Ace the Arizona Educator Proficiency Test 2025 – Teach, Inspire, Succeed!

Freud's psychosexual stages of development describe a series of phases through which a child's personality develops. The latency stage is characterized by a period of relative calm in terms of psychosexual development, occurring from around age six to puberty. During this stage, children typically focus on developing skills, pursuing friendships, and engaging in activities outside of their family, rather than concentrating on sexual interests.

In this stage, children also solidify their values, social skills, and competencies. Socialization and learning become focal points, as children explore their identity and self-worth in group settings, such as schools. The latency stage is significant as it lays the foundation for future social relationships and successful coping mechanisms when they enter adolescence and the subsequent genital stage of development.

The other stages mentioned relate to different periods of development: the anal stage occurs in early childhood, the phallic stage is characterized by a focus on the genitalia in preschool years, and the genital stage surfaces during adolescence, focusing on mature sexual intimacy. Therefore, the latency stage is the correct answer for the elementary school years, as it embodies the characteristics and developmental tasks relevant to that age group.