Summary: An Analysis Of 'Toddlers Are Little Scientists'

Bartola Borja

March 5, 2015

EN110-18

Perez

Essay #2 Final Draft

Natural Copycats

“Toddlers are little scientists”, said Maria Montessori. Like scientists, they constantly use their new physical skills to experiment and try to figure out how the world around them works. They might squeeze a doll's foot and notice it start talking and singing, then squeeze another doll's foot to see if it will do the same thing. Experimenting is vital to their learning experience. Memory is also crucial for learning. Memory is what helps them watch their mom read a book, then pretend to read a book, days later. It is was allows them to watch the people around them and imitate the many things they do. It is the way they observe and implement what they observe

Young children are so observant that they tend to copy even the slightest facial movements when they see it frequently. This is very common in a toddler’s cognitive development, because as they pick up expressions, they learn how to use it to their liking. For example, Austin probably does not understand the meaning of the facial expression his mother makes, however, all he knows that he needs to stop whatever he is doing when the face shows up. The expression means nothing more to him than a face made by his mother, but he understands when to use it and how it should be

Instead of simply observing and playing with household objects as they did during the first year, children start babbling into the phone and brushing their hair. They particularly enjoy spending time with older children, and imitate the behaviors they observe. Toddlers will also imitate actions they see other people do, including people they see on television. Portia Gerber, my tiny, bright-eyed one year old niece is known for copying everyone around her. Although she is only about three feet tall, she has quite a big personality. She has learned that saying “hi” to someone is a repetitive formal greeting. Using her skills in observation and imitation, she now greets people who pass her, without really understanding the concept. She also loves to go to her step-dad's games with her mom. Whenever she went to soccer games or practices, her mom, Ana Borja, always noticed her standing up straight with her little arms folded. She would stay in this position during every game and practice. Ana thought it was peculiar because she only started doing that when she started watching the games. As time went by, Ana noticed that Portia’s step-dad, the soccer coach, would also stand in the same manner. By continuously watching her step-dad do things that she thought she was able to do, it was clear that she had no other choice but to mimic his