Cognitive/Educational DevelopmentCognitive/Educational DevelopmentFrom birth to age 6, children's cognitive development proceeds at an extraordinary pace. The following section attempts to highlight some of the characteristics which would be evident in a well-developed six-year-old and some factors which contribute to that development. These lists are not meant to be all-inclusive,but rather to highlight some key points.
Some characteristics which would be evident in a well developed six year old in the cognitive/educational domain are included in the following list.
 | Avid talkers
| Comprehension of spoken words and an extensive vocabulary
| Ability to develop bilingual skills
| Reading ability - sight words
| Color and shape recognition & identification
| Writing - numbers, name, abc's
| Ability to solve problems independently - trial and error - tolerance
to persevere
| Ability to maintain focus - attention span, boredom tolerance
| Math readiness:Counting - Computation - Understanding of number abstraction
| Skills - grouping and 1 to 1 relationships (e.g. brother/sister; fish/water)
| Understands directions and can follow through on them
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Some factors which contribute to a child's cognitive/educational development include the following:
| Quality early childhood education - either in home or outside the home
| Broad experiential background
| Stimulating home environment
| Accessibility of books, being read to
| Age appropriate toys
| Allow for messy play
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The indicators above were identified by the Success By 6 Adhoc Task Force Report on Child Development: Indicators of Success and some Contributing Factors.
