Your little brother has a ball of clay. While he watches, you roll the ball of clay into a long snake-like shape. He gets very excited because he thinks he has more clay now. Which of Piaget's stages is your brother likely to be in?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

In Piaget's theory of cognitive development, the preoperational stage occurs from 2 years old to around 7 years old. During this stage, children develop their symbolic thinking and language skills, but they still lack the ability to understand certain concepts, such as conservation (the idea that even if an object changes shape, its amount remains the same). Your brother's excitement at seeing the long snake-like shape rather than the original ball suggests that he does not understand the principle of conservation.

Your Little Brother Has a Ball of Clay