First, the perceptual motor stage (0-2 years old)

At this stage, children know the world mainly through feelings and actions. They understand the surrounding environment by grasping, touching, watching and listening, and gradually understand the existence and relationship of objects. The thinking characteristic of this stage is "action logic", that is, thinking is completed through body movements and concrete objects.

Second, the early stage of operation (2-7 years old)

In the pre-operation stage, children begin to think about basic symbols, such as language and images. They can simply classify, compare and sort, but their thinking is often illogical and easily disturbed by superficial phenomena. The characteristic of thinking at this stage is "concrete operation", that is, thinking mainly depends on specific objects and situations.

Third, the specific operation stage (7- 1 1 year)

In the specific operation stage, children's thinking gradually becomes logical, and they can understand and solve some complex problems, such as mathematical problems and logical reasoning. They can understand the causality and laws of things, but they still need concrete objects and situations to support their thinking.

Fourth, the formal operation stage (1 1 years later)

In the formal operation stage, children's thinking begins to transcend specific objects and situations, and they can think abstractly and make hypothetical reasoning. They can understand and solve some abstract problems, such as logical reasoning and hypothesis testing. The characteristic of thinking at this stage is "abstract logic", that is, thinking mainly depends on concepts and symbols.

Using children's thinking to develop

1, educational practice

Understanding the development of children's thinking is helpful for educators to design teaching methods and courses that are more in line with children's cognitive characteristics. For example, by understanding the thinking characteristics of children at different ages, teachers can adjust teaching contents and methods to promote students' learning and understanding more effectively.

In addition, educators can also use the knowledge of children's thinking development to provide students with appropriate challenges and incentives to promote their thinking development and learning progress.

2. Psychological evaluation

Children's thinking development can be used as an important index to evaluate children's cognitive and emotional development. By observing children's thinking patterns and strategies, we can understand their cognitive, emotional and social abilities and development level.

This is very important for clinical psychologists, educational psychologists and other professionals, because they need to evaluate children's development and provide appropriate support and intervention.

3. Cognitive science research

The development of children's thinking is also one of the important areas of cognitive science research. Through the study of children's thinking, scientists can deeply understand the basic mechanism and process of human cognitive development.

This helps to understand how the human brain learns and processes information, and the cognitive differences between people of different ages. These findings can provide important theoretical and practical guidance for the research in neuroscience, psychology and other related fields.