Piaget - Assimilation or Accommodation

Emma, a 4-year-old, encounters a horse for the first time. She refers to the horse as a "big doggie."

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Emma is assimilating the new experience of seeing a horse by relating it to her existing schema of a doggie.

John, a 9-year-old, learns about the concept of division in mathematics for the first time. He applies his existing understanding of multiplication to solve division problems by repeatedly subtracting numbers.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

John is assimilating the new concept of division by using his existing schema of multiplication, although the method he uses is not entirely accurate.

Sophia, a 6-year-old, sees a zebra for the first time. She describes it as a "horse with stripes."

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Sophia is assimilating the new experience of seeing a zebra by relating it to her existing schema of a horse but adds the attribute of stripes.

David, a 13-year-old, learns about different cultural practices in his social studies class. He modifies his existing beliefs and values to accommodate the new cultural information.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

David is accommodating the new cultural information by adjusting his existing beliefs and values to incorporate the new knowledge.

Sarah, a 7-year-old, encounters a butterfly and mistakes it for a flying leaf. She tries to catch it like she would catch a falling leaf.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Sarah is assimilating the new experience of seeing a butterfly by relating it to her existing schema of a falling leaf.

Mark, a 16-year-old, is introduced to complex algebraic equations in his math class. He creates new strategies and mental representations to solve the challenging problems.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Mark is accommodating the new algebraic equations by developing new strategies and mental representations to approach and solve the complex problems.

Lily, a 10-year-old, is learning to play the piano. Initially, she uses the same finger to play all the keys. However, she realizes that she needs to use different fingers for different keys to improve her performance.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Lily is accommodating her piano playing skills by modifying her existing approach and learning to use different fingers for different keys.

Alex, an 8-year-old, is given a set of blocks and is asked to build a tower. When the tower becomes too tall and unstable, he adjusts his approach and builds a wider base for better stability.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Alex is accommodating his building strategy by modifying his approach and building a wider base to ensure stability.

Daniel, a 15-year-old, encounters information that challenges his political beliefs. He engages in critical thinking, examines evidence, and adjusts his views to accommodate the new information.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Daniel is accommodating the new information by engaging in critical thinking, examining evidence, and adjusting his political beliefs to incorporate the new knowledge.

Olivia, a 12-year-old, loves reading mystery novels. She encounters a complex mystery story and struggles to understand the plot and clues. She actively seeks new reading strategies to better comprehend the text.

• Assimilation

• Accommodation

Answer explanation

Olivia is accommodating her reading skills by actively seeking new strategies to better understand the complex mystery story.