Thinking and play: school-age children

About play and cognitive development for school-age children

School-age children can absorb new information quickly and are excited by learning.

Although your child is learning in more formal ways now, play is still one of the main ways that school-age children develop skills to think, understand, communicate, remember, imagine and predict.

Playing with you is still important too. When you play with your child, you can help her learn new things or practise what she’s learning at school. For example, if you and your child are playing a board game, you can practise numeracy skills by adding up your points.

And playing with your child keeps you close and strengthens your relationship. This is important as your child goes through the ups and downs that can sometimes come with starting school, coping with new routines and making new friends.

Thinking ability and self-esteem are closely linked at this age. Worries, big and small, can easily distract your child from thinking clearly and learning. Fear of failure or being made fun of can also become barriers. Taking the time to talk with your child can help your child overcome these worries.

What to expect: cognitive development in school-age children

With time, practice and experience, your school-age child will probably:

collect items like cards or shells, and enjoy grouping them
be able to read on his own from about seven years old
be able to tell the time from seven or eight years
know left from right
be fascinated by science experiments
be able to understand you if you try to reason or negotiate with him
want to follow the rules and play fairly in games
think before acting and ask permission before trying something new – most of the time!

Starting school gives your child lots to think about. There are new rules, routines and more formal learning styles that are different from those at home. This can be tiring and confusing at first. Your child might need time and lots of love and support to adjust.

Many schools have programs to help children prepare for this transition. You can also talk with your child’s teacher if you have concerns or want ideas for supporting your child through this change in her life.

To think and learn well, your child needs to eat well and get plenty of sleep. This gives your child the energy to play and learn at school.

Play ideas for cognitive development in school-age children

To encourage your child’s thinking through play, you can:

provide puzzles and encourage your child to put most of them together himself
play games together, like board games, simple crosswords, word-finders and card games – for example, ‘Go fish’, ‘Snap’ or ‘I spy’
read books, sing songs, tell jokes and riddles together, invent new words or think of rhyming words
introduce your child to basic magic tricks
play building and construction games
cook together and encourage your child to help you measure and weigh the ingredients
play outdoor games, like kicking or throwing a ball together.

You can help stimulate your child’s excitement about learning and extend her thinking by finding out about your child’s interests. For example, if your child is fascinated by sea urchins, you could visit the local library together and find books on the subject, or visit the beach to search for sea urchins. Encourage your child to share what she’s learning with you.

Also, learning by doing is best at this age. Your child will learn faster if you step back and provide encouragement and support from the sidelines. Avoid jumping in to provide solutions. Your child will generally let you know if he needs help, so follow his lead.

Many school-age children enjoy some screen time. Screen time includes time spent watching television and playing games on computers, mobile phones and tablets. If you choose to let your child use screens, it’s good to focus on making quality media choices that support your child’s cognitive development.

Children develop at different rates. They don’t all do the same things at the same time and in the same way. But there are general patterns that most children more or less follow. If your child seems to be having trouble learning at school or isn’t working at a similar level to her peers, it might be a good idea to talk with your GP or your child’s teacher.