John W. Santrock Early Child Development

In his 2014 text, John W. Santrock defines the “Early Childhood” stage of development, as the period of development in a child from 2 to 6 years, marked by its extreme increase in self-sufficiency and the child’s ability to care for themselves, which is due to the refining of the child’s motor skills throughout this stage. During this time, children begin to develop school readiness skills, taught by their parents or in their respective preschools. These skills include, but are not limited to, being able to follow structured daily routines, the ability to identify shapes, colors and letters, the ability to get along and cooperate with other children, etc. One major characteristic of the early childhood developmental stage is ones psychological development. …show more content…
Santrock (2014) explains that according to Jean Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory, children are actively constructing their understanding of the world as they mature. Piaget argued that biology and experience are the catalysts for cognitive development, and that just as a child’s physical body changes and adapts to the world around them, so does their brain, which as a child grows and develops, builds mental structures that helps one to acclimate themselves to today’s society (Santrock, 2014). Piaget believed that cognitive development generally occurred in four developmental stages.
The developmental stage of interest, from 2-6 years, falls into Piaget’s “Preoperational Stage”. The preoperational stage is characterized by a child’s ability to represent the world with words, images and drawings. This phase is when children begin to engage in pretend or make-believe play (Santrock, 2014). This make-believe play is a key feature in studying schematic development in