The following excerpt from the book Teaching and Learning in the Kindergarten Year by Dominic Gullo describes brain development in the early years. During pre-school and Kindergarten, the brain grows steadily, increasing from seventy percent to ninety percent of its eventual adult weight. In addition to gains…
According to the developmental psychologist Piaget, a child makes meaning of his world by forming patterns with the information he receives. He bundles the data he accumulates into concepts. A concept is an idea formed by mentally combining all its characteristics or particulars. Children form and adjust concepts when they can experience and interact with…
Do you want to know what your child is thinking? Sit and observe your child while he is playing or engaging with any materials and you will notice that he will often mutter and talk to himself. These monologues are called private speech and peak…
The definition of intelligence depends on the time and culture you live in. During Socrates’ day, intelligent people were those who could memorize extensive passages and then recite them. There were hardly any written texts in 500 BC so this ability to memorize was valued.…
Small children should be given materials to play with that promote both divergent and convergent thinking. Divergent thinking means there is more than one answer to a problem or there is more than one method to do something. For example, there are many different ways…
Children have different learning styles. Developmental psychologist Howard Gardner defines six different intelligences/learning styles. Linguistic intelligence: sensitivity to spoken and written language. Logical-mathematical intelligence: the capacity to analyze problems logically, carry out mathematical operations, and investigate issues scientifically. Musical intelligence: skill in the performance, composition, and appreciation of…
