Preschool (3-6) Flashcards
Between ages 4-6, physical changes are ___________ than the 1st years of life.
Less dramatic (growth rate is slower than that of an infant)
- biggest physical gains are in large muscle skills
Gross Motor Changes From 3-6 Yrs
3-4 Yrs
- walks upstairs one foot per step
- skips on two feet
- walks on tiptoe
- pedals and steers
- walks in any direction pulling a large toy
- jumps
4-5 Yrs
- walks up and down stairs one foot per step
- stands
- runs
- walks on tiptoe
5-6 Yrs
- Skips on alternate feet
- walks on a line
- slides
- swings
Fine Motor Skills From 3-6 Yrs
3-4 Yrs
- catches large ball between arms
- cuts paper with scissors
- holds pencil between thumb and fingers
4-5 Yrs
- strikes ball with bat
- kicks and catches ball
- threads beads on a string
- grasps pencil properly
5-6 Yrs
- plays ball games well
- threads needle and sews large
stitches
3 Years Old
- from scribbling to
drawing - realizing that
art can stand for something
tangible - record of the thinking process (i.e. draws a person as a head and legs)
4- 5 Years Old
- telling stories and
working out problems using
art - detail is added
- new concepts are integrated
6 Years Old
- set of symbols are
developed (i.e. sun is a
circle with lines that is
yellow) - schemes to represent objects- that are modified with the addition of new information
- realization there is a
definite order in space (everything sits on a line)
What is Lateralization?
- brain functions are divided
between two hemispheres
L- language, logic, math
and analysis
R- intuition, creativity,
art/music, spatial
What is Myelnization?
- brain structure that
regulates attention and
concentration
What is Handedness?
- preference for one hand
over another appears
between 2 and 6 years of
age
What are the 5 things that help our development?
- Connecting
- Talking
- Playing
- Healthy home
- Community
The first ________ years are the most important years of development.
5 Years
- starting within the womb
○ Sensitive period bc brains are still developing
What is Serve and Return
- connect, talk, and play with kids
What do Games do for Kids?
Copycat games - build empathy
Naming gams - build vocab and attention
Peek-a boo- builds memory and trust
ECE can not prevent ACE’s but they can mitigate the impact of ACE’s by…?
1 Reducing the impact of stress
2. Provides proactive coping skills
3. Positive role modeling
Socio Dramatic play VS. Rule-governed play?
Socio dramatic play
- in preschool, children begin to play parts or take roles
- playing house
- the age that children create imaginary friends
Rule-Governed Play
- by 5-6 years, children prefer rule governed pretending and formal games
ex. whoever is the smallest has to be the baby, red rover, red light, green light
What is the pre-operational stage?
- children become
more proficient in the use of symbols in thinking and communicating but still have
difficulty thinking logically
What is Conservation?
- the understanding that matter can change in appearance without changing in quantity
- not developed before age 5
ex. the same amount of water looks different in 2 different glasses
Appearance and Reality for Preschoolers
- 4-5 year olds understand that the same object can represent different things
What is the False belief principle?
False belief principle- an understanding that enables a child to look at a situation from
another person’s point of view and determine what kind of information will cause that person to have a false belief
- Foundation of the ability to take perspective
- Before this, they can not understand that other people can have different thoughts
- realization the world is outside ‘I’
ex. In this reality, if a child hit another child and was asked what happened, the child will say that the other child was trying to hurt them
What are the Theories of Mind (ToM)?
Age 4
- basic principle that each person’s actions are based on their representation of reality
Age 4-5
- cannot understand that other people can think about them
- do not understand that most knowledge can be derived
from inference (this happens by 6 years)
Age 5-7
- understand the reciprocal nature of thought
- Reciprocal nature of thought; realization that both parties have their own thoughts about something
Enhancing ToM
- pretend play, shared pretence with other children, discussion of emotion-provoking events with parents
Metamemory VS. Metacognition
Metamemory
- knowledge about how memory works
- the ability to control and reflect on one’s own
memory function
- Starting to realize how their own brains work
○ Ex. “I am forgetful”, “I can remember anything”
Metacognition
- knowledge about how the mind thinks and the ability to control and reflect on one’s own thought process
- Realize how to think through things; creates the basis of logic
How do preschoolers learn language?
- they look for reinforcement
- child forms a hypothesis about a new word’s meaning, then uses the word often, getting feedback to help them judge the accuracy of their hypothesis
- at 5-6 years, they know about 15,000 words
What is Invented Spelling?
- strategy young children with good phonological
awareness skills use when they write - They write all of the sounds they hear in the order they hear them
Phonological Awareness: ability to recognize and manipulate parts of words/sentences
- the greater the phonological awareness the faster they will
learn to read
Why is Jolly Phonics effective at teaching language at this age?
Jolly Phonics
- a structured program that teaches children to read and write using synthetic phonics, focusing on letter sounds, formation, blending, segmenting, and tricky words.
Effective bc
- Seeing the shape of the letter
- Hearing the sound of the letter
- Sentences are structured to show how aa letter makes different sounds in diff words
- Most types of learning are being used
- it targets 3 types of learners = visual, auditory, and kinesthetics
How do preschoolers use grammar?
Inflections
- additions that change meaning
i.e. adding ‘ing’ = go to going
Overregulatization
- using rules when they don’t
apply
i.e. goed
Complex Sentences
- using conjunctions to combine
two ideas or using embedded
clauses
How is intelligence developed?
family interactions foster higher scores on intelligence testing:
- more interesting, complex environment
- parental reaction and feedback
- parents use rich and accurate language in the ‘zone of proximal development’
- opportunity to explore and make mistakes
- ask questions rather than give commands
What is Problematic about Intelligence Testing?
