Chapter 3

What? We learned about moral and social development. The thing that I found most interesting about chapter 3 was Kohlberg's three levels and six stages of moral reasoning and Erickson's stages of development.
So What? I liked learning about Erickson's stages of development. I thought they were interesting. I liked how you had us present it to the class, and then I liked how you helped us think of words to help us study and know it for the test. I am a visual learner, so things like that help.
Now what? Now that I have learned about these levels of development, I hope that I am able to determine what level my students will be at so I can help them to their best of their needs.

Fertile Minds - Extra Credit

I thought the article fertile minds was very interesting. I didn't know that the brain starts developing at 12 weeks and found it very interesting. I also thought the statistic that kids who don't play and aren't touched develop brains 20 to 30% smaller than normal for their age. I really liked the quote "There is a time scale to brain development, and the most important year is the first," notes Frank Newman, president of the Education Commission of the States. They also talked about working moms and sending children to day care. I have worked at a day care for a number of years in the past and saw some of the affects on children. As we are planning on having children, it has brought up should I work or stay home. That is a tough decision, and not too many people have that option at this time in life. I liked how they named a gene after Sonic the hedgehog. I thought this statement was mind boggling: "By the age of two, a child's brain contains twice as many synapses and consumes twice as much energy as the brain of a normal adult". I liked the study on Brandi Binder, I thought that was amazing. It is amazing how the brain functions, and how it functions with the body. I also liked this statement: "Indeed, parents are the brain's first and most important teachers. Among other things, they appear to help babies learn by adopting the rhythmic, high-pitched speaking style known as Parentese". It reminded me of what you were saying in class for example when we change a child's diaper to talk to them and tell them exactly everything we are doing. I also liked this statement: "Experience is the chief architect of the brain" says Perry. I found it interesting that if a mother is depressed it has a serious effect on the child and its brain. I found it interesting when the brain can take in the most, such as learning a language is best from birth to 6 years. I think it would be great to learn another language in elementary school. What a great opportunity for children to learn a second language in their school if they can't from their parents. I thought this article was very interesting. Again, I think that the brain and how it functions and how it functions with the body is amazing. This article gave me a lot to think about. When I become a parent, I hope that I can teach my kids a lot and give them the best opportunities possible.

Piagetian Tasks

I did Piagetian tasks with my two nephews. One was 9 years old and one was 7 years old. It was interesting to see the responses between the two. The first task I did was task 2 with the pennies. I asked the 9 year old the questions, and he answered with no problem. I then asked the 7 year old and he had said that there was the same amount at first, but when I moved them he said the row that I had moved had more pennies. So the 7 year old is in Preoperational thought and lack of conservation. The 9 year old was in concrete operational thought in conservation.

The second task I did was Task 4 with the beads. Again the 9 year old had no problem answering. He is in concrete operational though and class inclusion. The 7 year old went back and forth with the first question: are there more yellow than blue beads. He had to really think about it, then when I asked him the second part of the question again he went back and forth but he said more beads. He is in Preoperational thought and lack of class inclusion.

The last task I did was task 6 with the water. The 9 year old again had no problem and he is in concrete operational thought. The 7 year old said that it had the same amount of water at first but when I transferred it to a different cup he said that the water that I had transferred into the jar was more water. He was justifying his answer also. He said that because it was a wider glass that it had more water.

Overall, I thought it was interesting how they answered and to see them think about the answers and then how they justified their answers.

10-6-08

What? Today we learned about Cognitive Development. We learned about how the brain functions, and different parts of the brain. Such as the neuron, synapses, etc. We also learned about Piaget and Vygotsky, and their perspectives and theories.

So What? After learning about the different stages that Piaget has based learning on, I can apply them into the classroom, and determine where they might be placed. Also, learning about Vygotsky Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), I was able to determine where students were based on his theory of ZPD.

Now What? Now that I know each of these different theories and how the brain functions, I can apply that into the classroom, and help my students. Also, have different grouping strategies to help them out.