways in which we think and behave . With development , language becomes internalized as thought ( cognition , or reasoning ) and children use this internalized language to guide their action . Scaffolding and the Zone of Proximal Development . differed with in that he believed that a person not only has a set of actual abilities , but also a set of potential abilities that can be realized if given the proper guidance from others . He believed that through guided participation known as scaffolding , with a teacher or capable peer , a child can learn cognitive skills within a certain range known as the zone of proximal development . Both and highlighted the importance of interactions with the social and physical world as the sources of developmental change , ideas of cognitive development emphasized universal stages progressing toward increasing cognitive complexity . presents a more View in which situated participatory learning drives development . The idea of learning driving development , rather than being determined by the developmental level of the learner , fundamentally changes our understanding of the learning process and has instructional and educational implications ( Miller , 2011 ) Have you ever taught a child to perform a task ?

Maybe it was brushing their teeth or preparing food . Chances are you spoke to them and described what you were doing while you demonstrated the skill and let them work along with you throughout the process . You gave them assistance when they seemed to need it , but once they knew what to do , you stood back and let them go . This is scaffolding . This approach to teaching has also been adopted by educators . Rather than assessing students on what they are doing , they should be understood in terms of what they are capable of doing with the proper guidance and mentoring . This difference in assumptions has implications for the design and development of learning experiences . If we believe as did that development precedes learning , then we will introduce children to learning activities involving new concepts and problems , but follow their lead , allowing learners to initiate participation when they are ready or interested . On the other hand , if we believe as did that learning drives development and that development occurs as we learn a variety of concepts and principles , recognizing their applicability to new tasks and new situations , then our instructional design will look very different . Section Glossary Scaffolding a process in which adults or capable peers model or demonstrate how to solve a problem , and then step back , offering support as needed . Sociocultural Theory theory that emphasizes how cognitive development proceeds as a result of social interactions between members of a culture , and relies on cultural tools like language . Cognitive Development 173

Zone of Proximal Development what a learner can do with help from more competent others sits in the gap between what a learner can do alone without help , and what the learner can not yet do . Theory of Mind Theory of mind refers to the ability to think about other people thoughts ( also known as is , thinking about thinking ) Theory of mind is the understanding that other people experience mental states ( for instance , thoughts , beliefs , feelings , or desires ) that are different from our own , and that their mental states are what guide their behavior . This skill , which emerges in early childhood , helps humans to infer , predict , and understand the reactions of others , thus playing a crucial role in social development and in promoting competent social interactions . One common method for determining if a child has reached this mental milestone is called the false belief task . The research began with a clever experiment by and ( 1983 ) who tested whether children can pass a belief test ( see Figure ) The child is shown a picture story of Sally , who puts her ball in a basket and leaves the room . While Sally is out of the room , Anne comes along and takes the ball from the basket and puts it inside a box . The child is then asked where Sally thinks the ball is located when she comes back to the room . Is she going to look in the box or in the basket ?

The right answer is that she will look in the basket , because that is where she put it and thinks it is but we have to infer this false belief against our own better knowledge that the ball is in the box . This is very for children before the age of four because of the cognitive effort it takes . have distinguishing between what they once thought was true and what they now know to be true . They feel that what they know now is what they have always known ( Birch Bloom , 2003 ) You could say that their perspectives are fused whatever is actually true is what they and everyone else thinks . Even adults need to think through this task ( 2004 ) To be successful at solving this type of task , the child must separate three things ( what is true ( what they themselves think ( which can be false ) and ( what someone else thinks ( which can be different from what they think as well as different from reality ) Can you see why this task is so complex ?

174 Cognitive Development In terms , children must give up a tendency toward egocentrism . The child must also understand that what guides people actions and responses are what they believe rather than what is actually true . In other words , people can mistakenly believe things that are false ( called false beliefs ) and will act based on this false knowledge . Consequently , prior to age four children are rarely successful at solving such tasks ( Wellman , Cross Watson , 2001 ) Researchers examining the development of theory of mind have been concerned by the overemphasis on the mastery of false belief as the primary measure of whether a child has attained theory of mind . understand the diversity of desires , yet as noted earlier it is not until age four or that children grasp false beliefs , and often not until middle childhood do they understand that people may hide how they really feel . In part , because children understanding is fused in early childhood children do not differentiate genuine feelings from the expression of feelings . They have hiding how they really feel ( saying thank you for a gift they do not really like ) Wellman and his colleagues ( Wellman , Fang , Liu , Zhu . Liu , 2006 ) suggest that theory of mind is comprised of a number of components , each with its own developmental timeline ( see Table ) Table Components of Theory of Mind This is Sally basket . This is Anne box . Sally puts her red bull . into her basket . Sally goes out of the mom and leaves Anne alone . Anne takes the ball out of the basket . and puts it in the , box . When Sally comes back . Wang , play with the ball . Where will Sully for her boll ?

