Modern methods of preschool education for children: description, features and recommendations

Many experts note that those children who did not go to kindergarten and were prepared for school at home do not always fit harmoniously into the group of first-graders. The problem is that parents do not always have all the necessary knowledge and skills to help their beloved child learn to communicate not only with them, but also with the outside world. Therefore, it is important to pay full attention to the child’s development. In addition to physical development, we must not forget about other aspects.

In the modern world, pedagogy and methods of preschool education are closely related. Therefore, parents should be not only true friends of their child, but also his first teachers.

Preschool age

Many people mistakenly avoid this topic, which is why classes with children begin at an untimely time. Therefore, before moving on to the theory and methodology of preschool education, it is worth considering several important stages in the formation of a child’s personality. The first years of life, the baby lives in his own world. He is just beginning to learn about his new surroundings, which cause him genuine amazement and fear. Gradually, the child learns to interact with objects and people around him. He takes the first step and says the cherished “mom” and “dad”.

Experts usually divide the preschool age itself into three stages:

• Jr. In this case, we are talking about the methodology of preschool education, which should be based on the fact that during this period the child begins to identify himself, his “I” is born. The baby learns to evaluate the attitude of others and can easily determine if the parents are happy with him or, conversely, angry. At the same time, it is important to pay attention to activities aimed at developing fine motor skills. Junior preschool age lasts from 3 to 4 years.
• Average. This period lasts from 4 to 5 years. The child begins to form his own concepts and peculiarities of thinking. Gradually, the baby acquires character traits and expresses himself more actively as a person. During this period, the methodology of preschool education should be aimed not only at the development of logic and thinking, but also at the development of more complex motor functions.
• Senior. In this case we are talking about children aged 5 to 7 years. This period is characterized by increased thinking. The child begins to understand that he must perform some duties around the house (for example, putting away toys, helping his mother, etc.). At the same time, he must be able to control his emotional state. By this age, the baby is already quite dexterous, but he must continue to develop physically.

Glen Doman Method

Doman's method is unique in that by devoting a couple of minutes a day to development, you can achieve an increase in the level of intelligence and put a large amount of information into a child's head.

Glen Doman believed that the most active period of brain development is from 0 to 6 years. This means that training can begin as early as 6 months, when the child learns to crawl.

How to educate

The whole process takes place using special cards, divided into thematic groups. They have drawings, inscriptions or signs on them. Each of the cards from one group is shown to the child for a short time several times during the day.

It is assumed that the baby will immediately receive a lot of information about the world around him: he will know not just a dog, but different breeds, not only the fruits and vegetables he eats, but also many others, etc.

With the help of such cards, reading, mathematics and English are taught. Children are offered cards with words, the spelling of which they must remember mechanically, based on visual differences. Calculations are also carried out in a similar way: the child must remember the location of the points in the picture without recalculating them in order to perform operations with numbers.

Pros and cons of the technique

Depending on how fully and actively you use the elements of the method of raising young children, you can highlight both its pros and cons.

Pros:

• classes from a very early age contribute to the fact that already at 2 years the child is well developed;
• does not take much time;
• parents can choose the necessary material and prepare cards themselves; there is no need to contact specialists;
• The classes are unobtrusive and children do not experience negative emotions from them.

Minuses:

• it is necessary to work systematically with the baby, not to skip, in order to get results;
• with children who did not study using this method at an early age, they will not be able to study in this way, they will not be interested;
• the child is passive in learning, cannot ask questions and be interested in what attracted him, does not learn to analyze and synthesize the information received;
• All attention is paid to learning; the possibility of creative development is not provided.

Preschool education programs and methods

The general educational process primarily means certain educational actions that are combined with training and preparation for school. Thus, this is a whole complex of activities. Some parents send their children to preschool education institutions, where teachers prepare them for subsequent education.

Thus, the educational methodology of preschool education is fundamental. It consists of four stages. First of all, it is important to pay attention to the formation of the child’s personality. He must learn to form his own judgments and assess the situation. The second stage is organizing the child’s actions. This means that the child must be able to interact with adults and peers. Even before the first trip to school, the child should already have some experience of communication.

In addition, it is important to form the correct self-esteem and motivation in the child. For this purpose, different methods of preschool education and upbringing are used. They can be successfully used at home.

Methods of education and training in preschool pedagogy; methodological development on the topic

Department of Education of the Administration of Novocherkassk

Methodical office

School of improvement of pedagogical skills

Topic of the lesson: “Methods of education and training in preschool pedagogy”

The process of training and education is a purposeful and organized process of formation:

- knowledge, skills, abilities

— nurturing attitudes, skills and habits of behavior.

This process is built on the principles of didactics, has a clear program, takes place in specially created conditions, in certain forms of organization, using special methods and techniques.

