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What is middle preschool age? Preschool age. Major age crises

01.11.2023

From 3 to 6-7 years

After three years, the baby enters a new era of his life, a new age, which is usually called preschool. Of course, every age is beautiful in its own way, but the importance and charm of preschool age should be especially emphasized.

This is the age when the imagination begins to work so brightly and so intensely that it is difficult to distinguish the imagined from the real.

This is the age when play and life are so inseparable that it can be difficult to determine whether a child is playing or not, because he does everything playing.

This is age active actions: it is impossible to force the baby to sit a little calmly, silently. The desire to do something - run, jump, play with toys, talk - overwhelms the preschooler.

This is the age when a child's life begins peers. Common games, quarrels, affections, agreement and disagreements gradually fill the circle of his interests.

This is the age when every day brings something new. The child discovers the world: gets acquainted with people, nature, surrounding objects, learns about good and evil.

This is the age when a child can already tell about what he saw, about what worries him, what he wants. Therefore, the impressions of preschool childhood remain in a person’s memory for a long time and often warm his life in adulthood. In a word, this is probably the happiest time of childhood.

Preschool childhood brings joy and adults next to the baby. During this period, the child is still attached to mom and dad, completely open to them (then this charming childish spontaneity, alas, is lost). At the same time, this is no longer a helpless baby, but a fairly independent person with his own desires and ideas. You can do a lot of things together with him, you can captivate him with games, stories, and activities.

During preschool age, rapid development of all cognitive mental processes occurs.

The development of a child’s speech in preschool age goes through three stages:

1. construction according to a model.

Until the age of 4.5 years, a child does not think about the morphology or syntax of the language. The main “source” of new words for him are adults. In his speech, the child begins to actively use words heard from adults.

For example, quite often there are cases when a child’s speech contains swear words and even obscene words, which he accidentally heard and the meaning of which he does not understand at all. Thus, it turns out that most often the uniqueness of a child’s vocabulary is determined by those words that are most common among his immediate environment, in his family.

At the same time, the child’s speech is not simple imitation. The child also shows creativity in forming new words. For example, wanting to say “a very small giraffe,” a child, in the same way as adults construct neologisms, says by analogy “baby giraffe.”

2. formation of logical thinking.

This stage of child speech development begins at the age of 4-5 years and is characterized by the fact that the development of his speech is now closely related to the formation of his reasoning logical thinking. The child moves from simple sentences, in most cases not yet related to each other, to complex sentences. In the phrases formed by the child, main, subordinate and introductory clauses begin to appear, characterized by the words “because”, “so that”, “if”, etc.

3. beginning of language learning.

The difficulties of the previous period of speech acquisition by the child are overcome only during the next, third stage - speech development in connection with language learning. This stage of speech development begins at the end of preschool age, but its most significant features are clearly manifested already when studying the native language at school.

Development of inner speech.

Initially, inner speech helps the child in solving practical problems in a visual-effective or visual-figurative way. For example, when performing any activity, a child accompanies his actions with words.

Initially, these words are spoken out loud, then in the form of internal speech. So, when moving a chair to the table, in most cases he pronounces to himself the name of the objects he is using, i.e. he says “chair”, “table”.

This speech in external, verbal form records the result of the activity, helps to concentrate and maintain the child’s attention on individual moments of the activity, and serves as a means of managing short-term and operative memory.

THINKING

A preschooler develops visual and effective thinking.

The child continues to think “by doing.” For example, when a child aged 4-5 years is asked to determine what is common and what is the difference between a pear and an apple, he performs this operation much faster and easier when he holds them in his hands, and experiences serious difficulties when he is asked to do this mentally.

Another characteristic feature of children's thinking is its clarity. The child thinks based on individual facts that are known and accessible to him from personal experience or observations of other people. For example, to the question “Why can’t you drink raw water?” the child answers based on a specific fact: “One boy drank raw water and got sick.”

IMAGINATION

The process of imagination becomes arbitrary. The emergence of active forms of imagination is initially associated with stimulating initiative on the part of an adult.

For example, when an adult asks a child to do something (draw a tree, build a house out of cubes, etc.), he activates the imagination process. In order to fulfill the request of an adult, the child must first create (or recreate) a certain image in his imagination. Moreover, this process in the baby’s imagination is already arbitrary in nature, since the child is trying to control it.

Later, the child begins to use his own imagination without the participation of an adult. This manifests itself in the child's games. They become focused and story-driven.

The things around the child are not just stimuli for the development of objective activity, but act as material for the embodiment of images of his imagination. A child at 4-5 years old begins to draw, build, sculpt, rearrange things and combine them in accordance with his plan.

As a result of the child’s education and awareness of his “I”, the psychological separation of himself from other people, the affective function of the imagination begins to manifest itself between the ages of 4 and 6 years. At the same time, the emotional-protective function of imagination is that through an imaginary situation the child experiences a release of emerging tension and a symbolic resolution of conflicts that the child cannot yet resolve in practice.

The clearest manifestation of the emotional and protective functions of the imagination are “horror stories” composed and told by children. It should be noted that by the age of 6, many children’s imagination reaches such a high level that they are able to “live” in the world they made up. They create a plot for the game with amazing ease and put it into practice.

ATTENTION

By the age of 5-6 years, the manifestation of attention is more and more voluntary. Thus, younger preschoolers usually look at pictures that attract their attention for only 6-8 seconds, while older preschoolers are able to focus their attention on an object for 12 to 20 seconds.

The same thing happens in the activities children perform. As children grow older, they are able to do things for longer periods of time.

EMOTIONAL SPHERE

In preschool age, emotions have a stimulating effect on cognitive and other mental processes and develop in the child an individual attitude to the real world of things and phenomena. This period is called the age of affectivity.

Emotions have a stormy, but unstable character, which is manifested in bright, albeit short-term affects, in a rapid transition from one emotional state to another. It is easy to frighten a child and make him angry, but with the same ease you can also interest him, arouse pleasure and joy in him.

