Cognitive Development

Born with Brain Power!

Human beings are built to learn. Before we're born our brains grow new cells at an average rate of 250 thousand per minute. We enter the world with about 100 billion of them, and during the first month of life, the connections among our brain cells increase from 50 trillion to 1 quadrillion. At any given time there are about 100 trillion separate processes taking place in our brains, many of which involve absorbing, interpreting, categorizing and storing information. We learn from every experience we have, and learning = brain change. Brain change leads to "thinking," and "thinking" is the basic meaning of "cognitive."

So . . . Cognitive means thinking. "Cognitive development" means how we develop thinking; the basic sequence our brains go through to acquire the skills we need to be able to think. Often these "thinking skills" are the ones necessary for our social and academic success. Cognition is intertwined with the ability to understand and use language, but it goes beyond language into spatial, mathematical, artistic, interpersonal and emotional understandings which cannot be expressed easily, if at all, with words.

Cognitive development in young children is heavily dependent upon their ability to mimic. They watch and listen. Then they practice what they've seen or heard. "Practicing" means trying, failing - trying, failing; then trying again until new skills become automatic. For babies these social and "academic" skills include learning to wave bye-bye, blow kisses, lifting their arms to get someone to pick them up, stacking blocks, imitating sounds and words, and making marks on a page.

A baby's first birthday ushers in the age of independent exploration, and by the time most children are between 2 and 3 years old, they are learning to play with other children and may be in the process of being potty trained. They can name familiar objects in photos and have acquired a vocabulary of 300 words or so which they combine to form 2 or 3-word "sentences." They may turn pages of a book and scribble on paper, build towers of 3 or 4 blocks and begin to "match" things.

Between 3 and 4 years of age, most children will be able to use their fingers to show how old they are, tell how simple objects are used, and begin to use a preferred hand. This "hand dominance" is an important marker because it signals that the brain has begun to organize itself in a way which will support future reading and writing acquisition.

At about 4 years, children typically are able to identify and name some numbers and colors, speak in complete sentences, draw a recognizable person, and complete simple puzzles. Some may be printing their names, a few numbers or simple words. Socially, most 4-year-olds are quite good at pretend play, helping with basic household chores, and gaining attention by "performing" for peers and adults!

Turning 5, of course, generally means "We're off to school!" and, in Western cultures anyway, cognitive development "goes formal." Many kids will do well and even thrive in the more structured cognitive environment provided by mainstream public schools. Others will need help to adjust, and some will benefit most from alternative educational settings. But that's another topic. Back to the subject at hand: typically, 5-year-olds can relate experiences they've had (and make up some quite creative tales as well!) They can name some coins, count to 30 or so, print their names, recognize and name at least some letters of the alphabet, and may begin to learn sounds associated with the letters. It is important that they know personal information before they start kindergarten: parents' names, phone number(s) and work places, home address. They should also know their own first and last names, gender and birthdate. If children don't know phone number, address and parents' names, they should wear I.D. bracelets with that information just in case of an emergency.

Between 6 and 7 most kids learn to use the telephone and ride a 2-wheeler, write numbers to 50 or beyond, read simple stories and re-tell them. They understand time concepts like "next year" and can classify items into categories such as "furniture" or "fruits" versus "vegetables."

By the time children are 8 or 9 they usually have a basic understanding of and are able to use money. They may begin to read for pleasure and may write short stories, letters or e-mail messages. They're able to do single-digit multiplication and division and may be using fractions.

Between the ages of 9 and 14 most kids learn to evaluate information as having come from a particular point of view. They read in order to learn, and their reading and speaking vocabularies grow to about 40,000 words. Of course, hormones pop in to play havoc with reason at some point during this time period, and your once sweet and lavish-learner may become a sullen, anti-intellectual. But this too shall pass. . . Really!

ARRRRGGGHHHHHH . . . Adolescence . . . The world turns upside down! Most teenagers need a world of compassion and so do their parents! Cognitively, adolescents' frontal lobes aren't fully functional. That means they literally can't foresee consequences of their actions, and melatonin, the sleep hormone, gets wacky along with the rest of 'em, and turns their sleep cycles inside out. Teenagers truly are programmed to stay up until the wee, wee hours and sleep till noon! (Maybe our high schools should capitalize on this and schedule classes from noon to 6.)

We continue to be cognitively-developing creatures into adulthood. Neuroscientists have discovered that at least some portions of our brains remain "plastic" throughout our lives, so we can grow and learn, change and re-change until we shuffle off to the Great Beyond. In the words of William Shakespeare (Sing along, all you Boomers!):

"What a piece of work is Man! How noble in Reason.
How infinite in Faculties . . .
and admirable."

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