Age Stages

Psychological characteristics

behavior characteristics

Birth to Age 3

(infantstage)

Stage of sense-locomotor development:

During this period, babies always achieve their development through constant feedback. For example, their eyes can perceive the movement of the hands, having fun on it and giving feedback to brain, keeping hands moving continuously in order to continue to perceive.

The way of mother-centered parenting. Children need the accompany of adults to explore the world by grasping, crawling and walking. Start the initial game activities, or objects or toys, with less imaginary components in the games.

Age 3 - 5, 6

(earlychildhood)

Period of Subjectivity or Personality:

In order to break away from the situation that they recognize themselves difficultly, there emerged three stages among children. In the first stage, the game of alternating roles begins to disappear, and children would like to be self-important; in the second stage, children have a new need, that is, to show off themselves and to let others acknowledge their advantages; in the third stage, there comes a new transition, the advantages finding from the children cannot satisfy themselves any more, they need to realize self-decoration through the advantages of others.

With the capability to move independently, the children are active, but usually they need the accompany of their parents. They are good at simple and safe games. They like creative handwork and activity-based games etc.

Age 6 - 11, 12

(Childhood)

Period of Objectivity:

Children’s main interests are directed to the external things because of the expansion of children’s communication, the influence of school education and the development of their intelligence. With the growth of age, children’s views on external things are no longer subjective, unilateral or isolated, instead with the formation of objective and systematic cognitive system.

There are great demand for outdoor activities. Children like to play with peers and their interests in games are gradually replaced by sports with the enhancement of competitive awareness and more greater interests in intellectual activities.

Age 12 - 18

(teenager)

Teenager stage:

The psychological tendencies are transferred from external things to inner world, from the cognition of external world to the experience of self-personality.

With strong ability of independent thinking and behaving, the children like competitive sports and popular physical training, which have certain risks and challenges. It starts to turn to cultural, recreational activities, together with all-round development of thinking ability.