Thus, a distinctive feature of the behavior of a 3-year-old child is that he acts under the influence of feelings and desires that arise in him at the moment. They are changeable, so you can easily attract his attention to some action, often even just with a “mysterious” intonation: “What are we going to see now!..” But it is difficult to keep children’s interest in any activity for a long time for the same reasons . The child’s feelings and desires, despite their instability, are very strong, so the expression of feelings is immediate, vivid: crying, screaming, clapping, squealing, aggressive gestures, jumping - that is, the child expresses his experience with his whole being.

Starting from the age of 4, children acquire the ability to distinguish between true and externally manifested emotions. This ability is clearly formed in a child by the age of 6, and he better recognizes negative emotions.

INTERESTS

At this age, children begin to show interests in creative types of activities - drawing, modeling, designing, singing, music. However, these interests are not yet stable enough and can vary greatly.

Moreover, the age in question is the age " why check ”, when children’s curiosity reaches its climax and there is no limit to their curiosity and questions. The emergence of the ability to fantasize is, as a rule, a feature of well-developed children.

On the other side, fantasy can also serve as a signal of frustration of various motives. Therefore, if a child fantasizes excessively, you should pay closer attention to the plot-based nature of his fantasies.

The sexual curiosity inherent in a child of this age begins with an interest in his own body. Masturbation and playing with the genitals are quite common, although adults, especially mothers, tend to control it. Gradually, this child’s interest takes the form of questions regarding the sex differences of boys and girls, the origin of children, etc.

Sources:A. A. Rean “Human Psychology from Birth to Death”, L. N. Galiguzova “From One to Seven”

Video taken from youtube.com

More details on the website ncuxolog.ru

Developmental psychology - preschool age

We present to your attention excerpts from the book “ Developmental psychology: Proc. aid for students higher textbook establishments” Darvish O. V. / Ed. V. E. Klochko. - M.: Publishing house VLADOS-PRESS, 2003.

Considering the process of child development, developmental psychology gives characteristics of different age periods and, therefore, operates with such concepts as “age” and “childhood”. Age, or age period, has its own structure and dynamics. “Each age represents a qualitatively special stage of mental development and is characterized by many changes that together constitute the unique structure of the child’s personality at this stage of his development” (l.p.

Vygotsky). In psychology, there are two ideas about age: physical and psychological age. Physical age characterizes the life of a child in years, months and days that have passed since his birth, and psychological age indicates the level of psychological development achieved by that time.

Psychological age may not coincide with the chronological age of the child. The age period, with its own characteristics of the development of the child’s mental functions and personality, the characteristics of his relationships with others and the main activity for him, has certain boundaries.

But these chronological boundaries can shift, and one child will enter a new age earlier, another later. The boundaries of adolescence, associated with the puberty of children, shift especially strongly.

Preschool childhood- a long period of a child’s life. This age is a direct continuation of early age in terms of general sensitivity, carried out by the uncontrollability of the ontogenetic potential for development. This is a period of mastering the social space of human relationships through communication with close adults, as well as through play and real relationships with peers.

Living conditions. At this time, they are rapidly expanding: the boundaries of the family are expanding to the limits of the street, city, and country. The child discovers the world of human relationships, different types of activities and social functions.

He feels a strong desire to be involved in adult life, to actively participate in it, which, of course, is not yet available to him. He strives for independence. From this contradiction, role-playing game is born - an independent activity of children that models the life of adults.

Social development situation

The child’s place in the system of relationships changes (he is no longer the center of his family), and the ability to identify with people and images of heroes of works of art develops. There is an assimilation of norms of behavior, as well as various forms of communication. The child begins to realize that he is an individual and acquires an interest in the physical structure of a person.

Leading activity in preschool age

Irpa. It has a significant impact on the development of the child. In the game, children learn to fully communicate with each other.

In the process of role-playing creative play, children take on the roles of adults and, in a generalized form, in play conditions, reproduce the activities of adults and the relationships between them. A child, choosing and playing a certain role, has a corresponding image - mother, doctor, driver, pirate - and patterns of his actions. But, although life in the game takes place in the form of ideas, it is emotionally rich and becomes his real life for the child.

The game contributes to the development of not only communication with peers, but also the child’s voluntary behavior. The mechanism for controlling one’s behavior develops precisely in the game, and then manifests itself in other types of activities.

The game develops the motivational-need sphere of the child. New motives for activity and goals associated with them arise. Qualitative changes occur in the child’s psyche.

The preschooler also masters visual arts. As V.S. Mukhina points out, the specificity of drawing as a special type of activity is precisely the visual, symbolic activity.

Central neoplasms: new internal position; subordination of motives, self-esteem and awareness of one’s place in the system of social relations.

Thinking

Thinking in preschool age is characterized by a transition from visual-effective to visual-figurative and at the end of the period - to verbal thinking. The main type of thinking, however, is visual-figurative, which corresponds to representative intelligence (thinking in ideas) according to the terminology of Jean Piaget.

A preschooler thinks figuratively, but has not yet acquired adult logic of reasoning. Solves mental problems in the representation, thinking becomes non-situational.

The prerequisites for such mental qualities as independence, flexibility and inquisitiveness are being formed.

There are attempts to explain phenomena and processes. Children's questions are indicators of the development of curiosity.

The mental development of a preschool child is constantly influenced by the gaming situation and actions. The experience of a child’s gaming and real relationships in role-playing games forms the basis of a special property of thinking that allows one to take the point of view of other people, anticipate their future behavior and, depending on this, build one’s own behavior.

Speech

By the age of seven, language becomes a means of communication and thinking of the child, as well as a subject of conscious study, since learning to read and write begins in preparation for school. According to psychologists, the child’s language truly becomes native.

The sound side of speech develops. Younger preschoolers begin to realize the peculiarities of their pronunciation. By the end of preschool age, the process of phonemic development is completed.

The child's vocabulary is growing rapidly.

The grammatical structure of speech develops. Children learn subtle patterns of morphological order (word structure) and syntactic order (phrase structure).

