The critical period for children’s growth
Selected reading materials:
Don’t miss the critical period for children’s growth
1935, Austria The famous ecologist and Nobel laureate Lorenz discovered a funny phenomenon. Animals such as ducklings and goslings always like to chase the first activity they see two days before they hatch. object. For example: the first time you see a mother goose, you chase the mother goose; the first time you see a person, you chase the person, thinking that the person is your mother. And this habit will last for a long time. If it is separated from the mother goose or people within one or two days, no matter how the mother goose or people come into contact with the goslings, it will not chase the mother goose or people. This is determined by the structure of the brain. Lorenz called this phenomenon the "imprinting phenomenon" and called this period of the gosling the critical period. Another example is that if a lamb is not with its mother for a few days after it is born, it will no longer be gregarious and will always run around. If a baby bird does not live in a flock during the first few weeks of its life, it will never be able to sing beautifully.
There is an Indian boy who was picked up by a wolf to feed when he was only a few months old. He was rescued from the wolf den when he was 8 years old. Because she has lived with wolves for many years, she has missed key periods such as learning language, walking, and being outdoors. She cannot walk or hold things with her hands, and can only crawl. Her habits are to lurk during the day, be active at night, howl at midnight, and only eat raw meat with her mouth. People tried hard to educate her to lose her wolf nature and restore her humanity, but with little success. It took her 2 years to learn to stand and 6 years to walk. He learned a dozen words before he died at the age of 17, and his intelligence was only equivalent to that of a 4-year-old child.
my country’s “pig boy” Wang Xianfeng was abandoned by his stepfather when he was a child and grew up eating pig milk in a pig pen. She learned to grab food from the pig trough, gnaw grass roots and tree bark, pick up soil, and scratch herself. She was not discovered until she was 8 years old. After being rescued, it was discovered that she could not speak, dress or eat, and had the same habits as a pig. Professionals used various methods to educate and train her for 3 years, but she was still only 68 of low IQ.
Both "wolf children" and "pig children" were discovered and rescued at the age of 8, and then professionally treated and corrected by professional educationists and psychologists. However, no matter how good the education conditions are, they cannot restore their "humanity". They are left with a lifelong disability of "mentally retarded" because they missed the "critical period" of learning.
Through research by brain scientists, it has been found that all animals in nature, including humans, have a development plan and timetable during the brain development process: which functions develop first and which functions develop later at which stage. . If parents grasp this brain development timetable and provide timely education to their children during the peak period of their brain development, the effect will be much better. On the contrary, if the critical period of brain development is missed, the effect of educating children will be much worse.
On the contrary, there is another example: During World War II, a Japanese soldier named Yokoi Shoichi got lost in the jungle of Southeast Asia. He had to live alone like a savage for 28 years, losing the ability to speak. But after he was rescued, it only took him 82 days to fully recover his original potential. The reason is that he did not miss the "critical period" of education before he became an adult.
As a competent parent, when raising your children, you should understand the critical periods and not miss any critical period of your child's growth. If you grasp the "critical period", you will get twice the result with half the effort in teaching children. If you miss the "critical period" in teaching children, you will get twice the result with half the effort.
So what are the critical periods for children?
1. Sensory critical period (0-6 years old): From birth, children will use the senses of hearing, vision, taste, touch, and smell to become familiar with the environment and understand things. Therefore, children should be fully allowed to listen, touch, observe, taste and smell, stimulate their senses, and guide them to grow in wisdom. (Inspirational phrases)
2. The critical period for the development of image vision (before 4 years old): During this period, children's image vision develops most rapidly. Children at this time generally like to "go to the park" and "go out to play" because there are abundant outdoor natural scenery and vivid pictures. At this time, in addition to taking the children for more outdoor activities and getting in touch with the colorful world, when they are indoors, they should also read more picture books and cartoons to broaden their horizons.