Figure . task to test children ability to infer false beliefs . Stage , Component Description Desire Psychology ( ages ) Object Belief Psychology ( ages or to ) Knowledge access ( ignorance ) False belief Understanding that two people may have different desires regarding the same Understanding that two people may hold different beliefs about an object . Understanding that people may or may not have access to information . Understanding that someone might hold a belief based on false information . adapted from , 2019 Cognitive Development 175

Those in early childhood in the US , Australia , and Germany develop theory of mind in the sequence outlined in Table 42 . Yet , Chinese and Iranian preschoolers acquire knowledge access before diverse beliefs ( Peterson , Slaughter Wellman , 2011 ) and colleagues suggested that cultural differences in may account for this reversal . Parents in collectivistic cultures , such as China and Iran , emphasize conformity to the family and cultural values , greater respect for elders , and the acquisition of knowledge and academic skills more than they do autonomy and social skills ( Frank , 2010 ) This could reduce the degree of familial of opinions expressed in the family . In contrast , individualistic cultures encourage children to think for themselves and assert their own opinion , and this could increase the risk of in beliefs being expressed by family members . As a result , children in individualistic cultures would acquire insight into the question of diversity of belief earlier , while children in collectivistic cultures would acquire knowledge access earlier in the sequence . The role of in aiding the development of theory of mind may account for the earlier age of onset of an understanding of false belief in children with siblings , especially older siblings ( 2007 , 1994 ) This awareness of the existence of theory of mind is part of social intelligence , such as recognizing that others can think differently about situations . It helps us to be or aware that others can think of us in different ways and it helps us to be able to be understanding or be empathic toward others . Moreover , this mind reading ability helps us to anticipate and predict people actions . The awareness of the mental states of others is important for communication and social skills . Language Development The development of symbolic representation during the second year of life leads to an explosion of language growth during and early childhood . Vocabulary growth . Between the ages of two to six , a childs vocabulary expands from about 200 words to over words . This vocabulary spurt typically involves new words per week and is accomplished through a process called . Words are easily learned by making connections between new words and concepts already known . The parts of speech that are learned depend on the language and what is emphasized . Children speaking languages , such as Chinese and Japanese , learn verbs more readily , while those speaking English tend to learn nouns more readily . at the same time , children learning less languages , such as English , seem to need assistance in grammar to master the use of verbs ( et , 2008 ) Literal meanings . Children can repeat words and phrases after having heard them only once or twice , but they do not always understand the meaning of the words or phrases . This is especially true of expressions or of speech which are taken literally . For example , a classroom full of preschoolers hears the teacher say , Wow ! That was a piece of cake ! The children may begin asking Cake ?

Where is my cake ?

I want cake ! Or when a young child falls down and scrapes her knee , and she hears a parent say Oh your poor knee as they put on a , the parent should not be surprised if , when the child falls down and an elbow , she shows it to the parent and Oh , man , I got another . Children learn rules of grammar as they learn language but may apply these rules inappropriately at . For instance , a child learns to add ed to the end of a word to indicate past tense . Then forms a sentence such as I there . I that . This is typical at ages two and three . Even without any correction , those mistakes will soon disappear , and they will learn new words such as went and did to be used in those situations . The impact of training . Remember and the Zone of Proximal Development ?

Children can be assisted in learning language by others who listen attentively , model more accurate and encourage elaboration . The child exclaims , I there ! and the adult responds , You went there ?

Where did you go ?

