Growing Minds

Carol Copple received her doctorate in human development from Cornell University and joined the faculty of Louisiana State University. As senior research psychologist at the Educational Testing Service, she directed a prekindergarten program for enhancing young children’s thinking skills and wrote Educating the Young Thinker: Classroom Strategies for Cognitive Growth with Irving Sigel and Ruth Saunders. At the National Association for the Education of Young Children from 1993 to 2010, Dr. Copple headed the publications program, authored numerous books, and played a leading role in developing the association’s position statements and education initiatives. She is now an early education consultant based in Nashville, Tennessee.

“I welcome this timely compilation of articles by these insightful leaders in early learning. The focus on cognition in the context of the whole child and the development of concept knowledge and skills is just what we need to balance practices. I am eager to introduce this to our educators.” — Ellen Frede, Senior Vice President for Early Learning, Research, and Training, Acelero Learning

• About This BookPart I Cognitive Development from Birth through Age 81. Cognitive Development in the First Three Years of Life2. Cognitive Development in the Preschool Years3. Cognitive Development in the Kindergarten Year4. Cognitive Development in the Primary Grades5. Becoming Enthusiastic and EngagedPart II Approaches for Promoting Cognitive Development in the Early Childhood ClassroomSection 1: Symbolic Thought in the Early Years6. Chopsticks and Counting Chips: Do Play and Foundational Skills Need to Compete for the Teacher’s Attention in an Early Childhood Classroom?7. Moving into Uncertainty: Sculpture with 3- to 5-Year-Olds8. Building Foundations for Spatial Literacy in Early ChildhoodSection 2: Executive Function and the Development of Self-Regulation9. Recognizing and Supporting the Development of Self-Regulation in Young Children10. Thinking Out Loud: Development of Private Speech and the Implications for School Success and Self-Control11. How Planning and Reflection Develop Young Children’s Thinking Skills12. Developing Self-Regulation in Kindergarten: Can We Keep All the Crickets in the Basket?Section 3: Higher-Order, Complex Thinking13. Let’s SQUiNK about It! A Metacognitive Approach to Exploring Text in a Second Grade Classroom14. From High Chair to High School: Research-Based Principles for Teaching Complex Thinking15. Science in Kindergarten