What is a key characteristic of the preoperational stage in children's development?

A key characteristic of the preoperational stage in children's development, as identified by psychologist Jean Piaget, is improved memory skills, which includes the ability to recall past experiences and some knowledge but is primarily focused on the acquisition of language, symbolic thought, and imaginative play.

During the preoperational stage, which typically ranges from ages 2 to 7, children begin to engage in more complex forms of play and representational thought. Their thinking is still egocentric, meaning they have difficulty seeing things from perspectives other than their own; however, their memory capacity does expand as they start to use symbols to represent objects. They become better at remembering names, events, and the context of their experiences, which lays the groundwork for later cognitive development.

The emphasis at this stage is not on logical thinking or understanding abstract concepts like conservation, which refers to the idea that quantities remain the same despite changes in shape or arrangement and is a characteristic of the next stage, concrete operational. Deductive reasoning also develops later, when children begin to think more logically and systematically about the world around them. Thus, improved memory skills is a defining feature of the preoperational stage.