The 4 Stages of Cognitive Development
In the first year of life, infants begin to learn how to use primitive symbols to create lasting mental representations. This stage is associated wit true creativity and insight. The infants now enter the preoperational phase. The next stages are Sensorimotor, Concrete, and Abstract. Here’s a brief overview of each stage. This section will explain each stage’s importance and characteristics. Listed below are some examples of each stage.
Sensorimotor stage
The sensoryimotor stage is a stage of cognitive development that focuses on the formation of symbolic thought. Infants learn to recognize objects through mental symbols and increase their object permanence knowledge. For example, if you hide something, a child won’t be confused if it isn’t visible and will actively search for it. Children also learn to identify if objects are real. This milestone is important because it allows children to understand what objects mean and how they relate to one another.
This is the first phase of cognitive development in which babies learn to recognize symbols. They begin to associate sounds and heights with objects, and they begin to understand the concept of numbers. This stage is also when math concepts are developed. Activities that link numbers and objects can be useful for early childhood education. This is not the end. Infants are still developing their reasoning skills and can be taught many math concepts prior to being ready for algebra and geometry.
Concrete operational stage
Concrete operational stage is the period in childhood when a child’s thinking becomes more logical and focused. He or she will start to recognize concepts of conservation. This is when the child will be able to recognize that key properties of a substance never change no matter what its appearance. Children who are still young will assume that taller glasses have more liquid. They will not be capable of accurately assessing the amount of water in them.
The child can recognize objects by their color or shape, allowing them to classify them accordingly. Children can also differentiate between household items, animals, and plants at this age. This is a sign that they have moved beyond animism (the belief that everything has a soul). Children can now distinguish between inanimate and animate objects at this age. They will also use classification and decentralization. In addition, children can begin to think about others’ needs and be aware of what they would want if they were in another person’s situation.
Operational abstract stage
During the Concrete operational stage, children develop reasoning and inductive skills. These skills allow them to draw conclusions from information they have gathered. Inductive reasoning is the ability to draw connections between pieces of information, and then generalize from these connections to understand the world. Deductive reasoning requires children to connect pieces of information using their environment. This stage of cognitive development requires children to be able to make abstract and abstracted choices and to apply sophisticated rules and logic.
Children reach this stage of development around age 11 and continue into adulthood. These skills are vital for their future lives. The more advanced they get, the more complex and useful they will be in their thinking. They develop logical thought and can use deductive reasoning to solve problems. They can combine abstract ideas to find a solution. They can also combine ideas to find the most efficient way to solve a problem.
Irreversibility
Irreversibility is a characteristic of the preoperational stage of child development, a stage that behaviorist Jean Piaget defined as the inability of a child to undo actions. This stage is where children don’t understand that the same amount water is in the original glass even if the order is reversed. This understanding is not applicable to solving problems. Instead, they believe that actions cannot be reversed.
This is illustrated by the Sally-Anne False Belief Task. This task asks children to tell a story that involves a doll, a block, and then they are given a story. Sally places the blocks in a box and then leaves the room. Anne puts the block inside a basket. The child is asked to guess the location of Sally’s return when she returns after being told about the event. Children younger than four years old will most likely guess that Sally will be looking in the box. For children over four, however, this is not true.