The child masters the grammatical forms of the language and actively increases his vocabulary, which allows him to move on to contextual speech at the end of preschool age. He can retell a story or fairy tale he has read, describe a picture, convey his impressions of what he saw.

Features of speech development in preschool age:

Speech is detached from a specific situation, loses its situationality, turning into a universal means of communication; coherent forms of speech appear, its expressiveness increases;

The child comprehends the laws of his native language in the process of acting with words;

The child learns to express his thoughts coherently, logically, reasoning turns into a way of solving intellectual problems, and speech becomes a tool of thinking and a means of cognition, intellectualization of cognitive processes;

Speech turns into a special activity that has its own forms: listening, conversation, reasoning and stories;

Speech becomes a special type of voluntary activity, and a conscious attitude towards it is formed.

Perception

Perception in preschool age loses its initially affective character: perceptual and emotional processes are differentiated. Perception becomes meaningful, purposeful, and analytical.

It highlights voluntary actions - observation, examination, search. Speech has a significant influence on the development of perception at this time - the child begins to actively use the names of qualities, characteristics, states of various objects and the relationships between them.

In preschool age, the following is typical for perception:

Perception turns into a special cognitive activity;

Visual perception becomes one of the leading ones;

Perceiving objects and actions with them, the child more accurately evaluates color, shape, size (mastering sensory standards);

The ability to determine direction in space, the relative position of objects, and the sequence of events is improved.

Attention

In preschool age, there is a universal means of attention - speech. The child organizes his attention to the upcoming activity by formulating it verbally.

In this age:

Concentration, volume and stability of attention increase significantly;

Elements of voluntariness in the control of attention take shape based on the development of speech and cognitive interests;

Attention becomes indirect;

Attention is related to the child’s interests in activities; elements of post-voluntary attention appear.

Memory

Preschool childhood is the age most favorable for memory development. As L. S. Vygotsky believed, memory becomes the dominant function and goes a long way in the process of its formation. The child remembers a wide variety of material with ease.

Younger preschoolers have involuntary memory. The child does not set a goal to remember or remember something and does not have special methods of memorization.

The child quickly remembers poems, fairy tales, stories, dialogues from films, empathizes with their characters, which expands the scope of the child’s cognitive activity. The child gradually learns to repeat, comprehend, connect material for the purpose of memorization, and use connections when remembering.

In middle preschool age (between 4 and 5 years), voluntary memory begins to form.

Memory, increasingly uniting with speech and thinking, acquires an intellectual character, and elements of verbal-logical memory are formed.

The memory of a preschooler, despite its apparent external imperfection, actually becomes the leading function.

Imagination

Imagination is formed in playful, civic and constructive activities and, being a special activity, turns into fantasy. The child masters the techniques and means of creating images, and there is no need for visual support to create them.

By the end of preschool age, the child's imagination becomes controllable.

Imagination actions are formed:

The idea is in the form of a visual model;

Image of an imaginary object;

Emotional sphere

Preschool childhood is characterized by generally calm emotionality, the absence of strong affective outbursts and conflicts over minor issues.

The child masters social forms of expressing feelings.

The role of emotions in the child’s activities changes, and emotional anticipation is formed.

Feelings become more conscious, generalized, reasonable, arbitrary, and non-situational. Higher feelings are formed - moral, intellectual, aesthetic.

Emotional processes become more balanced.

Development of the motivational sphere

The most important personal mechanism that develops in preschool age is considered to be the subordination of motives. It appears at the beginning of preschool age and then develops consistently. It is with these changes in the child’s motivational sphere that the beginning of the formation of his personality is associated.

Already in early preschool age, a child can relatively easily make a decision in a situation of choosing one object from several, not to react to an attractive object. This becomes possible thanks to stronger motives that act as “limiters.” The strongest motive for a preschooler is encouragement and receiving a reward.

A weaker one is punishment (in dealing with children this is primarily exclusion from the game), and even weaker is the child’s own promise. Demanding promises from children is not only useless, but also harmful, since they are not fulfilled, and a series of unfulfilled assurances and oaths reinforces such personality traits as lack of commitment and carelessness. The weakest is a direct prohibition of some actions of the child, not reinforced by other additional motives, although adults often place great hopes on the prohibition.

The image of another person (an adult, other children) helps a preschooler regulate his behavior.

At first, the child needs someone to be nearby to control his behavior, and when left alone, he behaves more freely and impulsively. Then, as the conceptual plane develops, it begins to be held back by imaginary control.

At preschool age, the child is included in new systems of relationships, new types of activities. Accordingly, new motives appear related to the emerging self-esteem, pride, motives for achieving success, competition, rivalry; motives associated with internalized moral standards, and some others. Interest in the content of the activity and motivation to achieve are especially important.

During this period, the child’s individual motivational system begins to take shape. Motives become relatively stable. Among them, the dominant motives stand out - those prevailing in the emerging motivational hierarchy.

The preschooler begins to assimilate the ethical standards accepted in society. He learns to evaluate actions from the point of view of moral norms and to subordinate his behavior to these norms.

Initially, the child evaluates only the actions of others - other children or literary heroes, without being able to evaluate his own. When perceiving, for example, a fairy tale, a younger preschooler does not realize the reasons for his attitude towards different characters and globally evaluates them as good or bad.

Gradually, the emotional attitude and ethical assessment begin to differentiate.

Developing Self Awareness

Self-awareness is formed by the end of preschool age due to intensive intellectual and personal development; it is usually considered the central new formation of preschool childhood.

A critical attitude to the assessment of adults and peers arises. Peer assessment helps the child evaluate himself.

Self-esteem appears in the second half of the period on the basis of an initial purely emotional self-esteem (“I’m good.”) and a rational assessment of other people’s behavior.

The child judges moral qualities mainly by his behavior, which either agrees with the norms accepted in the family and peer group, or does not fit into the system of these relations. His self-esteem therefore almost always coincides with external assessment, first of all, the assessment of close adults.

