Early childhood is a magical time when one has the ability to believe in the best of oneself and the best of one another. As teachers, it is our responsibility to not only nurture this innate sense of self-efficacy, but to instill the importance of integrity, respect, and community. When developing lessons that will build on social-emotional awareness through an advocacy lens, I wanted to be intentional about using the science of cognitive development to inform my instruction. By age five, a child's brain is almost fully grown. This presents a unique obligation to provide learning experiences that are conducive to decision-making, perspective-taking and empathy. While young children continue to develop their sense of self, it is important to be mindful of developmentally appropriate practice to ensure lessons mitigate egocentric behaviors and build the skills necessary to understand both our perspectives and those of others. Facilitating these critical neural connections in the early years will continue to positively impact higher-level abilities, such as critical thinking, self-regulation, communication and problem-solving. All of these essential skills are critical in developing learners who not only have knowledge of the injustice in the world, but are prepared to form their own opinions and advocate for positive change.

To find out more about how I used cognitive development to not only increase self-awareness and cultural pride, but utilize these assets to challenge and navigate systems of inequity, please click on the links below.