A nurse is teaching a class about Piaget's stages of cognitive development. The nurse should instruct that abstract thinking develops during which of the following stages?

A. Preoperational: This stage, from about ages 2 to 7, involves symbolic thinking and egocentrism but lacks the ability to perform logical operations or think abstractly. Children are concrete in their thought processes during this phase. B. Sensorimotor: From birth to about 2 years, this stage focuses on learning through sensory experiences and motor actions. Abstract thinking is not developed; infants explore the world through direct interaction. C. Formal operational: Beginning around age 12 and continuing into adulthood, this stage is characterized by the emergence of abstract and hypothetical thinking, allowing individuals to reason about concepts beyond concrete experiences. D. Concrete operational: Between ages 7 and 11, children develop logical thinking about concrete events but struggle with abstract or hypothetical concepts, focusing