3. The critical period for the development of musical talent (3-5 years old): If you want to cultivate children's musical intelligence, you must not miss the critical period for musical intelligence between 3 and 5 years old, so that children can listen more Famous songs from both ancient and modern times, both at home and abroad, and often participate in music activities.
4. Language critical period (3~6 years old): This is the critical period for children to learn oral language. At this time, parents should often talk to their children, tell stories, ask questions, and encourage children to speak more. Promote children's understanding and expression ability.
5. The critical period for learning foreign languages ??(3-12 years old): It is the critical period for learning foreign languages. If you miss this period and start learning foreign languages ??again, you will have to put in many times the effort; even so , and it is not necessary to be able to learn well.
6. The critical period of order (2-6 years old): 2 to 6 years old is the critical period for teaching children to know and follow rules. During this period, parents should gradually guide their children away from being self-centered and make more friends with other children.
At this time, parents should establish clear life norms and daily etiquette with their children, and train them to develop the ability to self-discipline so that they can adapt to social norms in the future.
7. Critical period of imagination (2-8 years old): During this period, parents should let their children listen to their favorite fairy tales and science fiction stories, read more pictures, cartoons and science fiction films, and learn to read. Read more later. After accumulating necessary knowledge, you can let the children look at the pictures and make up stories, continue the stories, or take turns telling stories with parents to improve the children's imagination and creativity.
8. Culturally sensitive period (grades 1-4 of primary school): Montessori pointed out that children’s interest in cultural learning sprouts at the age of 3; At the grade level, there is a strong need to explore things. Therefore, the child's heart during this period is like a fertile land, ready to understand a lot of cultural sowing. Many children during this period are very curious, love to use their brains, have many problems, and feel "not enough" for school courses. Parents can provide children with rich cultural information based on their interests, including resources on nature, science, literature, and art, to satisfy their hungry cultural needs. If their desire for knowledge cannot be satisfied at this time, it is likely that the child's desire in this area will turn to other aspects, such as being troublesome, hyperactive, etc. Many smart children have problems such as distraction and small movements in class, which are also caused during this period.
9. Golden reading period (8-14 years old): Around the age of 5, children begin to develop from looking at pictures to literacy, which is a sensitive period for children's reading enlightenment; between the ages of 5 and 7, they should enter the super reading period. The stage of multi-literacy; between the ages of 8 and 10, children should enter the stage of free and fluent reading. After experiencing literacy in early childhood, the transition from pictures to text, and initially establishing a foundation for reading interest, in the middle grades of primary school (grades 3 to 4), children should enter the first and most important golden reading in their lives. Expect.
This is the best reading period for each person in his or her life due to physical, psychological, and educational development. If you miss a lot of reading during this period, your child will suffer. Growth creates irreparable shortcomings. For most Chinese children, this period is mainly between the ages of 8 and 14. It varies depending on each person's educational environment, personality preferences and other conditions.
According to a person’s growth pattern and China’s education entrance examination system, a person’s life’s outlook on life, values, knowledge foundation, and reading interest are greatly increased by reading between the ages of 10 and 14 (i.e., the fourth grade of primary school). to the second year of junior high school) in less than five years. Due to differences in educational conditions and individual conditions, some people are longer and some are shorter at this time. It is precisely because fourth-grade children already have a certain amount of literacy and can read written books; and in the second semester of the second grade of junior high school, all schools have generally increased the study time and number of exercises for teachers and students for the high school entrance examination. If they do not have time to read, in college During this period, I was faced with heavy pressure from schoolwork, English exams, teaching and research, employment, internships, and part-time work, and I did not have time to concentrate on reading. (Miss the past sentence)
Therefore, in more than four years between the ages of 10 and 14, if students have mastered efficient reading methods and read a lot of literary classics, celebrity biographies, popular science books and other books , which laid a solid foundation for his future outlook on life, professional selection, life goals, and learning ability.
If you miss this golden reading period, your future studies in middle school, university, and graduate school will expose "innate deficiencies" that are difficult to make up for. "Sudden make-up lessons will be difficult to achieve.
