title: In any way, shape, or form? Toddlers' understanding of shapes.
abstract: Using the intermodal preferential looking paradigm, two-year-old children's ability to discriminate valid (typical and atypical) squares, rectangles, triangles, and circles from invalid distractors was examined. The cognitive and environmental factors that might predict this ability were also investigated. Two-year-old children (N=33) were able to discriminate squares, triangles, and circles, but not rectangles. No significant cognitive or environmental predictors of this ability were found. The results suggest that the ability to shape discriminate at age two is under considerable development and that other factors may be responsible for children's ability to discriminate shapes.
authors.affiliation: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON, M5S 1V6, Canada. Electronic address: joanna.zambrzycka@mail.utoronto.ca.
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zambrzycka
authors.affiliation: Wilfrid Laurier University, 75 University Ave West, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3C5, Canada. Electronic address: dkotsopo@wlu.ca.
authors.forename: Donna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kotsopoulos
authors.affiliation: Wilfrid Laurier University, 75 University Ave West, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3C5, Canada. Electronic address: jlee@wlu.ca.
authors.forename: Joanne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Wilfrid Laurier University, 75 University Ave West, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3C5, Canada. Electronic address: smakosz@wlu.ca.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Makosz
mesh_terms: D002652:Child Behavior / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D032882:Comprehension / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005556:Form Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology
keywords: Geometry; IQ; Intermodal preferential looking paradigm; Shape discrimination; Spatial cognition