Is the Tooth Fairy real? What about the garbage man? These questions may seem trivial, but according to an article about The Power of Magical Thinking…how young children answer these questions of whether or not the Tooth Fairy and the garbage man are real is an important indicator of cognitive development.
The article from the Tuesday, December 22, 2009 Wall Street Journal suggests:
- Understanding reality.
- Evidence that imagination and role play appear to have a key role in helping us understand someone else’s perspective.
- Examine children’s ability to distinguish between real and fictional entities.
That’s right. We’re taking a look at brain research and examining in particular how children’s imagination aligns with their cognitive (brain) development. Why do children believe Santa Claus is real and how is this the same or different than their belief in the garbage man?
Could this type of imaginary belief even be beneficial to children (maybe even adults) and if so, should we nurture it and how might we do so?
We’ve all had a teacher who inspired us, who sparked our imagination.
When the opportunity to teach at my alma mater presented itself, I jumped at the chance. After all, I remember sitting back in high school and thinking “I could do this better than they’re doing.” Little did I realize at the time that teaching is not an easy task: 30 students X 6 periods a day X 6 week terms = 1000+ individual kids in one school year!
Tell us about a teacher who has sparked your imagination.
