The third stage in Piaget's theory of cognitive development (ages 7-11) where children can think logically about concrete objects and events but struggle with abstract concepts. Children develop the ability to perform mental operations on tangible things they can see or manipulate.
Named by Jean Piaget in the 1940s, combining 'concrete' from Latin 'concretus' (grown together, solid) and 'operational' referring to mental operations or logical thinking processes. The term reflects children's ability to operate mentally on real, physical objects.
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