By the end of preschool age, correct differentiated self-esteem and self-criticism develop.

The ability to motivate self-esteem develops.

Awareness of oneself in time, personal consciousness appears.

The preschooler is aware of his physical capabilities, skills, moral qualities, experiences and some mental processes.

Mastering the norms presupposes:

a) the child gradually begins to understand and comprehend their meaning;

b) the child develops behavioral habits in the practice of communicating with other people;

c) the child becomes imbued with a certain emotional attitude towards these norms.

Seven Years Crisis

Regardless of when a child starts school, at 6 or 7 years old, at some point in his development he goes through a crisis. This fracture may begin at age 7, or may shift by age 6 or 8.

It is important how the child experiences the system of relationships in which he is included - whether they are stable or dramatically changing. The perception of one’s place in the system of relations has changed, which means that the social situation of development is changing, and the child finds himself on the border of a new age period.

The crisis of seven years is the period of birth of the child’s social “I” (L. I. Bozhovich). It is associated with the emergence of a new systemic neoplasm - “an internal position, which expresses a new level of self-awareness and reflection of the child.

Both the environment and the child’s attitude towards the environment change. The level of requests to oneself, to one’s own success, position increases, self-respect appears. There is an active formation of self-esteem.

A change in self-awareness leads to a reassessment of values, a restructuring of needs and motivations. What was important before becomes secondary. A generalized attitude towards oneself and others appears.

There is a crisis of the personality “I” (subordination of motives). Everything that is related to educational activities (primarily grades) turns out to be valuable, everything that is related to the game is less important.

There is a change in the main experiences:

A meaningful orientation in one’s own experiences arises;

Experiences become meaningful.

Thus, the crisis of seven years represents internal changes in the child with relatively minor external changes and social relationships between the child’s personality and the people around him.

The child’s transition to the next age stage is largely associated with the child’s psychological readiness for school. The components of psychological readiness for school are:

Intellectual readiness (OR, more broadly, readiness of the cognitive sphere);

Personal (including motivational);

Social and psychological readiness;

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And mental neoplasms.

Social development situation

At the stage of preschool age, the social situation of development is characterized by the disintegration of joint activities of the child and the adult. The child discovers the world of human relationships through role-playing games. In play, the child repeats the actions of adults, thereby realizing the tendency to be and act like an adult. The circle of significant persons is gradually expanding, which now includes peers as play partners.

Leading activity

The leading activity at this stage is a role-playing game, which determines the child’s position, his perception of the world and relationships. Through role-playing games, various spheres of mental activity develop. Play is a form of child socialization that helps the child navigate social and interpersonal relationships. .

  • Development of the motivational-need sphere - mastering the functions, meanings, tasks of human activity. The child strives for socially significant and approved activities, the first subordination of motives occurs, which is the first step towards their hierarchy, ensuring psychological readiness for school.
  • Overcoming cognitive “egocentrism”, the child begins to correlate his own position with a different point of view, learns to coordinate his actions with the actions of others.
  • Development of an ideal plan, characterized by a transition from external actions to internal actions.
  • Development of arbitrariness of actions through obedience to rules.

Mental neoplasms

The central new formation of preschool age is the formation of visual and figurative thinking, coupled with the development of orientation and research activities. Mastery of mnemonic means occurs, the possibility of voluntary memorization appears - memory becomes mediated by a sign. Speech has the function of planning and regulating activity.

New formations in the emotional-personal sphere are associated with the subordination of motives and the formation of new motives. The development of self-esteem contributes to the differentiation of the real self and the ideal self. Emotions begin to have a regulatory nature in relation to one’s own behavior. Psychological readiness for school is the most important complex new formation of preschool age, including the arbitrary regulation of behavior, personal and intellectual readiness.

Children's fears of preschoolers

Physical development

From a medical point of view, this stage is characterized by the first physiological acceleration of growth, the increase in body weight slows down, the length of the limbs clearly increases, and the relief of the face deepens. Baby teeth gradually fall out and permanent teeth begin to grow.

The first acceleration of growth is observed in boys from 4 to 5.5 years, and in girls after 6 years. The length of the body increases due to the relative increase in the lower limbs. At the age of 3-5 years, body weight gradually increases by 2 kg per year.

The annual increase in head circumference up to 5 years is 1 cm (at 5 years - 50 cm), and after 5 years - 0.5 cm per year.

Breast circumference increases by 1.5 cm annually.

Since the muscles are not yet sufficiently developed, incorrect body position, prolonged standing, sitting, and furniture that impedes growth can adversely affect the formation of the skeleton and lead to poor posture. Immune defense reaches a certain maturity during the preschool period.

Crisis of three years

At the age of 3 years, the transition from early to preschool age occurs. This transition is characterized by the so-called crisis of three years, described in its positive meaning by the Soviet psychologist L. S. Vygotsky. The child develops a fundamentally new system of social relations with the world against the backdrop of increasing independence.

The crisis is characterized by the emerging contradiction between the child’s desire to take part in the life of adults and the collapse of previous joint activities and the child’s attempts to assert his independence. L. Vygotsky identifies the symptoms of crisis that characterize this transition period:

  • Negativism;
  • Stubbornness;
  • Obstinacy;
  • Self-will;
  • Devaluation of everything that was previously significant for the child;
  • Despotism;
  • Protest.

A new development of the three-year crisis is pride in one’s own achievements. The child’s self-awareness is formed, which manifests itself in the formation of an independent position.

Seven Years Crisis

As the end of this age stage, L. Vygotsky considers the crisis of 6-7 years, the main symptoms of which are:

  • Loss of spontaneity;
  • The appearance of “secrecy” regarding one’s feelings;
  • Loss of previous interests.

There is a desire for a socially significant position and greater independence. The child’s attitude to the world begins to be regulated by the nature of his relationships with the people around him.

