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Development Topics
Inside the Mind of a Child
Preschool Minds
It’s Wednesday night and Yolanda just picked up her kids after a long day at work. Too tired to cook, she picks up a pizza on the way home. Three-year-old Jacob, 6-year-old Joshua and 12-year-old Jonathan sit down to eat, and within minutes they are arguing. Jacob wants more pizza but the older boys have left him only one piece.
“I want two!” he yells. Yolanda is too exhausted to get involved so she tells the boys, “Solve it yourselves.”
Jonathan is clever and knows a trick. He takes the last piece and cuts it in half. Jacob stops whining and is happy. He doesn’t seem to care that his “two” pieces are really just one. Joshua is amazed; he knows that Jonathan played a trick but doesn’t understand how it worked. Older and more experienced Jonathan simply tells Joshua, “He’s too little. He doesn’t understand. You were the same way when you were his age.” So, what’s the trick?
Jacob is too young to figure out that the amount of pizza stays the same despite the fact that it looks different. Children his age will be happier with the same amount of juice in a tall, thin cup than a short, fat cup. The juice in the tall cup rises higher in the glass so it seems like more in your preschooler’s thinking.
What does this mean for my child?
During the preschool years your child will regularly make mistakes like Jacob did. Don’t worry if your preschooler thinks that ten pennies is more money than two quarters. Children outgrow this stage at different rates.
Last updated: May 2005
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