Intellectual Development in a Child
As a child’s mind develops, he becomes more intelligent. How intelligent the child becomes will depend on two main factors:
⇛Genes: these controls the amount of natural intelligence he or she has.
⇛Environment: the use the child makes of his intelligence will be very much influenced by the environment in which he grows up.
⇛Environment: the use the child makes of his intelligence will be very much influenced by the environment in which he grows up.
How to encourage intellectual development in a child
In the first year:
Development of a baby’s mind is helped when parents:- Talk to the baby.
- Play with the baby.
- Place the baby in a position where he can see what is going on around him or her.
- Provide toys and objects which he or she can handle and investigate, and which encourage him or her to concentrate.
- Allow him or her to practice new skills as soon as he ready - e.g. feeding himself.
- From the age of about 9 months, start to read to him or her, tell him or her stories and show him pictures.
After the first year
Development of a child’s mind is helped when the child is encouraged to:- Talk.
- Practice new skills - dressing himself or herself, drawing, playing games.
- Be curious and ask questions.
- Explore new places.
- Play with other children.
- Play with toys which stimulate his imagination.
- Be creative and make things.
- Listen to stories.
- Look at books, and eventually learn to read.
Conditions which hinder intellectual development in a child
The following conditions can slow down the rate of development of a child’s mind:- Lack of enough opportunities for talking and playing.
- Nothing of interest for the child to do.
- Constant nagging or bullying from other people
- Deafness
- Poor eyesight
- Poor concentration
- Frequent illness
- Frequent absence from school.
