Final answer:
Children in the preoperational stage, typically ages 2 to 7, struggle with metaphors due to their limited ability to think abstractly.
Step-by-step explanation:
Children in the preoperational stage will have difficulty with metaphors or proverbs because they haven't developed the capacity to think abstractly. Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development suggests that during the preoperational stage, which occurs approximately between the ages of 2 and 7, children can use symbols and engage in pretend play, but they cannot yet perform operations that require logical manipulation of information. Thus, understanding conceptual or abstract ideas, such as metaphors, which require seeing beyond the literal meaning, is challenging for them. They tend to think very concretely and are focused on the here and now, rather than on potential underlying meanings.