However, what is sad is that in the past few years, most children have been busy in various cram schools and various specialty classes. The students’ huge reading time has been lost to one person. A number of cram schools and specialty classes were "resisted".
What does learning for the sake of learning and scoring for the sake of scores bring to the children?
The lack of reading has brought about an obvious lack of stamina. As a result, children find it more difficult to learn, and as they reach senior grades, the negative impact becomes greater. The final manifestation is that the language proficiency of many college and middle school students has declined year by year, especially their reading ability and writing ability, leaving many students helpless in the high school entrance examination and college entrance examination. This not only directly affects their Chinese performance, but also affects their English reading. Achievements in understanding, translating and writing. Although the results are reflected in the high school entrance examination and college entrance examination, the root cause lies in reading deficiencies in primary school.
Therefore, it is a top priority for many parents who are still superstitious about cultural tutoring to get students out of the exhausted tutoring cage and give children a broad world of reading.
Reading material selection 2:
20 critical periods of baby growth and development
Mothers usually pay close attention to their children's "sitting, standing, walking and talking" These are milestones in the growth process. In fact, there are many clues to growing up, such as when will he be able to sleep in the crib by himself? When should he stop using the pacifier? When should he have a friend? If we find the answers to these questions, we will be able to The best time to help your baby's growth.
From 0 to 5 years old, during this long period of time, the child’s various potentials are constantly improving. Do you want to be there to help him? Then you must pay close attention - (Sanitary napkin advertisement )
Key One: 2 to 3 months is the best age to quit using pacifiers
Of course, it is not necessary for children of this age to stop using pacifiers. , pacifiers are not harmful. However, if a child is still using a pacifier when he is 3 to 4 years old, it may affect his language development. Some parents can't stand their growing children always sucking on pacifiers. If you think so, it's best to help your children stop sucking pacifiers at an early age (2 to 3 months old).
Key 2: Let him sleep in the crib at 3 months old.
Choose to sleep in the same bed as your baby, although it can facilitate care, it is not a safe behavior. Therefore, we would recommend that everyone let him sleep in a crib from the time he is born, no more than 3 months at the latest. If you want to wait for a while, the difficulties will become greater and greater. Because he is used to sleeping in your bed and having you by his side. Three months is when the child begins to feel space. At this time, he is familiar with his own bed, which will give him a strong sense of security.
Key 3: At 4 months, he can have a friend.
When your child can sit up on his own and look at other children, you should think about finding a friend for him. The attraction between babies is funnier than you think. At 3 to 4 months old, they begin to pay attention to each other. Between 9 and 12 months old, they begin to enjoy toys and imitate each other. All you need to do is encourage friendships between children and try to avoid fights between them. Bringing more toys is a good solution.
Key four: 5 months ago, being separated from his parents would not make him feel anxious
If you plan to take a long-distance trip without children and enjoy the world of two people, it is best to Fortunately, the child was 5 months old, because at this time he did not understand what missing was, so separation would not bring him pain. As he grows older and develops emotionally, separation will become increasingly difficult and even cause him great pain. Therefore, many experts recommend that mothers set the time to return to work before the child is 5 months old, or after the child is 3 years old (after he can participate in public life in kindergarten). At the same time, you also need to make a lot of preparations, such as asking other caregivers (nannies or grandparents) to participate more in the care of the child and cultivate the relationship between them and the child.
Key Five: At 6 months, start teaching him to recognize colors, shapes and different pronunciations
Although it will take some time to truly understand the potential, the child’s Recognizing potential requires a little accumulation. Try to use some funny and vivid methods to develop children's understanding potential, such as showing children more picture books, cards of various colors, or using real objects as examples (for example, bananas are yellow, balls are round, etc.). Instead of forcing him to learn to read pictures and words.