Preschool age in various development concepts

The periodization of mental development created by Freud is based on the satisfaction of the child’s instinctive drives and is associated with the displacement of sexual energy along erogenous zones, which determines the passage of five stages of mental, or more precisely psychosexual, development: - Oral (0-2 years); -Anal (2-3 years); - Phallic (4-5 years); - Latent (5-12 years); -Genital (12-18 years old). According to Freud's theory, successful passage of the oral, anal and phallic stages ensures the formation of a mentally healthy personality. Difficulties at these stages can lead to various psychological problems in adulthood.

Preschool age- the period of childhood, occupying a place between early and junior school age - from 3 to 7 years. Usually there are junior (3 - 4 years), middle (4 - 5 years) and senior (5 - 7 years) D. v. Preschool childhood is one of the most important stages of a child’s life, largely determining his entire subsequent development. During this period, there is intensive development and maturation of all systems and functions of the child’s body: the child’s height increases (by 20-25 cm), body weight and brain volume, the nervous system improves and higher nervous activity develops. All this creates the prerequisites for the further development and formation of cognitive mental processes and the child’s personality, mastering new types of activities.

At the border between early and preschool childhood, the nature of the joint activity of a child and an adult changes fundamentally: the child is already capable of a certain amount of independence and experiences an urgent need to realize this new ability. Satisfying the need for independence, which involves changing the entire system of relations between an adult and a child that has developed by this time, relieves the negative symptoms of the period of transition from early childhood to preschool.

In the concept of leading activity (A.N. Leontiev, D.B. Elkonin, A.V. Zaporozhets, etc.) as the leading activity of D. v. a role-playing game is considered. In addition to gaming, for D. v. Various forms of productive activity are characteristic: design, drawing, modeling, appliqué, etc. One can also observe elements of learning and work, although the preschooler does not yet have educational and work activities in a developed form.

In D. c. The child’s motives and desires begin to form a system (hierarchy), in which more and less significant ones are distinguished. The child moves from impulsive, situational behavior to personal behavior, mediated by ideas or images. The image of behavior and the result of an action becomes its regulator and acts as a model. This is clearly manifested in drawing and design: from random actions and imitation of ready-made models, children move on to creating and implementing their own ideas. By the end of the D. century. management of one’s behavior becomes the subject of consciousness of the children themselves, which means a new stage in the development of volition and self-awareness. With the development of voluntary behavior and the assimilation of moral norms, children begin to be guided in their actions not only by immediate desires, but also by the demands of others.

With the predominance of visual-effective and visual-figurative forms of thinking, in D. century. the foundations of logical thinking, semantic memory, voluntary attention are laid, and the coordination of mental functions is improved. Middle preschool age is the peak of a child’s emotional development, the flowering of imagination and creative forms of children’s activity. At the same time, the increased emotionality of a preschooler creates the basis for the emergence of various neuroses and behavioral difficulties.

For D. v. non-situational speech forms of communication with adults are characteristic. Children's communication with each other becomes richer and more meaningful. For a preschooler, a peer is a more preferred partner for joint activities than an adult.

D.v. - a sensitive period for the development of many human abilities, the acquisition of knowledge and skills. Therefore, preschool education and upbringing is a traditional and developed area of ​​pedagogy. However, training in D. v. has its own distinct specificity. Child in D. v. can already study according to the program of an adult (teacher), but only to the extent that the teacher’s program becomes his own program, i.e., to the extent that he accepts it. Therefore, the forms and methods of teaching in D. century. associated with play and objective activities. Drawing, modeling, appliqué, design and other activities of a preschooler that place special demands on various mental functions provide ample opportunities for organizing and conducting developmental work with children. It is also important that all of them are distinguished by the ability for mutual compensation from the point of view of the developmental effect, which makes it possible to take into account the interests and inclinations of the child himself.

In older preschool age, much attention is paid to preparing for school, as a result of which children begin to develop such elements of educational activity as the ability to act according to a model, focus on the rule and method of action, fine motor skills of the hand are improved, and the arbitrariness of cognitive mental processes further develops.

I.V. Dubrovina, E.O. Smirnova

Lecture outline

Preschool period

Lecture No. 8

1. Characteristics of preschool and preschool age.

2. Anatomical and physiological characteristics of organs and systems in these periods, the growth and development of a child of preschool and preschool age.

3. Universal needs of a child of this age and ways to satisfy them, possible problems.

4. Physical, neuropsychic and social development of a child of preschool and preschool age.

5. Nutrition for a child over 1 year old.

6. Social adaptation of the child.

7. Preparation for entering a preschool and school. Risk factors.

8. Prevention of childhood infectious diseases in preschool and preschool children.

Preschool age- the period of child development from 3 to 6-7 years. During these years, further physical development and improvement of the child’s intellectual capabilities occur.

Height and weight. The growth of children in preschool age increases unevenly - initially to 4-6 cm per year, and then in the period from 4 to 5 1/2 years in boys and in the 6-7th year in girls, growth accelerates slightly - up to 6-8 cm per year (the so-called first physiological traction). As a rough guide, we can assume that starting from the age of 1, a child grows by an average of 5 years each year. cm.

The annual increase in body weight in preschool age averages 2 kg: in the 4th year of life - approximately 1.6 kg, for the 5th - about 2 kg, for the 6th and 7th - 2.5 each kg. Accurate assessment physical development assessment of a child is possible only on the basis of a comparison of his height and body weight using centile tables.

Anatomical and physiological features of organs and systems.

Leather thickens, becomes more elastic and resistant to mechanical stress, the number of blood vessels in it decreases, but is still relatively large. By the age of 6, the structure of the dermis approaches that of adults, but keratinization of the stratum corneum of the epidermis is not yet complete. Hair thickness increases from 0.08 mm at the end of the first year of life up to 0.2 mm by 6-7 years.

In subcutaneous tissue hyperplasia processes stop, the number of fat cells becomes constant. By the age of 5-7 years, accumulations of adipose tissue appear in the body cavities and in the retroperitoneal space, which reduces the mobility of internal organs.

