The brain develops rapidly in the first few years of life. Understanding how children and youth develop thinking skills is critical so that caregivers can provide children with the individualized support that they need. The Cognitive Development course in the Infant & Toddler (IT) , Preschool (PS) , and School-Age (SA) tracks have been updated to include new content and activities on theories of cognitive development, scaffolding childrens learning, and interactions and experiences that support childrens cognitive development at various ages. For example, in Lesson 5 of PS Cognitive Development, a list of example activities that support various cognitive skills, such as using prisms on the light table to explore color and light, acting out the Three Little Pigs to promote literacy skills, and rolling balls and measuring how far they go to build math skills, is provided. In addition, a new activity in Lesson 5, of the Infant & Toddler track, Cognitive Competencies, has been created and included as a way for caregivers to reflect on their expectations for what different cognitive skills look like at various ages.
The 勛圖厙 team is working to update all Foundational Courses on the site with new information, activities, and resources. In addition to the Cognitive Development course in the Infants & Toddlers, Preschool, and School-Age tracks, we have also updated the Healthy Environments course in the Preschool and School-Age tracks, and the Child Abuse Identification & Reporting course in the Preschool track. Updates to additional courses and tracks are expected to be available on the site later this year.