Key 6: Take him for a dental checkup when he is 6 months old
According to the requirements of the dentist, the first dental checkup for a child should not be postponed until after the age of 1 at the latest. Check every six months. Although the treatment of dental caries must wait until the child is 3 years old (and has the potential to cooperate with the doctor's treatment), early examination can help the doctor detect abnormalities in the child's tooth development and the appearance of dental plaque as early as possible, and prevent dental caries as early as possible. If your child has dental caries before the age of 3, you can discuss treatment with your doctor.
Key 7: At 8 months, when the child can sit firmly, buy him a foot pulley toy
This toy car can help the child exercise his leg muscles and balance ability. Some children like to use their feet to experience the fun of walking forward and backward in a car, while others like to sit on the car and let you push them, while they enjoy the satisfaction of controlling their balance.
Key 8: From 15 to 18 months, there is no need to hold him when taking pictures or taking photos of him
Once a child can walk well, he has the potential to control his body , put on different poses for you to take photos or videos, and don’t like you gesticulating around. Simply let him play freely and experience how to control his body. All you need to do is find a safe shooting spot for him (preferably a place with flat roads and no sharp protrusions) and capture every wonderful moment of him.
Key 9: At 18 months, be able to ask him to help you do some housework.
Children learn all aspects of skills from life, such as doing housework. At first, you can let him do simple things, such as placing toys, putting dirty clothes in the laundry basket, placing dishes, etc. By the age of 3, your physical abilities have improved, and you can ask him to help you with highly technical housework, such as watering flowers, cleaning tables, folding quilts, carrying buckets, etc. At first he may need your help, but if you keep at it you will be surprised by his potential. At the same time, don't begrudge your encouragement and tell him more often, "You can do better than your mother."
Key ten: At 18 months old, he can ride a children's tricycle
A tricycle can exercise the child's legs coordination ability. He may not have the ability to ride a tricycle by himself, but he is willing to enjoy it. The joy of sitting on top and holding on to the handlebars.
Key 11: Stop using sippy cups at 18 months old.
Using straws to drink water for a long time may affect the child's dental development. Children of this age should be able to drink water from an ordinary cup. It is not easy to fill the cup with water. It is best to fill the cup half full so that it is not easy for the child to drink. Of course, there are times when you can use a sippy cup just because it's more convenient, such as in the car or at the playground. It is also necessary to train the child's ability to find water by himself, put the water glass on the table, and tell the child that he can get it by himself when he wants to drink water. It is best to have a cup with a handle, so that it is easier for the child to pick it up
Key Twelve: After 5 months of pregnancy, teach him to recognize the upcoming little brother (sister)
This At that time, your belly begins to show its shape and the period when miscarriage is easy has passed. You can officially inform your child that "you are about to have a little brother (sister)." Usually children over 2 years old can have feelings about their mother's pregnancy, but their understanding needs the help of some specific things, such as your bulging belly, ultrasound photos of the fetus, etc. You need to let him know the changes that will occur to his protagonist in the next few months, and that he will have to protect his little brother (sister) with his mother during this time. If the child is too young (under 2 years old), these explanations are unnecessary because he simply cannot understand.
Key Thirteen: Around the age of 2, replace the crib with a crib
To be more precise, if the baby stands on the lowest level of the crib, his chest will have exceeded The railing of the bed means that the crib is no longer suitable for him and it is time to replace it with a child's bed. Changing beds is mainly for safety reasons. Most toddlers love to climb the railings of their cribs, which is a major safety hazard. Even if he does not climb up the bed, he should not take it lightly. When he is about 2 years old, it is best to replace the crib with a child's bed.
Key Fourteen: Before the age of 2, it is best not to let your child keep pets
When you are 2 years old, give him a small fish. First, because he is interested in the fish swimming around. He is very interested, and the second reason is that the fish will not cause harm to him. Of course, there will be some incidents from time to time - be careful not to let naughty little hands grab the fish tank. Give him a kitten or puppy when he is 3 to 4 years old. At this time, children already know how to treat pets gently and can also help you take care of pets. But if you want him to take full responsibility for the pet, such as letting him feed the pet, take the pet for a walk, and bathe the pet, you have to wait until he is at least 7 to 8 years old, or even older.
