Prior to adolescence, how do children primarily engage with the world around them?

Children prior to adolescence primarily engage with the world around them through direct observation and experience. This phase of development is characterized by a hands-on approach to learning, where children explore their environment, interact with various objects, and observe the behaviors of others. Such interactions facilitate experiential learning, which lays a foundation for gradual cognitive development as children gain new skills and knowledge from their surroundings.

During this time, children are very much in a concrete operational stage of cognitive development, where thinking is typically grounded in tangible experiences rather than abstract concepts. They learn through play, exploration, and experimentation, which is essential for their understanding of the world. This method of engagement promotes active learning and helps them develop critical thinking skills as they build connections between what they observe and their own experiences.