In a competitive and fast-developing world, it’s crucial for children to develop their cognitive abilities at an early age. Helping your child develop and harness their ability to reason, make decisions, memorize information, and communicate effectively can help set them up for success. With the right training and practice, a child’s learning and thinking capacity can improve. In this article, we discuss the importance of including cognitive activities in early learning.
-
Enhances critical thinking
Engaging in cognitive activities can help enhance the critical thinking abilities of children and improve their decision-making. Giving a child the room to face challenges and think for themselves can help develop and sharpen their critical thinking. Games and activities that allow children to question their environment and situation can also help them form their own logical conclusions about situations.
-
Promotes sensory development
Children are often exposed to all kinds of unfamiliar smells, sounds, and sights. These experiences can be overwhelming. Physical exercises and sensory play often involve the combination of various senses, including touch, smell, taste, hearing, and vision. These activities promote the use of the senses by incorporating different noises, colours, and textures in their early learning. Enhancing a child’s senses can help familiarize them with their environment, notice differences, and cope with changes.
-
Reinforces memory and attention
Engaging in memory games and physical activities positively affects the hippocampus, which is the part of the brain that’s in charge of memory and learning. These activities stimulate neuron growth and improve brain connectivity. This subsequently improves a child’s ability to focus on tasks and remember detailed information. Focusing can help boost their attention span.
-
Improves communication skills
Learning how to communicate is crucial for every growing child. Engaging children in activities that allow them to interact in fun ways with no pressure can help improve their communication skills. When children interact with others during play, they learn to express themselves and ask questions. These interactions can help build their vocabulary and improve their sentence structure. Consistently engaging children by asking them questions can also help them to learn new words and learn how to respond to different questions.
-
Boosts creativity and imagination
Engaging your child in drawing, painting, and other imaginative activities can help improve their creativity and imagination. These activities provide children with the freedom to think of ideas and use their imagination to come to terms with the unknown. Being in a creative and imaginative space can also help children foster their ability to try new things and allows them to be flexible and improve their sense of innovation.
-
Develops emotional intelligence
Participating in cognitive activities also allows children to connect with others and opens their minds to understanding different concepts. Playing with their peers can teach children how to use and express their emotions. It also helps them to learn how to cope and respond to the emotions of others. Having an accessible and safe space to express their feelings enables children to develop deeper friendships and manage conflict appropriately.
-
Enhances awareness and balance
Engaging in physical exercises such as jumping, skipping, and running can help increase a child’s sense of awareness of their surroundings. Having awareness can help them become familiar with their environment and alert them when they encounter unsafe situations. When children feel independent during play, they’re more likely to explore their surroundings.
Balance is crucial in most aspects of play. Engaging children in simple physical activities can help improve their balance and learn their limits and boundaries. With good balance, your child is less likely to get injured because they’ll have the appropriate responses needed to protect themselves.
Are you looking for a preschool or daycare in Surrey, BC?
At Rothewood Academy Early Learning centres, we understand the benefits of nurturing your child’s cognitive abilities at an early age. Our curriculum incorporates various cognitive activities to help children learn and achieve their full potential.
Fill out our contact form to learn more about our school or schedule a tour.