Key Fifteen: Starting from the age of 2 to 3, he can participate in gatherings among children by himself
In addition to considering the age factor, it is also necessary to confirm that the child has the ability to no longer attack for no reason. Others know how to share toys and other important abilities with children. It is best for the party to be held among children with whom the child is familiar. If the child feels uncomfortable or even afraid of playing in other people's homes, then you can recommend that the next party be moved to your home.
Key Sixteen: When he is 3 years old, you can teach him to blow his nose
The biggest characteristic of children of this age is imitation. Every move of an adult is extremely attractive to him. Therefore, you only need to show him how to blow his nose a few times without spending too much time and effort, and he will learn it easily.
Key Seventeen: Teach him to tie his shoelaces when he is 4 to 5 years old
At this age, the child’s understanding ability, finger control ability and flexibility are enough for him to understand and learn to tie his shoelaces. Of course, it may take nearly a year of training to master this technique. Therefore, before that, it is best to choose shoes with hook and loop fasteners for your children. In addition to tying shoelaces, you can also let him use thin ropes for training, wrapping gifts, etc.
Key Eighteen: At the age of 4, you can teach him to ride a two-wheeled bicycle
With his excellent balance ability and sufficient leg strength, he is ready to understand the process of learning to ride a self-driving car. Tested. When you start learning, you can use auxiliary wheels to help your child maintain balance. Once you find that the auxiliary wheels no longer touch the ground while riding, you can remove them.
Key Nineteen: At the age of 4, he can participate in swimming training classes
Doctors do not recommend children under 4 years old to learn swimming, mainly because their coordination potential is not enough. If you continue to balance yourself in the water, you may easily be in danger of drowning. Even if your child has learned how to swim, you still need to pay attention to safety. Don't let your guard down just because your child already knows how to swim.
Key Twenty: At the age of 5, you can give him chewing gum
Before the age of 3, a child can easily swallow gum. Because his throat is relatively narrow, chewing gum may Get stuck in the trachea and cause suffocation. At 3 to 4 years old, most children still don't know how to spit out the gum and prefer to swallow it. He has to be at least 5 years old before he can understand eating
Selected reading materials three:
Education in the critical period of children's growth
In the process of children's growth, It will go through several critical periods. The critical period plays a decisive role in the development of a child's life, so don't miss it. This article will briefly elaborate on what a critical period is, what are the benefits of critical period education, what critical periods children have in their growth, and what parents should pay attention to during critical period education.
1. What is the critical period and what are the benefits of education during the critical period?
The critical period refers to the best period for people to learn, or the period when people are most sensitive to learning in a certain aspect and understand it fastest.
The Austrian zoologist Lorenz once pointed out that the phenomenon of individual imprinting can only occur during a short "critical period" in an individual's life. The object imprinted by the individual at this moment can make the individual have a better understanding of it. Proximity and preference occur, and will not be forgotten, thus constituting a permanent binding attachment to it. For example: chicks recognize their mother 10-16 hours after birth, and puppies recognize their mother 3-7 weeks after birth.
Lorenz’s research attracted the attention of the psychological community to the critical period, and many studies were conducted. The most important one is to explore and propose the critical period for children's development in all aspects. For example, some researchers have found that the critical period when human embryos are most vulnerable to damage is within 6 weeks of pregnancy, when major organs are developing. All birth defects occur during the critical first 3 months of pregnancy. Some researchers have suggested that the critical period for brain development is the 5th to 10th month after birth. During this period, neglect or lack of good environmental education will harm its development.
Psychology also studies the impact of individual critical period development on future development. Many studies have proven that from birth to 3 or 4 years old, if a child is deprived of perceptual experience, lacks social interaction, neglects intellectual education, or lacks the love and care of his parents, it will seriously affect his normal psychological development in the future. The most classic case is the story of the Indian wolf boy.
