Knowledge under construction
Subtitle: the importance of play in developing children's spatial and geometric thinking activities
By: Daniel Ness And Stephen J. Farenga.
Contributors: Farenga, Stephen J., 1958-
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Published: 2007
Place of publication: Lanham, Md
Language: eng
Number of pages: 257
ISBN-13: 9780742547889; 9780742547896
Subjects: Cognition in children; Play -- Psychological aspects
Description: Knowledge Under Construction investigates how young children develop spatial, geometric, and scientific thinking skills--particularly those associated with architecture. Based on original research and analysis of videotapes of children's play with blocks, the authors' findings suggest that such play is anything but pointless. Their conclusions fill in gaps in our current understanding of how children learn to think spatially and scientifically even while challenging portions of that understanding, including some of Piaget's thesis about the primacy of topological space in children's learning. A system of measurement developed to identify and categorize children's spontaneous behavior at play allows adults to observe patterns of behavior and record the development of process skills and cognitive abilities, enhancing our understanding of how children begin to learn about space and architectural relationships. The book also examines the educational implications of our enhanced understanding. One possible development is a new, alternative way to measure cognitive abilities and development in children based on their work with blocks.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction; title: Spatial, geometric, and architectural thinking : the big picture; title: Theoretical perspectives on spatial and geometric thinking; title: Children as architects : the identification of architectural principles; title: Contextual observation : measuring spatial and architectural thinking; title: Age, gender, socioeconomic status factors in spatial thinking; title: The young child building bridges : cases 1 and 2; title: The young child making space: cases 3 & 4; title: Beyond the blocks : implementing praxis.