Albert Einstein’s delayed language development worried his parents but how two gifts he received from his parents at the age of 5, a compass from his father and a violin from his mother, sparked his curiosity in science and challenged his brain in unique ways, contributing to his remarkable contributions to science later in life.
Children have critical periods of brain development, with the first one occurring around age 2 and concluding around age 7. During this time, children’s brains develop twice as many connections between brain cells, allowing them to learn faster than at any other time of life.
To maximize this critical period:
- we should encourage a love of learning,
- focus on breadth of skill development over depth,
- pay attention to emotional intelligence,
- and not treat young children’s education as merely a precursor to “real” learning.
By doing so, we can establish a foundation for a holistic education that will have lasting effects on their development.
- We should encourage a love of learning. Focus on the process of learning and establishing a growth mindset, emphasizing persistence and creating safe spaces for learning. Avoid labeling children and compliments that focus on innate ability.
- Focus on the breadth of skill development over depth. Emphasize breadth of skill development over depth and expose children to a wide variety of activities during the “sampling period” of ages 2-7. Well-roundedness is important for thriving in a rapidly changing world.
- Pay attention to emotional intelligence. Develop emotional intelligence by helping children label their emotions and consider others’ feelings. Encourage care for others by including children in activities for helping.
- Don’t treat young children’s education as merely a precursor to “real” learning. Children between the ages of 2-7 have a critical period for brain development, during which they can uniquely absorb information. Don’t treat this period as merely a precursor to “real” education, as some skills cannot be learned as well after this period. Develop children’s minds holistically through a wide variety of activities.
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