Human Growth and Development

Memory Memory improves a lot during childhood and adolescence. The brain develops better ways to store and recall information. There are three main categories of memory:

●​ Holds information from the senses (like sounds or sights) for a few seconds ●​ If the brain does not process it, the information is lost.

Sensory Memory

●​ Has a limited capacity of only 5 to 9 items ●​ The brain uses rehearsal (repeating information) or chunking (grouping information) to improve memory. Example: Remembering a phone number by breaking it into smaller parts. ●​ Stores information for a long time ●​ Needs rehearsal (practice) to keep information ●​ Information can be recalled using retrieval strategies (ways to bring back memories)

Short-Term Memory

Long-Term Memory

Information Processing Children’s memory improves as they grow. Their experiences, language exposure, and memory strategies help them encode, store, and retrieve information. Social interaction also plays an important role—children learn by watching others and participating in activities. These factors help memory develop from infancy to the complex system adults use.

The stages of information processing explains how the brain receives, interprets, stores, and retrieves information. These stages typically include: 1.​ Attention is crucial for encoding information. 2.​ Encoding is the process of converting sensory input into a form that can be stored in memory, involving attention, perception, and interpretation. 3.​ Storage is the process of maintaining encoded information over time, which involves short-term memory (working memory) and long-term memory. 4.​ Retrieval is the process of accessing stored information and bringing it into conscious awareness.

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