Do babies think? Do they dream? What is going on inside their heads while they’re asleep or just looking up? I know their vision isnt’ really there when they’re first born, is it the same wiht their hearing?
Re: Babies..
when a human is a baby-it is at its most intelligent! the amount of growing up, physical, psychological, social etc. done in the first few yrs of life is unbelievable! babies can recognise their mothers just from the smell- and this is at a few days old! they will respond to their mothers voice, even when she cant be seen!..
but one thing is tru-babies are chillerz! eat, sleep, poop, sleep, eat, poop and so on-wat a wicked life! 
BTW-i’m sure they dream…probably about how things were in the uterus…and just random stuff like dora the explorer and tellytubbies and stuff like tht!
Re: Babies..
for babies, sleeping is the most important thing ever. during sleep, their brain processes everything that they see. basically, a lot of research has found out that babies are born with mechanisms for everything. when i say mechanisms, i mean cognitive mechanism. so, while they are sleeping, those mechanisms kick in, and they go ok, while awake, i saw this person, and that person, due to these reasons has to be my mommy, etc etc. at the same time, sleep is when they are beginning to form memories. (note: sleep is the most important thing an adult can do as well. during sleep...you "develop" memory).
i've always wondered if babies think. like think like us. but then again, you might have to define what constitutes as thinking. and like, at the same time, what can they think about at the age of like 2 months for example. omg..that is such excellent research area :D
more and more researchers are doing research on infants now. it is a really excitiing field right now. :D
as for hearing, their hearing is really really well at birth. i mean there are some kinks that need to be fixed, like for example what to pay attention to, how to distinguish between background noise and what a person is saying. from birth, they pay more attention to human voices than other stuff. all part of development. what i remember from my infant psych class really well is that in order to interact with a baby and to make sure that they are paying attention to you, you have to do that baby voice, which is basically high pitched (higher than your normal voice), slow and deliberate pronunciation of words, and keeping it simple.
Re: Babies..
my neice love dora:chai:
Re: Babies..
So true kazi....
Also a lot is done by instinct. And their brains are like sponges....soaks all the information in so fast.
When we take our baby for an outing, she is so fascinated by all the activity and people that if someone interests her, she will simply stare and observe that person's activities. We cannot do that due to social no-nos obviously, but babies have no inhibitions and their intentions are not bad. I Envy them! If they want something, they will cry for it...distract them and all is forgotten...but adults will always remember that and bear grudges etc...even when we have our distraction. We should all make an effort to have the mind and instinct of a baby and knowledge of an adult. Makes this world a better place!
Re: Babies..
v. interesting topic.
yes, babies do think, feel & dream.
although research is still very little on the very young infants to confirm this. but, from a child developmental point of view, it can safely be said that a normally growing infant who is secure, fed and bonded with, as well as spoken to in motherase, does think. the time between birth and one year’s of age is when the thinking of the child, although may not be observable. it clearly reflects later on, when the ability to speak, is utilized.
human babies do think, as they can reflect the feelings of their parents - happy, sad or angry.
their senses are very much there, but the natural stage of articulating the thinking does not take place until the babies are able to call out in words.
theory of mind (TOM), is a child psychological theory that proposes the presence of a thinking mind in the human baby, is very much alive & a 2 yeas old knows what is happening, with the teaching that the parents or other caregivers have given her/him through social interaction and bonding.
thought-picture is one factor identified, which makes babies able to recognize their parents from strangers. They may not be able to name their parents, but they can see, as they do think, who is who!
language impairment does not mean that they are not able to tell what they are feeling or thinking.
on a more academic note, brain studies done on the neuronal activities in the brains of the little infants do show that they are thinking actively and certain parts of their brains illuminate, which indicates the inner brain activity as the outer stimuli evoke them.
Even when children are missing a sense, like hearing, they have the capacity to think.
to read up more on it, see the following links.
http://www.pr.mq.edu.au/macnews/showitem.asp?ItemID=483
http://psycserver.psyc.queensu.ca/sabbagh/WoolfeWantSiegal-2002.pdf
www.psych.utoronto.ca/~zelazo/ZelazoJacquesetal02.pdf
dushi
Re: Babies..
true.
Re: Babies..
look at this, as well :>
http://www.teachingstrategies.com/content/pageDocs/buildingbaby.pdf
dushi