- The construct of intelligence is not defined clearly
- Does not account for the fact that intelligence can change
○ The education system limits children to being one type of intelligence and does not really enable them to change (they will get put in - Intelligence in school depends on: reading, writing, and arithmetic
- Children get labelled on a subset of skills
- There are multiple intelligences
- We need to be considerate of what we are actually measuring
We keep using this system because:
- it is the easiest
- We have the most data on it
- It has been used for generations
Numeracy
- development of numeracy helps to facilitate the learning of more advanced math
concepts - Children need to learn that counting a number is for a discrete thing
- They need to have the 1:1 ability
○ If they don’t have this, they cant know numeracy
Erikson: Initiative VS. Guilt
- created by the ability to plan (a new cognitive skill)
- At the age of 3, children challenge their authorities
- Even though they are told no, they will do it anyway - ability to plan motivates them
to want to take initiative - balance between child’s emerging skills and desire for
autonomy and the parents’ need to protect and
control the child’s behaviour
person perception - Person-perception: children begin to classify others according to categories such as age, gender, and race
Social Cognitive Development
Understanding rule categories- - young children use classification skills to
distinguish between social conventions and moral rules
Understanding others’ intentions
- start to understand intentions in others
- understand
that intentional wrong-doing is deserving of greater punishment than unintentional rule transgressions
What is the most important contributing factor to early childhood development?
Family Relationships
What is the role of attachment?
- predicts behaviour during preschool years in terms of:
1) dysregulated behaviour
2) positive relationships with preschool teachers - Insecurely attached
preschoolers are more likely
(than securely attached
counterparts) to develop
negative, critical attitudes
toward themselves
What are the 4 Aspects of Family Functioning?
1) Warmth/nurturance
2) Clarity and consistency of rules
3) Level of expectations
4) Communication between parent and child
4 Types of Parenting Styles
1) Authoritarian (25%)
- LOW in nurturance and communication
- HIGH in control and maturity demands
2) Permissive (25%)
- HIGH in nurturance
- LOW in maturity demands, control and communication
3) Authoritative (33%)
- HIGH in nurturance, maturity demands, control and
communication
4) Uninvolved (15%)
- LOW in nurturance, maturity demands, control and
communication
- produces the most consistently negative outcomes
Why does the % of each parenting style not add up to 100%?
- not all parents classify under 1 specific parenting style
- they may be a combination of 2 or more
What do these stats say about Canadian parents?
- Canadian parents are relatively lenient and emotionally warm with their children.
- When compared to European
parents, Canadian parents exert less behavioural control, were more likely to use permissive disciplinary strategies and were more tolerant of friend-related activities while continuing to have strong emotional
bonds with their children - Speaks to the fat that culture shapes the way of parenting
What is Discipline?
training, whether physical,
mental or moral, that
develops self-control, moral
characters and proper
conduct
SES VS. Parenting Style
- Parenting style is a better predictor of poor childhood outcomes than SES
- Good parenting practices are common in all socioeconomic categories as in ineffective parenting practices
- Children raised in lower SES families are more likely yo experience a greater # of risk factors and this couples with ineffective parenting practices results in proportionally higher levels of vulnerability
What are the 2 main problems with identifying effective discipline strategies?
- Effect
- difficult to establish the effects of discipline - Intensity
- research has not concluded how intense and frequent effective discipline needs to be
Short VS Long-term Learning
Short Term
- Learn best if there is physical and visual stimuli
- Relate to experiences; so build on what they already know
Physical and visual
stimuli - Relate to familiar
experiences - Active participation
- Praise and approval
- Stories
Long Term
- Anyone who is bigger than them is a role model to them
- Reinforce skills; give them room to practice
3 R’s
- Role Model
- Repetition
- Reinforce new skills
Why did children spend more time on screens?
○ Education was online
What are the negative effects of screen time and preschoolers?
Cognitive abilities
- with each 1 hr increase in
TV exposure corresponds
to a decrease in participation in class and a decrease in math proficiency in 4th grade
- increased screen time
(weather direct or
background viewing) results
in proportional increases in
behavioral problems and
have poorer vocabulary
acquisition - higher screen time at age 4 is
associated with lower levels of emotional understanding at
age 6
What are Scree Time Recommendations?
For children <2 years old
- screen time is not recommended
For children 2-5 years old
- limit screen time to less than one hour a day
For children >5
- limit screen time to less than two hours a day
COVID VS. Screen time for Preschoolers
Good (ish)
- evidence suggests that interactive media, specifically applications that involve contingent responses
from an adult (i.e., timely reactions to what a child says or does), can help children learn
The Bad
- Children’s screen use may directly interfere with their
reading activities
- sociodemographic factors do not seem to modify either association significantly
- Children who used apps for more than 30 minutes/day had
significantly lower inhibition scores compared to those with
less use - Excessive screen time (>2 -3 h/day on any device) is moderately associated with lower self-regulation in preschoolers
Parents model healthy screen habits by:
- Minimize their own screen use around young children,
especially during mealtimes, play, and other prime
opportunities for social learning. - Prioritize interactions with children through
conversation, play, and healthy, active routines. - Decide when to use media together and turn off
screens when not in use. - Ensure that media used in the presence of children is free of stereotyping, advertising, or other problematic content.
