1. by Brandie Baldwin Group 2
Jean Piaget
Stages of Development
by Brandie Baldwin
Group 2
Piaget pipe. [Photograph] Retrieved from

2. The Theorist (August 9, 1896 – September 16, 1980)
Piaget was a psychologist who focused on childhood development and trying to answer the question: “how does knowledge grow” (The Jean Piaget Society, 2014).
According to Silverthorn (1999), “Children’s logic and modes of thinking are initially entirely different from those of adults” (p. 2).
Piaget family. [Photograph] Retrieved from

3. The Four Stages of Development
According to Borich & Tombari (1997), thinking patterns or stages occurred in this way:
“1. They always happen in the
same order.
2. No stage is ever skipped.
3. Each stage is a significant
transformation of the stage
before it.
4. Each later stage incorporated
the earlier stages into itself”
(p. 47).”
Sensorimotor Intelligence
Preoperational Thinking
Concrete Operational Thinking
Formal Operational thinking

4. Sensorimotor: Birth to 2 years
Example: A mother talking to her infant when she is out of sight
The stage encompasses the ages of birth to two.
The infant is using its senses (looking and listening) in order to place an object.
The infant is organizing information to get an understanding of its surroundings using senses and motor skills (Seifert & Sutton, 2009, p. 47).
Using her voice (sound), the mother is teaching her infant that the she (the object), is there (still exists) even though she cannot be seen.
The child is able to track the object despite its lack of language (Seifert & Sutton, 2009)
Peekaboo Babies [Photograph]. Retrieved from

5. Preoperational: age 2 to 7
Example: A five year old boy having an imaginary friend
Stage encompasses the ages from 2 to 7.
Boy is using an imaginary friend to adapt to his surroundings (Seifert & Sutton, 2009, p. 48)
Boy is engaging in dramatic play.
At this self-centered stage, the boy will not understand why everyone does not have an imaginary friend because he thinks others should see the world as he does.
Boy is not using language to be social; instead, he is living in his own world.
Imaginary Friend [Picture] Retrieved from

6. Concrete Operational: Ages 7 to 11
Example: In a science classroom, five glasses of different shapes and sizes are placed on a table and filled with one cup of water. The students see how the same amount of a liquid looks in a different container.
The glasses are concrete objects and not an abstract thought.
The students conclude: “If nothing is added or taken away, then the amount of something stay the same” (Seifert & Sutton, 2009, p . 48).
They are able to understand the idea of quantity.
Can use reversibility, “ability to think about steps in a process in any order” (Borich & Tombari, 1997, p. 48).
Megna,R. (1995). Water Takes on Shape of Container. [Photograph]. Retrieved from

7. Formal Operational: Ages 12 to Adult
Example: Planning all aspects of a vacation
Encompasses the ages of 12 to adulthood
Can think hypothetically
Uses deductive reasoning to predict the potential results or outcome of a decision (Borich & Tombari, 1997).
Can solve problems
Think abstractly.
Able to solve hypothetical problems based on numerous factors (McLeod, 2010).
Vacation Budget Planner Template. [Graphic] Retrieved from

8. Works Cited
Borich, G. & Tombari, M. (1997). Educational Psychology: A Contemporary Approach. (2nd ed.). Imaginary Friend [Picture] Retrieved from McLeod, S. (2010). Formal Operational Stage. Retrieved from Megna,R. (1995). Water Takes on Shape of Container. [Photograph]. Retrieved from Peekaboo Babies [Photograph]. Retrieved from Piaget family. [Photograph] Retrieved from Piaget pipe. [Photograph] Retrieved from Seifert, K. & Sutton, R. (2009). Educational Psychology, (2nd ed.). Silverthorn, P. (1999). Jean Piaget’s Theory of Development. Retrieved from The Jean Piaget Society. (2014, March 12). Retrieved April 18, 2017, from Vacation Budget Planner Template. [Graphic] Retrieved from