Chapter 6: The First Two Years – Cognitive Development
The Eager Mind
● Infants have an inborn "motive to acquire information."
● Researchers describe infants as "scientists in the crib."
Listening to Learn
● Babies are highly attuned to human voices and can distinguish subtle speech sounds.
● By 6 months, they focus on sounds from their native language and begin identifying
distinct words.
Learning Two Languages
● Bilingual proficiency begins early, with infants distinguishing emotional contexts of each
language.
● Research shows bilingualism does not slow cognition.
Looking to Learn and Early Logic
● Babies instinctively follow caregiver gaze to learn important information.
● Infants show some innate logic and understanding of physical laws.
Core Knowledge
● Infants have expectations about the physical world, such as gravity and solid barriers.
● Surprises stimulate curiosity and learning.
Recognizing Faces
● The fusiform face area makes infants exceptionally skilled at facial recognition.
● The "own-race effect" means infants better recognize faces of their own ethnic group.
How to Learn
● Curiosity is inborn but varies among toddlers.
Infant Memory
The Eager Mind
● Infants have an inborn "motive to acquire information."
● Researchers describe infants as "scientists in the crib."
Listening to Learn
● Babies are highly attuned to human voices and can distinguish subtle speech sounds.
● By 6 months, they focus on sounds from their native language and begin identifying
distinct words.
Learning Two Languages
● Bilingual proficiency begins early, with infants distinguishing emotional contexts of each
language.
● Research shows bilingualism does not slow cognition.
Looking to Learn and Early Logic
● Babies instinctively follow caregiver gaze to learn important information.
● Infants show some innate logic and understanding of physical laws.
Core Knowledge
● Infants have expectations about the physical world, such as gravity and solid barriers.
● Surprises stimulate curiosity and learning.
Recognizing Faces
● The fusiform face area makes infants exceptionally skilled at facial recognition.
● The "own-race effect" means infants better recognize faces of their own ethnic group.
How to Learn
● Curiosity is inborn but varies among toddlers.
Infant Memory
