The role of the early childhood teacher in developing children's cognitive skills



                     Children can attain an optimum level of cognitive skills with consciously developed strategies that can facilitate their learning. There are so many strategies that an early childhood teacher can use to support a child in achieving this milestone.
                         The first of this is to encourage young children to work with picture puzzles and figure them out independently. Exposure to picture puzzles can get children to think more and ultimately develop their reasoning and sharpen their cognitive skills.
                          Children’s cognition of numbers can be taught by making them appreciate quantities. Number stories and number songs can be used to teach the concept of more or less. This will prepare them for the concept of addition and subtraction as they grow older. The early childhood teacher can also make the children understand that nothing in mathematics is zero-(Beck,1986).
                          Jean Piaget’s theory supports that children are responsible for their own learning-(Nixon& Gould, 2003). One of the ways in which children can be responsible for their own learning is to give room for inquiry. For example, an early childhood teacher could get the children to think after reading them a story by asking them questions based on the book read. They can be encouraged to ask questions about the story or talk about the story in sequential order. This strategy will develop their comprehension skills.
                         The early childhood teacher should develop and extend children’s previous knowledge on a subject before introducing something new. This can be attained by observation and asking questions. The teacher can gradually move from known to the unknown using this strategy. Lev Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development can be applied here as the teacher extends a child’s previous knowledge to something new (Nixon& Gould,2003).
                          Repetition can help children develop their understanding of a subject.  The early childhood teacher can repeat lessons taught using role play and concrete materials that will help the children recall the subject.  Repetition will give an equal opportunity to children at different levels of attainment in an early childhood setting to understand a subject.
                          Modelling before the children will show them what to do and what to think. The Montessori philosophy mirrors this strategy perfectly since lessons are presented more in showing than in telling-(Beck,1986). In addition to modelling, Lev Vygotsky’s principle of scaffolding can be implemented in the classroom-(University of Tasmania[UTAS],2003). Scaffolding involves teachers initially performing all or most of a task while gradually shifting the responsibility of performance to students. “In a purely instructional context the teacher provides guided practice to the child with a clear sense of goals or the outcomes of the learner’s performance. This assistance (scaffolding) is gradually removed so the learner can perform the task independently”-(UTAS,2003).
                         Lastly, early childhood teachers should encourage children to work independently. They may see their mistakes and learn from their own mistakes when working independently.
                       The implementation of these strategies will strengthen children’s weak cognitive skills and enhance average cognitive skills.



References
New Zealand Tertiary College. (2013). Lifespan studies 1 study
guide. Auckland, New Zealand: New Zealand Tertiary College.
Nixon, D., & Gould, K. (2003). Emerging: Child development in the first three years
,Tuggerah. NSW: Social Science Press.

Joan Beck,(1985). How to Raise a Brighter Child. Souvenir Press, London.
University of Tasmania(2003).Scaffolding. Retrieved  June 12 2013, from www.educ.utas.edu.au/users/ilwebb/Research/scaffolding.htm























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