The adolescent years for an individual can certainly be an interesting time in their life. Embarrassing 6th grade school photos filled with acne and crooked teeth, from barely playing football while somehow finding a spot on the team early in high school, to to start feeling all the warm and fuzzy with your first I love senior year. These moments are funny, awkward, terrifying and wonderful all at the same time. Children grow physically and mentally as they become young adults under the eyes of their parents. As a mom or dad, there is no instruction manual for your children to grow up, and most of the time, you probably don't know what to expect. Children become moody, confused, sad and excited, sometimes even all at once. Figuring out how to manage these times can be difficult as parents, but it doesn't have to be. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essayA theory that makes development easier to understand is Sigmund Freud's theory of psychosexual stages. It divides development into 5 stages: the oral stage, the anal stage, the phallic stage, the latency stage and the genital stage. The oral stage extends from birth to 18 months. At this stage, the infant's pleasure comes from the mouth. Then comes the anal stage, which occurs between 1.5 and 3 years of age. As the name suggests, the pleasure comes from the anus at this point. After the anal stage, comes the phallic stage from 3 to 6 years old where pleasure is concentrated on the genitals. The fourth stage is the latency phase which occurs from age 6 until puberty. At this stage, the child focuses more on social skills and less on sexual interest. The last stage is the genital phase, which takes place from puberty. The genital phase is a time of sexual awakening, and it is the first time a child begins to seek sexual pleasure outside of their family. Freud used this theory to prove that experiences later in life are linked to events in the early years of life. Another theory that helps understand development is Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development. This theory presents 4 stages of development that explain how individuals adapt and organize their experiences. The first stage is sensorimotor which lasts from birth to 2 years. At this stage, children combine their sensory and motor skills to understand the new and confusing world around them. The second stage is preoperative and takes place from 2 to 7 years old. At this stage, children begin to integrate words, pictures, and drawings into the other skills they developed for understanding the world in the previous sensorimotor stage. The next stage is that of concrete operations which lasts approximately between 7 and 11 years. At this stage, children really begin to understand logically how the things around them work and they learn how to use objects better, not just their own abilities to do so. The final stage of this theory is formal and begins at age 11 and continues into adulthood. This is when individuals really begin to think abstractly and truly understand the world around them. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay This theory is very beneficial in helping to understand development because there are rarely cases where individuals do not follow these steps and their conclusions,.