Cognitive Development Domain
The Cognitive Development domain focuses on children’s ability to acquire, organize, and use information in increasingly complex ways. In their search for understanding and meaning, young children play an active role in their own cognitive development. Children will apply prior knowledge to new experiences and use this information to refine their understanding of concepts and form new ones. Early experiences that will help children develop confidence in their ability to solve problems and a positive attitude towards mathematics, science, social studies and the arts.
Cognitive Development Domain Book Recommendations
Relationships
For young children, cognitive development is supported and encouraged through their relationships with others. This happens through daily activities, routines, and interactions with adults and other children. They typically learn a great deal about themselves and form ideas about family roles and community helpers based on their daily experiences in their own home and community.
Schooling
Thinking becomes increasingly complex as children grow older. During the preschool years, children become more effective thinkers and begin to start following the scientific method. For example, they:
- Question
- Predict
- Experiment
- Record
- Reflect
- Conclude
Children’s creativity blossoms when they are given opportunities to work with creative open-ended materials. Through the process of exploring their world and a variety of materials, children develop an appreciation for different forms of art, the natural world, people and cultures.
Cognitive Development Learning (CD) Domain
Component: Construction of Knowledge: Thinking and Reasoning
Goal CD-1: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions children use their senses to discover and construct knowledge about the world around them.
Goal CD-2: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions children recall information and apply it to new situations and problems.
Goal CD-3: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions children demonstrate the ability to think about their own thinking: reasoning, taking perspectives, and making decisions.
Component: Mathematical Thinking and Expression
Goal CD-4: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions, children count with understanding and use numbers to tell how many, describe order, and compare.
Goal CD-5: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions, children demonstrate concepts about position, as well as identify and describe simple geometric shapes.
Goal CD-6: Through their explorations, play and social interactions, children compare, sort, group, organize, measure, and create simple patterns using concrete objects.
Goal CD-7: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions, children use mathematical thinking to ask questions and solve problems.
Component: Scientific Exploration and Knowledge
Goal CD-8: As a result of their explorations and participation in simple investigations through play, children observe, describe, and demonstrate respect for living things, the environment, and the physical world.
Goal CD-9: As a result of their explorations and participation in simple investigations through play, children demonstrate their ability to use scientific inquiry by observing, manipulating objects, asking questions, making predictions, and developing generalizations.
Component: Social Studies, Family and Community Connections
Goal CD-10: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions, children demonstrate an understanding of relationships, roles, and what it means to be a participating member of their families and the diverse groups/communities they belong to.
Goal CD-11: Through their explorations, play, and social interactions children identify and demonstrate appreciation of similarities and differences between themselves and others.
Component: Creative Arts and Expression
Goal CD-12: Children engage in a variety of creative activities for enjoyment and self-expression including play, visual arts, music, expressive movement, and drama.
Goal CD-13: Children demonstrate an appreciation for different forms of art including visual arts, music, expressive movement, and drama.
Construction of Knowledge: Thinking and Reasoning
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Construction of Knowledge: Thinking and Reasoning
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Construction of Knowledge: Thinking and Reasoning
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Mathematical Thinking and Expression
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Mathematical Thinking and Expression
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Mathematical Thinking and Expression
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Mathematical Thinking and Expression
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Scientific Exploration and Knowledge
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Scientific Exploration and Knowledge
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Social Studies, Family, and Community Connections
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Social Studies, Family, and Community Connections
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Creative Arts and Expression
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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Creative Arts and Expression
Developmental Indicator Continuum
Infants (Birth - 12 months) |
Younger Toddlers (8 - 21 months) |
Older Toddlers (18 - 36 months) |
Younger Preschoolers (36 - 48 months) |
Older Preschoolers (45 - 60+ months) |
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