The mass is growing muscle tissue, differentiation of muscle fibers and the connective tissue framework of muscles, and the development of neuromuscular endings continue. By the age of 6-7 years, the muscles of the hand reach development that allows the child to begin teaching writing, modeling, etc. From 6-7 years of age, muscle strength increases rapidly.

Exchange rate in bone tissue decreases. The ossification of the skeleton is not complete; there is still a lot of cartilaginous tissue in it. By the fourth year of life, lumbar lordosis significantly decreases, and therefore the protrusion of the abdomen characteristic of young children disappears. By the age of 5-6 years, the shape of the spine becomes the same as that of an adult, but the fixation of the spine is still imperfect.



By the age of 2 1/2 years, all 20 milk ducts have usually erupted. teeth, from the age of 5-6 years they begin to fall out, replaced by permanent ones. In preschool age, the growth of the facial skull outpaces the growth of the brain, and the paranasal sinuses (paranasal sinuses) continue to form.

By the age of 4, the lower nasal passage develops.

At the end of preschool age, the formation of chest. The ribs gradually take on the same arrangement as in an adult, respiratory muscles develop, and so-called costal breathing appears.

Until 6-7 years of age, the glottis, trachea and bronchi remain narrow. The mucous membrane of the respiratory tract is delicate and rich in blood vessels. The weight of the lungs, the number of alveoli, and the lumen of the bronchioles increase. By the age of 5-7 years, the formation of the acini structure ends. Tidal volume increases from 114 ml at 3 years up to 156 ml at 6 years, minute respiratory volume - from 2900 to 3200, respectively cm 3. By age 6, the oxygen requirement is twice that of adults. Breathing becomes deeper and rarer, with one breathing movement accounting for 3 1/2 -4 pulse beats. Respiration rate decreases from 30-35 per 1 min in 1 year up to 23-25 ​​in 1 min by 5-7 years. When auscultating the lungs up to 5-7 years, it is determined puerile breath.

Cardiovascular systems and becomes more efficient and resilient. The mass of the heart and the strength of heart contractions increase. The shape and location of the heart are almost the same as in adults. Upon examination, the apical impulse of the heart is determined in the fifth intercostal space, slightly outward from the right midclavicular line.

Gradually reduced heart rate: at 3 years it is 105 beats per 1 min, at 5 years - 100 beats in 1 min, at 7 years old - 85-90 beats per 1 min.

HELL increases on average from 95/60 mmHg st. in 3-4 years up to 100/65 mmHg st. at 7 years old. For an approximate calculation of blood pressure, you can use the following formulas: for systolic blood pressure - 90 + 2n, diastolic - 60 + n (n is age in years).

gastrointestinal tract. From 2 to 5 years, the length of the esophagus increases from 13 to 16 cm, diameter - from 13 to 15 mm, the distance from the teeth to the entrance to the stomach is from 22.5-24 to 26-27.9 cm. The weight and capacity of the stomach increase, and the intestines lengthen. The weight and size of the pancreas and liver increase, and their functions improve. In children 5-7 years of age, the lower edge of the liver protrudes from under the right costal arch by 1-2 cm along the midclavicular line. Due to the increased secretion of the digestive glands and the increased activity of digestive enzymes, digestion becomes more perfect. The frequency of bowel movements in preschool age is 1-2 times a day.

Weight and size increase kidney. From the age of 5 years, the structure of the nephron glomerulus is the same as in adults. The number of urinations decreases from 10 times a day at 3 years to 6-7 at 7 years. At 3 years old, a child secretes up to 800-900 ml urine per day, at 7 years - up to 1000-1300 ml. Endogenous creatinine clearance corresponds to that of adults.

Developing hematopoietic system, bone marrow mass increases. Composition changes blood: at 4 - After 5 years, a second crossover occurs in the leukocyte formula, when the number of neutrophils and lymphocytes almost equalizes. The mass of the thymus gland, the mass and size of the spleen increase. The number of lymph nodes continues to increase, and the lymphoid apparatus of the nasopharynx and gastrointestinal tract develops.

Further improvements are underway immune system, the level of complement increases. The synthesis of immunoglobulins increases.

Are developing endocrine glands. The size of the pituitary gland increases. A sufficient level of secretion of pituitary hormones ensures normal growth dynamics of the child and the proper functioning of the peripheral endocrine glands. The mass of the thyroid gland increases, the hormones of which are necessary not only for growth processes, but also for differentiation of the central nervous system, normal intellectual and psychomotor development of the child. There are no significant changes in the level of sex hormones, but further development of the gonads (testes, ovaries) is noted; their “preparation” for puberty increases in the mass of the parathyroid glands.

Development continues central and peripheral nervous systems. The mass of the brain increases. The conductive pathways of the central nervous system are improved. and nervous After 3 years, cervical and lumbar thickenings of the spinal cord appear, its weight by 3-5 years triples compared to the weight at birth.

Further development is taking place sense organs. The size and weight of the eyeballs increase noticeably. In 6-year-old children, the processes of refraction formation are still ongoing, and depth vision begins to develop. By the age of 6, visual acuity reaches 0.86. Three-dimensional perception of objects and the ability to distinguish colors are worse than in school-age children. Hearing acuity and the ability to differentiate sounds increase. At 6 years of age, hearing acuity for words is lower than for tones. The sense of smell improves - sensitivity to odors and the ability to differentiate them increase.

Are improving psyche, intelligence and motor skills. At this age, children already quite clearly express various emotions, they develop certain character traits, and form moral concepts and ideas about responsibilities. Children repeat many of the actions of adults; They usually choose close relatives as role models.

Lexicon gradually increases to 2 thousand words or more. In conversation, children already use complex phrases and sentences and easily memorize poetry; can write a short story. They begin to confidently hold a pencil in their hands and draw various objects and animals.