No corrections are needed . Children may be ripe for language as suggests , but active participation in helping them learn 176 Cognitive Development is important for language development as well . The process of scaffolding is one in which the guide provides needed assistance to the child as a new skill is learned . Bilingualism Although monolingual speakers often do not realize it , the majority of children around the world are bilingual , meaning that they understand and use two languages ( 2005 ) Even in the United States , which is a relatively monolingual society , more than 60 million people ( 21 ) speak a language other than English at home ( er , 2014 Ryan , 2013 ) Children who are dual language learners are one of the fastest growing populations in the United States ( Hammer et , 2014 ) They make up nearly 30 of children enrolled in early childhood programs , like Start . By the time they enter school , they are very heterogeneous in their language and literacy skills , with some children showing delays in in either one or both languages ( Hammer et , 2014 ) 2018 ) reports language competency is dependent on the quantity , quality , and opportunity to use a language . Dual language learners may hear the same number of words and phrases ( quantity ) overall , as do monolingual children , but it is split between two ( 2018 ) Thus , in any single language they may be exposed to fewer words . They will show higher expressive and receptive skills in the language they come to hear the most . In addition , the quality of the languages spoken to the child may differ in bilingual versus monolingual families . Place and ( 2016 ) found that for many immigrant children in the United States , most of the English heard was spoken by a speaker of the language . Finally , many children in bilingual households will sometimes avoid using the family heritage language in favor of the majority language ( 2007 , 2018 ) A common pattern in English homes , is for the parents to speak to the child in Spanish , but for the child to respond in English . As a result , ren may show little difference in the receptive skills between English and Spanish , but better expressive skills in English ( 2018 ) There are several studies that have documented the advantages of learning more than one language in childhood for cognitive executive function skills . Bilingual children consistently outperform on measures of inhibitory control , such as ignoring irrelevant information ( Martin , 2005 ) Studies also reveal an advantage for bilingual children on measures of verbal working memory ( Gross , 2014 Yoo , 2012 ) and working memory ( 2011 ) However , it has been reported that among lower SES populations the working memory advantage is not always found ( 2011 ) There is also considerable research to show that being bilingual , either as a child or an adult , leads to greater in the word learning process . Monolingual children are strongly by the bias , the assumption that an object has only a single name ( Gross , 2014 ) For example , a child who has previously learned the word car , may be confused when this object is referred to as an automobile or sedan . Research shows that monolingual children it easier to learn the name of a new object , than acquiring a new name for a previously labelled object . In contrast , bilingual children and adults show little with either task ( Marian , 2009 ) This may be explained by the experience have in translating between languages when referring to familiar objects . Educational programs should take advantage of the preschool years as a time when children are developmentally primed to learn more than one language . The practice in the US of waiting until middle or high school to learn a second language in the face of the natural developmental progression of language learning . Systematic instruction , practice , reading , and writing in multiple languages would allow young children to become bilingual and during a developmental period when that is relatively easy . That is why many school districts offer immersion programs in multiple languages starting in preschool or Kindergarten . School districts who serve many children who speak languages other than English can take advantage of their skills and support bilingualism in all their pupils . Cognitive Development 177

Early Childhood Education Providing universal preschool has become an important lobbying point for federal , state , and local leaders throughout our country . In his 2013 State of the Union address , President Obama called upon congress to provide high quality preschool for all children . He continued to support universal preschool in his legislative agenda , and in December 2014 the President convened state and local for the White House Summit on Early Education ( White House Press Secretary , 2014 ) However , universal preschool covering all olds in the country would require funding . Further , how effective preschools are in preparing children for elementary school , and what constitutes high quality preschool have been debated . To set criteria for designation as a preschool , the National Association for the Education of Young Children ( 10 standards ( 2016 ) These include Positive and caring relationships among all children and adults are promoted . The curriculum supports learning and development in social , emotional , physical , language , and cognitive areas . Teaching approaches are developmentally , culturally , and linguistically attuned . Children progress is assessed to provide information on their learning and development . Children health and nutrition are promoted , while they are protected from illness and injury . Teachers possess the educational , knowledge , and commitment to promote children learning . Collaborative relationships with families are established and maintained . Relationships with agencies and institutions in the children communities are established to support the programs goals . Indoor and outdoor physical environments are safe and . Leadership and management personnel are well , effective , and maintain licensure status with the applicable state agency . Parents should review preschool programs using criteria such as those set by as a guide and template for asking questions that will assist them in choosing the best program for their child . Selecting the right preschool is also because there are so many types of preschools available . 2013 ) Waldorf , Emilia , High Scope , Parent and Bank Street as types of preschool programs , approaches , and curricula that focus on children learning through discovery . Teachers act as guides and create activities based on the child developmental level . 178 Cognitive Development