Kamala, an Indian wolf child, was 8 years old when she was found in a wolf den in 1920. Because she had lived with wolves since she was a child, her temperament and living habits were the same as those of wolves. She could not walk. It can only crawl, lurk during the day and be active at night; it howls every midnight and eats raw meat without knowing how to hold it with its hands. It eats it with its mouth like a wolf. People worked hard to help her and educate her, but the effect was too little. It took her 2 years to learn to stand, 6 years to walk a few steps, and 4 years to learn 6 words. It was not until her death in 1929 (17 Years old), her intelligence level has only reached the level of a 2-3 year old child.
It shows that there is a critical period for children’s learning. After the wolf child was born, she was brought up by wolves. She learned the wolf’s way of life, so she developed the wolf’s living habits. When she was raised After humans discovered her, they tried their best to educate her, but they missed the best opportunity for education, making it difficult to learn and with little effect. If the story of the Indian wolf boy is a negative example, the story of the Japanese soldier Shoichi Yokoi is a positive example that proves that education in the critical period can lay the foundation for lifelong development.
In 1972, Shoichi Yokoi, a Japanese soldier lost during World War II, was found in the jungles of Southeast Asia. He had lived alone in the primeval forests like a savage for 28 years. When he was found, he had even forgotten his native language. , but after being rescued, it only took 82 days of training to regain human habits, and he got married a year later.
The most important thing that the above examples want to illustrate is that critical period education is very important. As parents, we should pay attention to the critical period education of our children, learn the critical period education theory, and master the critical period education methods.
2. What are the critical periods in the growth process of children?
1. Around 6 months is the critical period for babies to learn to chew.
2. 8 Months are the critical period for distinguishing size and quantity
3. The critical period for learning oral language at the age of 2-3 years old
4. Teaching children to be disciplined at the age of 2 and a half to 3 years old
5. 3-5 years old is the critical period for the development of musical talent (playing the violin at 3 years old and starting to play piano at 5 years old)
6. 4-5 years old is the critical period for learning The critical period of written language
7. The age of 3-8 is the critical period of learning foreign languages
8. The age of 3 is the critical period of cultivating independence
9. The period before the age of 4 is the critical period for the development of image and vision
10. The age between 5 and 6 is the critical period for mastering vocabulary
11. The key to cultivating children’s balance potential between the ages of 0 and 8 Critical period
12. The age of 0-7 is the critical period for cultivating children's outdoor potential
13. The age of 9-10 is the critical period for children's actions to change from focusing on consequences to focusing on motivation
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14. The early childhood stage is the critical period for the development of observation skills
15. The first and second grades of primary school are the critical period for the consolidation of learning habits
16. The third and fourth grades of primary school Grades are the critical period for discipline differentiation
17. Grades 3 and 4 of primary school, second grade of junior high school and second grade of high school are the critical period for the development of logical thinking
18. The primary school stage is the critical period for the development of memory
19. The junior high school stage is the critical period for memory of benefits
3. Tips on education methods during the critical period
Education during the critical period can use a variety of methods, and parents can Appropriate methods should be selected based on the child's personality and hobbies, such as games, stories, praise and motivation, etc., and attention should be paid to constantly trying new methods, especially making full use of games to teach children various knowledge and skills. Pay attention to praising and strengthening children's progress in a timely manner, giving children some successful experiences, stimulating children's continuous and strong interest in learning, and stimulating learning motivation.
Parents can also take their children to concerts, art exhibitions, singing and dancing, sports skill competitions, animals and plants, and listening, observing, and experiencing nature. Through their sensory organs, a large amount of information heard, seen, and perceived is injected into the brain first. The brain becomes a large warehouse for storing information.
Preschool children should play and practice more, so that in the process of "playing" and "practicing", children can observe the world and practice, promote the development of children's observation ability, and promote The development of children's imagination promotes the development of children's thinking.
In short, the critical period plays a decisive role in the development of a child’s lifelong intelligence and should not be missed.