At 2 1/2 -3 years, in parallel with intellectual development, the child’s sexual orientation occurs, which is finally formed in preschool age. Already at 3 years old, most children can name not only their age, but also their gender. At the age of 4-6 years, children begin to play “parents”, “mother-daughter”, “hospital”, fulfilling (at the level of their understanding) the role of one of the parents. At the same time, there is a certain interest in gender differences. During games, when questioning adults and peers, children gradually receive information about the structure of the external genitalia and certain information about childbirth.

Features of the pathology. The incompleteness of the processes of formation of the epidermis contributes to a decrease in the protective properties of the skin, easier infection, the development of dermatitis, and maceration. Due to insufficient ossification and fixation of the spine, there remains a tendency to develop impaired posture, spinal curvatures. Intensive development of the lymphoid ring of the nasopharynx predisposes to the occurrence of adenoids. sore throat . , respiratory diseases. Compared to young children, preschoolers are more likely to develop sinusitis , stenosing laryngotracheobronchitis and bronchiolitis are less common. Expanding contacts between children in organized groups contributes to the increase in infectious diseases. A noticeable increase in motor activity in preschool age, in the absence of control, causes an increase in injuries. The incidence of myopia increases from 1.5% at 3 years to 4-5% at 5-6 years.

In general, the incidence of illness in children from the age of 5 (in some cases earlier) decreases noticeably, the course of the disease becomes milder, which is associated with the improvement of immunity.

Nutrition. Animal proteins should make up at least 65% of the total protein in the diet, vegetable fats - at least 15% of the total fat.

Preschool children usually have 4 meals a day. At breakfast and dinner, the child should receive 25% of the total daily caloric intake of food, at lunch - 30-35, at afternoon snack 15-20. Meat and fish dishes are recommended for breakfast and lunch, for dinner - dairy and vegetable products, cereals and cottage cheese. Children D. v. Do not give strong tea, coffee, or hot sauces. It is necessary to limit the consumption of strong broths, chocolate and chocolate candies, cakes and pastries, oranges, tangerines. see also Nutrition.

Care. The room in which the child is located must comply with generally accepted sanitary and hygienic requirements . Daily wet cleaning and frequent ventilation are necessary. The child should be gradually involved in cleaning the room and toys. It is advisable to select furniture according to the age of the child or to adapt the existing one as much as possible, for example, raise the seat of a chair to such a level that the child’s elbows rest freely on the table, or place a bench under his feet. The right choice is important clothes And shoes To prevent flat feet, shoes should be low-heeled.

You should only bathe your child and wash his clothes with baby wash. A child 3-4 years old is bathed at least 2 times a week, 5-7 years old - at least once a week; the water temperature should be 37-39°, the duration of swimming should be 15-20 min.

Up to 6 years of age, a child should sleep once during the day, the duration of sleep (day and night) at 3-6 years old is at least 12 h.

It is necessary to constantly monitor the living conditions of the observed children and provide appropriate recommendations on the organization of child care.

Physical education. physical exercises for children are strictly dosed according to their age. Physical exercise is best done every 1 1/2 -2 h after breakfast or nap, in the evening - no later than 1 hour before bedtime. Physical exercises should be carried out in the form of a game. Each child must be approached individually, taking into account his motor skills, and make sure that he does not become overtired. Outdoor games are required, especially in the summer, outdoors. At 3-4 years old, you can teach your child to ski with soft bindings (felt boots are put on his feet). Riding a tricycle is taught from the age of three, and from the age of 5 you can learn to ride a two-wheeled bicycle. It is necessary that the dimensions of the bicycle correspond to the height of the child: the legs should be free to reach the pedals, and the steering wheel should be raised so that the back is straight. Children can ride on a sled independently from the age of 3-4 years. It is recommended to teach swimming from 4-5 years old, skating - from 5-6 years old.

Hardening. Procedures must be appropriate to the child’s age and carried out regularly at the same time: the strength and intensity of the effect on the body (temperature, time, etc.) should be changed carefully and gradually; it is necessary to closely monitor the child’s well-being. The main hardening factors are fresh air, sunlight and water.

The room where the child is is ventilated 3-4 times a day in winter, incl. before going to bed, and in the summer, the window or window should be open constantly in good weather. In winter, preschool children should spend at least 3-4 hours outside h per day, and in summer - most of the day. Clothing is selected depending on the nature of the walk and the time of year.

One of the elements of air hardening is air and sun baths and rubbing.

Before going to bed, you can perform another water procedure - dousing your feet. Swimming in open waters, in which the body is exposed to air, sun and water, has a beneficial effect.

Preparing for school. Curiosity should be developed and nurtured in children. It is very important to awaken interest in work, teach the child to dress, wash himself, clean his bed and work (play) corner. It is necessary to teach the child to listen and identify sounds in words, which will help master writing and reading. When doing arithmetic with him, you should introduce the child to the concept of “number” using specific examples (for example, toys, pencils). Drawing plays an important role in preparing for writing. Conversations with a child help improve the child’s speech, improve pronunciation, and develop thinking. You need to work with your child regularly, but do not overtire him.

Hygienic aspects of teaching 6-year-old children. Taking into account acceleration at the age of 6, many children achieve a certain degree of physical, intellectual and motor development, which allows them to begin schooling. However, 6-year-old children are noticeably different from 7-year-olds; school pediatricians and teachers need to take this into account when distributing the teaching load, scheduling lessons, and organizing the daily routine. Thus, in 6-year-olds, a system of conditioned reactions is developed more slowly, excitation processes predominate over inhibition, rapid exhaustion of the nervous system and fatigue are noted (children 5-7 years old maintain active attention for no more than 15-20 min ), involuntary (passive) attention prevails over voluntary (active), emotional interest is more important, thinking is imaginative and concrete. Due to the anatomical and physiological characteristics of the organ of vision in 6-year-old children, it is necessary to limit activities that require visual strain, try to facilitate visual perception as much as possible and strictly observe hygiene rules. Because In 6-year-old children, small motor muscles of the hand and fingers are still poorly developed; long-term loads when writing and drawing should be excluded, and the duration of continuous writing should be limited (up to 3 min). If a child is diagnosed as left-handed, a consultation with a neurologist is necessary. Due to insufficient development of the musculoskeletal system due to incorrect posture during exercise and prolonged sitting, children 6 years of age are more likely to develop spinal curvatures and postural disorders.

