Three-year old Emily greets her grandfather at the front door: "We're having a surprise party for your birthday! And it's a secret!" We may smile at incidents like these, but they illustrate the beginning of an important transition in children's lives--their development of a "theory of mind." Emily certainly has some sense of her grandfather's feelings, but she clearly doesn't understand much about what he knows, and surprises--like secrets, tricks, and ties all depend on understanding and manipulating what others think and know. Jean Piaget investigated children's discovery of the mind in the 1920s and concluded that they had little understanding before the age of six. But over the last twenty years, researchers have begun to challenge his methods and revise his conclusions. In The Child's Discovery of the Mind, Janet Astington surveys this lively area of research in developmental psychology. Sometime between the ages of two and five, children begin to have insights into their own mental life and those of others. They begin to understand mental representation--that there is a difference between thoughts in the mind and things in the world, between thinking about eating a cookie and eating a cookie. This breakthrough reflects their emerging capacity to infer other people's thoughts, wants, feelings, and perceptions from words and actions. They come to understand why people act the way they do and can predict how they will act in the future, so that by the age of five, they are knowing participants in social interaction. Astington highlights how crucial children's discovery of the mind is in their social and intellectual development by including a chapter on autistic children, who fail to make this breakthrough. "Mind" is a cultural construct that children discover as they acquire the language and social practices of their culture, enabling them to make sense of the world. Astington provides a valuable overview of current research and of the consequences of this discovery for intellectual and social development.

Bringing the magic of empathy to daily life with a child

Entering the Child's Mind teaches a powerful technique for gaining insight into a child's way of thinking. In the tradition of Piaget and Vygotsky, Dr. Herbert P. Ginsburg argues that standardized instruments of evaluation often fail to meet the challenges of complex cognition. Understanding that interviews, like any evaluative instrument, can be improperly conducted and assessed, Dr. Ginsburg then seeks to advance the critical analysis of the interview methods and to investigate its effectiveness and reliability. He presents guidelines intended to help novices learn to conduct clinical interviews and to assist more experienced interviewers in perfecting their techniques. Dr. Ginsburg provides to both psychologists and others interested in understanding the minds of children the first comprehensive treatment of the theory and practice of the clinical interview method. -- from back cover.

An ideal introduction to the pioneers of educational theory for anyone studying childcare, child development or education – whether at further or higher education level. The first edition of this book has been a best-seller for almost a decade, identified as one of the top ten books for students of child development or early childhood care and education. In this new edition, there is an increased emphasis on both what practice based on particular theories of learning looks like and on criticisms of each theory. A glossary is included in sections highlighting words and concepts particular to the theorist in question. Full-colour photographs are used to illustrate some aspects of each theory or approach. How Children Learn looks at a wide range of theorists and practitioners who have influenced current understandings of how children learn and what this means for work with young children. The book summarises the findings and ideas of famous giants such as Montessori and Piaget as well as the more recent ideas of writers and thinkers such as Howard Gardner and Margaret Donaldson. It begins by looking at the work and life of Comenius who is widely described as the father of modern education and looks at the theory behind different approaches to early childhood care and education such as Steiner Waldorf education, HighScope and Te Whariki. You will find this book invaluable in giving you a clearer picture of how ideas about children’s learning have developed over the past four centuries.

A fascinating introduction to the young learner's mind for teachers, parents, and students in philosophy of education.

Do children have a theory of mind? If they do, at what age is it acquired? What is the content of the theory, and how does it differ from that of adults? "The Child's Theory of Mind "integrates the diverse strands of this rapidly expanding field of study. It charts children's knowledge about a fundamental topic - the mind and characterizes that developing knowledge as a coherent commonsense theory, strongly advancing the understanding of everyday theories as well as the commonsense theory of mind.Henry M. Wellman is a Professor in the Department of Psychology and the Center for Human Growth and Development at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.

Children are already learning at birth, and they develop and learn at a rapid pace in their early years. This provides a critical foundation for lifelong progress, and the adults who provide for the care and the education of young children bear a great responsibility for their health, development, and learning. Despite the fact that they share the same objective - to nurture young children and secure their future success - the various practitioners who contribute to the care and the education of children from birth through age 8 are not acknowledged as a workforce unified by the common knowledge and competencies needed to do their jobs well. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 explores the science of child development, particularly looking at implications for the professionals who work with children. This report examines the current capacities and practices of the workforce, the settings in which they work, the policies and infrastructure that set qualifications and provide professional learning, and the government agencies and other funders who support and oversee these systems. This book then makes recommendations to improve the quality of professional practice and the practice environment for care and education professionals. These detailed recommendations create a blueprint for action that builds on a unifying foundation of child development and early learning, shared knowledge and competencies for care and education professionals, and principles for effective professional learning. Young children thrive and learn best when they have secure, positive relationships with adults who are knowledgeable about how to support their development and learning and are responsive to their individual progress. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 offers guidance on system changes to improve the quality of professional practice, specific actions to improve professional learning systems and workforce development, and research to continue to build the knowledge base in ways that will directly advance and inform future actions. The recommendations of this book provide an opportunity to improve the quality of the care and the education that children receive, and ultimately improve outcomes for children.

In the 1840s novelists such as Brontë and Dickens began to explore the inner world of the child. Simultaneously the first psychiatric studies of childhood were appearing. Moving between literature and science, Sally Shuttleworth explores issues such as childhood fears, imaginary lands, sexuality, and the relation of the child to animal life.