Research behind how children think

How children think … the psychology

Aged 2 to 6 – This stage is known as the preoperational stage. Children can recognize words and images but are still unable to use true logical thinking and action. They are also not able to see anything other than themselves and use pretending as a key part of their development.

Aged 7 to 11 – This stage is known as the concrete operational stage. Children of this age can identify that the quantity of an object stays the same no matter if the object or shape changes.

Aged 12 and above – This stage is known as the formal operational stage. Children learn to use abstract thinking and reasoning, going beyond the cement thinking of what can be seen or known to in a way thinking outside the box.

There are some theories for each age group according to cognitive development, Erik Erikson’s theory. Firstly from birth to 1 year they require a sense of security to resolve the need to enable trust. Children aged between 1 to 2 years are faced with autonomy verses shame and doubt resulting in a need for independence. Children aged between three to five years, have the impact of initiative verses guilt resulting with a need to find a balance between getting what they want and being held back. Many children of this age want to be in control of everything and everyone around them. Children aged six to fourteen or fifteen often feel inferior and have low self-esteem so they require extra building up of self worth. During this time of a children’s development they need to be very social and develop one on one relationships with other children and adults to feel secure and help them learn new things that are important in their development.

Alley Dog 2012, Child Psychology, http://www.alleydog.com/topics/child-psychology.php, viewed 25/3/12

Kids Psych 2012, Games for 6-9 years, http://www.kidspsych.org/oochina.html, viewed 25/3/12