It must be taken into account that at 6 years of age children may experience their first physiological stretching, which is characterized by accelerated physical development. During this period, the child’s body becomes especially sensitive to the effects of unfavorable factors, so starting school can contribute to an increase in morbidity and the manifestation of previously hidden diseases.

Of great importance is the correct organization of the daily routine, which facilitates the child’s adaptation ( table 2 ).

Dispensary observation. Children aged 3-7 years are examined by a pediatrician at least once a year. Laboratory tests are carried out annually (clinical blood and urine tests, stool analysis for worm eggs), anthropometry, and the physical and intellectual development of the child is assessed. Examinations are carried out by a dentist, surgeon, neurologist, and, if indicated, by other specialists. Particular attention should be paid to children who are often ill or with an unfavorable medical history (for example, prematurity, birth trauma, hemolytic disease of the newborn). In accordance with the preventive vaccination calendar, routine vaccination is carried out , Tuberculin tests are performed annually.

Preschool age is the time of acquisition and organization of a child’s sensory experience, comprehension of the special forms of perception and thinking inherent in humans, the rapid development of imagination, the formation of the foundations of voluntary attention and semantic memory.

These personal assets arise as a result of reasonable training, upbringing and love for children.

Children's time from 3 to 6-7 years is called preschool childhood. Age periodization of this age includes the following stages:

  • - from 3 to 4 years;
  • - from 4 to 5 years;
  • - from 5 to 7 years.

Preschool age contributes to the overall development of the child and contributes to the maturation of his personality. Thanks to the help of elders, the child gains personal life experience. The foundation for more thorough forms of social competence is laid. The foundation for future school maturity is created.

Specific features arise that confirm the processes of physical, mental and social growth of the preschooler. The psychological characteristics of preschool age are characterized by an expansion of the child’s social circle and the development of role-playing games. The types of activities become more complex in content and form, practical activity becomes more intellectual, the ability to act independently is improved, the type of interaction between the child and adults changes, and a children's community with its subculture is formed.

Social development situation

During the period of preschool childhood, there is a dissolution of common activities between an adult and a child. Relationships with peers become a priority. Peers turn out to be an important part of a child's environment. The relationships of preschoolers are determined by play. Kids duplicate the actions of adults, realizing the desire to be and act like their elders. The role-playing game enriches the baby’s world with new relationships between people.

Leading activity

The types of preschool activities are not yet mandatory for the baby; he performs them of his own free will or at the request of an adult. Playing, drawing, constructing, etc. are characterized by emotional richness, provide space for creative imagination, as well as freely identify life impressions and relationships to the world around us. The baby’s relationships with adults and other children are built primarily on intimate and personal contacts - affection, sympathy, love.

During preschool age, the actual formation of personality occurs, the child’s speech improves, communication skills are enriched, basic qualities are formed, physical capabilities grow, and living space expands. An important feature of the development of a preschooler is the general, non-specialized nature of the knowledge, actions, and abilities he receives. The young person has to become a person, acquire everything that everyone needs in any area of ​​life.

The leading activity at this stage is a role-playing game. This form of play establishes the child's position, his perception of the world and relationships. Thanks to the game, the formation of various spheres of mental activity occurs. The game is a type of socialization for a preschooler and helps to get comfortable in social and interpersonal relationships.

Mental neoplasms

Not everything that develops in preschool age is of equal importance for the present and future baby.

The first acquisition is figurative forms of knowledge of the surrounding world, which flourish precisely in the preschool period. Subject-based activities, role-playing games, drawing, design and other types of “children’s activities” are built on the basis of perception, visual-figurative thinking, imagination and constantly require their improvement. These types of activities provide the baby with external forms of oriented, search actions, form the basis of his internal plan of action, contribute to the assimilation of sensory standards and visual models for solving new life tasks, and develop creative abilities.

The second, important achievement of preschool age is moral feelings that connect the child first with family, and over time with a wider circle of adults and peers. A preschooler learns to empathize, express sympathy, affection, respect the rights and uniqueness of other people, make friends, he develops sensitivity and responsiveness as important basic qualities, a sense of belonging to people, and the basic ability to take others into account. These qualities persist throughout the rest of life, significantly influence it, determine the face of a schoolchild and an adult, and form the basis of a person’s humane orientation toward the environment and himself.

Creative abilities, together with moral qualities, are the foundation on which personality is built.

During preschool age, abilities also develop that serve only as a basis, the so-called “blank”; over time, they change, are rebuilt, and acquire new, more thorough forms. Such qualities include cognitive interests, voluntary control of behavior, and the basics of logical thinking. Their foundations are laid towards the end of the preschool period, and the peak of development begins in the later stages of life.

Physical development

Children experience the first period of an active growth spurt, with a slowdown observed as they gain weight. The length of the limbs is clearly increasing. The contour of the face changes noticeably. Baby teeth begin to change into permanent ones.

The first stage of vigorous growth in boys is observed from 4 to 5.5 years, and in girls after 6 years. The growth of the lower extremities contributes to an increase in body length. From 3 to 5 years, body weight constantly increases by 2 kg per year.

Head volume up to 5 years increases by 1 cm every year, and after five years - by 0.5 cm per year.

Breast volume grows by 1.5 cm annually.

The muscular system of a preschooler is not strong and requires special attention from elders. Incorrect body position of the baby and inappropriate furniture lead to poor posture and pathological development of the skeleton. The immune system gradually acquires a certain maturity.

The preschool period of life plays an important role in the development of personality. From 3 to 6-7 years, the baby actively explores the world and intensively accumulates information. The mental characteristics of preschool children contribute to the comprehensive development of the child and preparation for the upcoming stages of life. It is very important for parents not to miss this moment and make every possible effort to ensure that the child grows up as a harmonious personality.