Head Start . For children who live in poverty , Head Start has been providing preschool education since 1965 when it was begun by President Lyndon Johnson as part of his war on poverty . It currently serves nearly one million children and annually costs approximately billion dollars ( United States Department of Health and Human Services , 2015 ) However , concerns about the effectiveness of Head Start have been ongoing since the program began . Armor ( 2015 ) reviewed existing research on Head Start and found there were no lasting gains , and the average child in Head Start had not learned more than children who did not receive preschool education . One study showed that children in Head Start Figure 55 , pom year old received potentially positive effects on general reading achievement , but no noticeable effects on math achievement and development ( 2015 ) Nonexperimental designs are a problem in determining the effectiveness of Head Start programs because a control group is needed to show group differences that would demonstrate educational . Because of ethical reasons , low income children are usually provided with some type of programming in an alternative setting . Additionally , Head Start programs are different depending on the location , and these differences include the length of the day or of the teachers . Lastly , testing young children is and strongly dependent on their language skills and comfort level with an evaluator ( 2015 ) Despite the challenges in researching the effectiveness of Head Start , the social and economic of investing in universal preschool can not be overstated . This is especially true for preschool programs that serve disadvantaged children and communities . Researchers and economists have estimated that investing in the cost of Head Start for a single yield a return to society of between and over that child lifetime ( et , 2010 ) This substantial economic return ( potentially saving our society billions of dollars in the long run ) comes in the form of lower high school dropout rates , lower unemployment rates , and lower rates of of which have been documented for individuals who had academic and social supports during early childhood ( et , 2010 ) Similar to the concept of preventative healthcare , the of investing in early education for children in poor or underserved communities today will add up over time , and will yield greater societal than we would expect from programs that implement interventions after problems emerge ( for example , remedial schooling , job training , or substance abuse rehabilitation , 2006 ) Supplemental Materials This Ted Talk features a seasoned school teacher , who discusses the importance of building strong and positive relationships with students . One or more interactive elements has been excluded from this version of the text . You can view them online here ?

Cognitive Development 179 This Ted Talk given by queer educator , Lindsay , discusses why kids need to learn about gender and sexuality . One or more interactive elements has been excluded from this version of the text . You can view them online here ?

This website offers queer educator , Lindsay teaching videos and resources to educate kids about gender and sexuality . videos This study explores maternal involvement in the preschool years for Black families across three generations . 2015 ) Mother Didn about Education income African American Mothers School Experiences and Their Impact on School Involvement for Preschoolers Transitioning to Kindergarten . The Journal of Education 84 ( This article compares and perspectives on learning and development in a deep dive on constructivism . A . 2006 ) Embracing through Transforming It Contrasting versus ( Activity ) Theories of Learning and Development to Expand Constructivism within a Dialectical View of History . 16 ( 0959354306060108 References Armor , 2015 ) Head Start or false start . USA Today Magazine . Retrieved from , 2015 ) Report Scant evidence for Head Start programs effectiveness . News and World Report . Retrieved from news articles , 2011 ) Coordination of executive functions in monolingual and bilingual children . Journal of Experimental Child Psychology , 110 , Martin , 2005 ) Bilingualism across the lifespan The rise and fall of inhibitory control . International Journal of Bilingualism , Birch , Bloom , 2003 ) Children are cursed An asymmetric bias in attribution . Psychological Science , 14 ( 2011 ) Speed of processing , anticipation , inhibition and working memory in . Developmental Science , 14 , 180 Cognitive Development

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Place , 2016 ) Effects and of input in bilingual environments on dual language skills in . Bilingualism Language and Cognition , 19 , Gordon , Ramirez , 1969 ) Skill and conservation A study of pottery making children . Developmental Psychology , 769 . 1990 ) Apprenticeship in thinking Cognitive development in social context . Oxford university press . Ryan , 2013 ) Language use in the United States 2011 . Retrieved from Scott , A . 2013 ) Sociocultural theory . Education . Peterson , Slaughter , Wellman , 2011 ) Culture and the sequence of steps in theory of mind development . Developmental Psychology , 47 ( Thomas , 1979 ) Comparing theories of child development . Santa Barbara , CA . Berk , 2007 ) Development through the life span ( Boston and Bacon . United States Department of Health and Human Services . 2015 ) Head Start program facts year 2013 . Retrieved from , 1978 ) theory . Mind in society . 1983 ) Beliefs about beliefs Representation and constraining function of wrong beliefs in young children understanding of deception . Cognition , 13 , Wellman , Cross , Watson , 2001 ) of theory of mind development The truth about false belief . Child Development , 72 ( Wellman , Fang , Liu , Zhu , Liu , 2006 ) Scaling theory of mind understandings in Chinese children . Psychological Science , 17 , White House Press Secretary . 2014 ) Fact Sheet Invest in US The White House Summit on Early Childhood Education . Retrieved from Yoo , 2012 ) Phonological memory in and . Memory Cognition , 40 , A . 2013 ) Types of Preschool Programs . Retrieved from starting OER Attribution Lifespan Development A Psychological Perspective Second Edition by Martha Lally and Suzanne is licensed under a additional written material by Ellen Skinner Eli , Portland State University is licensed under a Lifespan Development by Lumen Learning is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution International License Video 182 Cognitive Development

Every kid needs a champion by TED is licensed Why kids need to learn about gender and by TED is licensed Media is licensed under a ( Creative Commons Zero license 14457048196 conservation Lally is licensed under a ( Attribution NonCommercial license Unknown is licensed under a Public Domain license Bertram is licensed under a ( Attribution NonCommercial ) license is licensed under a Public Domain license Cognitive Development 183