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Children move through a developmental progression in the acquisition of motor skills. There are four phases of motor development: the reflexive movement phase, the rudimentary movement phase, the fundamental movement phase, and the specialized movement phase. The fundamental movement phase occurs between the ages of 2 and 7 as children gain control over their gross motor and fine motor skills.
The formal operational stage is the last of four stages proposed by Jean Piaget to describe the cognitive development of infants, children, and adolescents. The formal operational stage occurs with children from 12 years into adulthood. Emerging abstract thought and hypothetical reasoning mark this stage of cognitive development.
Emotional development refers to the ability to recognize, express, and manage feelings at different stages of life and to have empathy for the feelings of others. Emotional development is largely affected by relationships with parents, siblings, and peers.
Peer pressure occurs when an individual experiences persuasion to participate in the same activities as those in their peer group, or to adopt similar values, beliefs, and goals as the group. For a child, their peer group is usually, but not always, of the same age group.
People
Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi was a social and educational reformer and writer in Europe during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He believed that society could best be changed by education and that reform began with assisting the individual students to help themselves.
Friedrich Froebel was truly a pioneer in early childhood education. He established a new type of school for three and four year old children in 1837, which he called a child's garden or kindergarten. Prior to this there had been no educational training for children under the age of seven.
Play
Speeding down a snowy hill on a Flexible Flyer snow sled has been a winter activity enjoyed by children since the 1880s. The Flexible Flyer continued to be sold for over 100 years with little change from its basic design, and the iconic sled is still highly sought after by young and old alike.
Glamis Adventure Playground is a free supervised playground that provides a wide range of child-centered and child-driven activities. A hand painted sign at the entrance declares the inclusive nature of Glamis Adventure Playground, "There is no war here. We are all fantastic."
George E. Johnson wrote Education By Plays and Games in 1907 to "help promote a wider and higher appreciation of play and of its value in education, and add somewhat to the sum of child happiness in the world."
A child psychologist, educator, speaker, and author, Dr. David Elkind has built on and furthered the works of biologist and child psychologist, Jean Piaget. Dr. David Elkind has focused on the cognitive, perceptual, and social development of children and adolescents with an emphasis on what constitutes healthy development.
The nonprofit organization, Empower Playgrounds, Inc. (EPI), is providing electricity-generating playground equipment to villages in Ghana that are too remote to be on their nation's electricity grid. The playgrounds of Empower Playgrounds recharge batteries for LED lanterns to light children's homes so they can do their homework.
