The Spatial Notions of the Cultural Universe of Childhood - Maps for the Future Children Education and Internet - page 245

by the intention of communicating, and the thought that involves this language (a
form of representation of objects and events) is free from the limitations of the
direct action of the sensorial-motor thinking. With this, we can notice the relation
between thinking and language. It is possible to observe the interaction of the
psycho-physiological and social-cultural factors in the domain of the space, as
many situations can be favorable for the development of particular competences,
such as the ones that mobilize the proprioception , which refers to the sensibility of
the movement of a particular part of the body or the whole body, or kinesthesia,
differentiating the parts of the body.
Several studies based on the psychology of development and learning have
indicated that the progressive acquisitions in the corporeal field amplify the domain
of the space and that the posture influences the apprehension of the information
about the environment. With this, special references are established in relation to
the body itself, allowing the ingression in the founding factor of the special
organization: the corporeal scheme.
According to the Wallonian perspective the corporeal scheme is the result of
the relation that is established between the postural space and the environment
space. The corporeal scheme is the cognitive basis on which the exploration of the
space which depends both on the motor functions and the perception of the
immediate space.
As soon as the children are aware of their oriented body, the temporal space
increases and its geometry allows them to spread the axes of the body, serving as
coordinates in the acquisition of the Euclidian space. When this happens, the
articulation between the body and the more abstract and less limitative space is
reached (Le Boulch 1982 ).
In this acquisition, it is possible again to notice the importance of the language in
the formation of the concepts, making it possible to dissociate the corporeal scheme
of the body itself and Project it on the objects. We project the orientations from our
body (above/below, left/right, front/behind) in the space (Lur¸at 1979 ). As for the
language scope, (Le Boulch 1982 ) states that it allows the children to establish their
references and relate them in a topological space, a process that can take place
approximately at age 3.
The definition and orientation of the axes of the Euclidian abstract space
influence the reintroduction of the body which will represent the true reference
system (Le Boulch 1982 ).
In addition, the corporeal scheme is amplified through graphical representations.
There are five stages in the construction of the human figure: the tadpole figure
synthesis, its verticalization, the organization of the head-body structure, its
improvement and the finishing with the drawing of well distinguished male and
female figures (Greig 2004 ).
The corporeal experiences in the space influence the internal space organization,
which are present in the representation of the human figure. These representations
are originate in the acquisition of the closed forms that generate the tadpole figure in
the representation of a character, which will later create an dissatisfaction in
relation to its property to represent the body. Thus, concerning what we can