What are the four stages of Piaget's cognitive development?

Piaget's theory of cognitive development outlines four distinct stages that children progress through as they develop their thinking and reasoning abilities. These stages are:

1. Sensorimotor Stage (from birth to approximately 2 years) - In this stage, infants learn about the world through their senses and motor actions. They gradually develop object permanence, realizing that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be seen.

2. Preoperational Stage (from about 2 to 7 years) - During this stage, children begin to engage in symbolic play and learn to use language to explore and communicate. However, their thinking is still intuitive and egocentric, meaning they struggle to see things from perspectives other than their own.

3. Concrete Operational Stage (from about 7 to 11 years) - Here, children start to think logically about concrete events. They gain a better understanding of the concept of conservation (understanding that quantity doesn’t change even when its shape does) and can classify objects according to different criteria.

4. Formal Operational Stage (from about 12 years and up) - In this final stage, individuals develop the ability to think abstractly, reason logically, and use deductive reasoning. They