Cognitive skill development in
children involves the progressive building of learning skills, such as
attending, memory and thinking. These crucial skills enable children to process
the sensory information they experience and eventually learn to evaluate, analyze,
remember, make comparisons and understand cause and effect. Although some
cognitive skill development is related to the child's genetic makeup, most
cognitive skills are learned. That means thinking and learning skills can be
improved with practice and the right training.
When a child learns to pay
attention, it enables him to concentrate on one task or conversation for an
extended period of time. Learning to focus attention is an important cognitive
skill that the child will use in virtually all future learning. Children
younger than five years of age tend to have short attention spans that
typically last 15 minutes or less. By the time a child reaches eight years of
age, he typically has an increased ability to focus on one thing for longer
periods and complete tasks and is more adept at ignoring distractions.
Parents and teachers can help
children develop their ability to focus by pointing out things that seem
important or interesting and then asking the child to comment on their
observations. For example, a trip to the zoo might result in some specific
questions such as: “What animal was your favorite?” and “What did you like best
about this animal?” Questions like these help the child to pay closer attention
to what he is exposed to and also challenges his ability to choose specific
words to describe his thoughts.
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