The Wonders of Childhood

During the earliest stages the child perceives things like a solipsist who is unaware of himself as subject and is familiar only with his own actions.
Jean Piaget

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/j/jean_piaget.html#ixzz1JvZA4BTH

"Free the child's potential, and you will transform him into the world."
- Maria Montessori

"In early childhood you may lay the foundation of poverty or riches, industry or idleness, good or evil, by the habits to which you train your children. Teach them right habits then, and their future life is safe.”
- Lydia Sigourney

"Children are like wet cement. Whatever falls on them makes an impression.
- Dr. Hiam Ginnot

"A teacher is a compass that activates the magnets of curiosity, knowledge, and wisdom in the pupils."
- Ever Garrison

http://www.successdegrees.com/inspirationalquotesaboutearlychildhoodeducationandteaching.html

Children are remarkable for their intelligence and ardour, for their curiosity, their intolerance of shams, the clarity and ruthlessness of their vision.

- Aldous Huxley

If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder without any such gift from the fairies, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in.

- Rachel Carson

http://www.famousquotesandauthors.com/topics/children_and_childhood_quotes.html

Testing for Intelligence

As a child I had a very difficult time in school. I was diagnosed with A.D.D. in the second grade and had difficulty on all types of tests, especially standardized ones. I took the S.A.T.s twice and got the same score but switched my math and verbal. I feel that elementary and middle school children should not take standardized tests until maybe 8th grade. These tests bring on so much stress at such an early age. There are so many other ways to asses childrens' learning. A child's learning is dependent upon everything and all 8 multiple intelligences. Formal and informal observations, portfolios and subject tests, discussions and write-ups test to see what children have learned though may not necessarily test IQ. I think that in high school and college is the appropriate time to utilize standardized testing. There are a lot of different factors that will affect the standardized testings cores. The variables of how the children are feeling, how much rest they had, home conditions, testing conditions, etc.

In Ireland since 2007 they have administered standardized tests in math and science at the end of the first year OR at the beginning of second year and at the end of fourth year or at the beginning of the fifth year. They have several different types of tests to choose from based on the curriculum.