Children pass certain milestones as they grow older. They improve at using words, imitating adult actions, and counting objects.
They can also categorize items based on size, shape, and color. This is called cognitive schemas. They can also hold numbers in their heads and solve simple math problems.
They Help Your Child to Think Critically
No matter what your children do professionally, they must think critically to solve problems and make decisions. Help them develop their critical thinking skills by encouraging them to ask relevant questions about their learning and seek out information from multiple sources. It’s also important to encourage empathy in their thought processes so that they understand that there are often different viewpoints on complex topics and that it’s OK to have varying opinions.
When kids are taught to think for themselves and learn advanced concepts, it helps them develop their reasoning and analytical skills, which will help them be more creative later on. Researchers have found that students explicitly taught to think critically do better on problem-solving and decision-making tasks than those not instructed in these areas.
They Help Your Child to Make Decisions
At ages 13 and beyond, children can develop formal logic skills that help them move past the situational lines of reasoning they learned as younger students. Parents can help by encouraging their children to question the information and assertions tossed around at school, in the media, or among friends.
Encourage your kids to ask “why” questions about everything, and then teach them how to find answers through books, the internet, experts, or their peers. Teach them how to evaluate a wild claim or assertion so that they can decide whether it’s something worth believing.
It’s important to remember that a recent study claiming academic rigor harms social-emotional development was based on a flawed design and limited scope. It was a correlation between self-reported teacher perceptions of advanced content and student behavior, not a true cause-and-effect relationship. The oversimplified presentation of this study can be misconstrued to bolster practices, products, and educational environments that are ultimately detrimental to childhood development.
They Help Your Child to See the Big Picture
Sometimes, when children face change or a new challenge, they must be reminded that it’s OK to take a step back and see the big picture. They need to remember that they have dealt with these things before and that their resilience, coping mechanisms, and energy will help them get through whatever is causing them stress or discomfort.
This is something that many kids have a hard time with, and it is why parents need to support their children in learning to look at the bigger picture. It is a skill that will serve them well throughout their lives and can be practiced by ensuring they always have the opportunity to work on projects that allow them to fully grasp a concept before moving on to the next one.
They Help Your Child to Solve Problems
Problem-solving is an essential skill that children need to learn to be successful in the world. From resolving disputes with friends to fixing things around the house, problem-solving skills can be applied to any situation requiring critical thinking.
Children need to develop their problem-solving skills from a young age so that they have the confidence to tackle any challenge that comes their way. It’s also important to teach them how to approach problems healthily by supporting them to control strong emotions before tackling a problem.
Once your child has regulated their emotions, they can start to analyze the problem and identify what is making it difficult. This can help them to come up with more effective solutions. After brainstorming possible solutions, asking your child what they think will happen if their solution is implemented is important. This helps them gauge their solutions’ effectiveness and avoid impulsive decisions that may create new problems.