K.D. Ushinsky psychologically substantiated and developed the didactic principles of teaching children in the classroom, emphasizing that already at preschool age it is necessary to separate serious learning from play “you cannot teach children by playing, learning is work.” Therefore, the tasks of preschool education, according to K.D. Ushinsky, is the development of mental strength (development of active attention and conscious memory) and the gift of speech of children, preparation for school. However, at the same time, the scientist put forward the thesis of the duality of teaching and raising preschool children.

There are numerous attempts to develop a system of didactic principles in the works of modern researchers. Their analysis allows us to identify the following principles as fundamental, generally accepted:

— visibility;

- activity and independence;

- systematicity and consistency;

— taking into account the age and individual characteristics of children;

- strength.

During preschool childhood, a child must acquire a certain amount of knowledge, skills and abilities. Knowledge is the result of cognitive activity, and therefore its nature is determined by the nature of cognition of preschool children. The development of preschool children involves their constant interaction with the outside world. This interaction should be as diverse as possible so that the preschooler can realize his abilities and creativity as successfully as possible.

It is important for educators and teachers working with preschool children to know that their main task is not to “adjust” children to master learning skills, but to create favorable conditions for the development of their abilities and even talents.

An essential feature of the cognitive activity of preschool children is its visually effective and visually imaginative nature. Therefore, the knowledge of preschoolers exists in the form of ideas, images, reflecting known objects, phenomena, some of their features, and the child’s actions with them. In this regard, the child’s knowledge is characterized as fragmentary, incomplete, fragmentary, weakly generalized, and unrelated.

Knowledge, abilities, skills and habits are quite closely intertwined; Sometimes it is not always possible to unambiguously attribute one or another quality of a person to one of these four categories.

How do these four concepts relate to each other: knowledge, abilities, skills and habits? The best place to start is by looking at an example. Suppose one citizen decided to become a car enthusiast. To do this, he first decided to get his license. First of all, he gained knowledge: he studied driving theory, traffic rules, and read various useful and not so useful articles on the Internet. Then, gradually, his skills began to develop; a citizen, for example, learned to start a car and move away, perform some maneuvers, etc. Gradually, as experience increased, skills began to be transformed into skills: the citizen began to start the car and perform maneuvers in such a way that he consciously controlled these processes to a much lesser extent; he began to do many things fully “automatically.” Thus, skills honed in practice began to turn (compile) into skills. When a car enthusiast just started driving a car, book knowledge gradually moved from the category of theory to the category of practice. Over time, all book knowledge was tested in reality, the most optimal (or close to it) ways of performing certain operations were found.

The main difference between skills and abilities is that mastery of a skill implies perfect or simply well-honed performance of certain actions. You can have the skill of shooting a rifle or the skill of driving on ice, but you cannot have the skill of government or the skill of writing monographs.

In a sense, knowledge is also skills, also skills. Only these skills relate to verbal and general mental activity of a person. The main difference between knowledge and skills is that a person’s specific knowledge about a particular object or phenomenon is the place of this object or phenomenon in a person’s picture of the world. Any new knowledge of a person cannot be likened to a new file on a computer’s hard drive. Any new knowledge is a changed picture of the human world. If the picture of the world does not change, then this is a skill or skill.

Knowledge, abilities and skills are all manifestations of purposeful activity, purposeful actions, constructive understanding of reality. But in humans, like many animals, however, not every action can be meaningful, purposeful and constructive. The fact is that there is such a thing as a habit. It is important to understand that a habit is not only and not so much a need to do something, but an automatism of behavior, sometimes simple, sometimes complex.

Knowledge is a system of concepts about objects and phenomena acquired as a result of perceptions, analytical-synthetic thinking, memorization and practical activity.

Skill is a person’s ability to perform work productively, with the proper quality and at the appropriate time under new conditions.

A skill as a property of a person is his ability, in the process of purposeful activity, to perform its constituent private actions automatically, without special attention directed to them, but under the control of consciousness. Skills can be mental (thinking and memory), sensory (perception skills), motor (psychomotor) and volitional. Each skill goes through a number of stages in the process of its formation. This process is called skill automation.

Skills and abilities are formed only in practical activities carried out by methods of exercises and training. Without purposeful activity, neither skills, nor even the skills that comprise them, can be formed.

A habit is an action that has become a necessity, causing unpleasant feelings of dissatisfaction and anxiety when it is not performed. Individual words and movements, phrases and actions, acts and behaviors, and even complex and lengthy activities can be habitual. Habits can be useful, facilitating the accurate and timely completion of work, making even hard work enjoyable; may be inappropriate, causing useless and unnecessary actions under the given conditions; There are also harmful ones for life and work, threatening troubles and even great dangers. Appearing in the wrong place and at the wrong time, inappropriate and bad habits can be useful in other conditions.

Many household and work habits are formed in childhood, in the process of upbringing and accumulation of life experience - for example, the habit of behaving properly during meals, the habit of cleanliness and neatness in clothing and premises, the habit of productive work or artistic or technical creativity and invention.

In most cases, habits are formed spontaneously, not intentionally on the part of educators and especially students. And yet, experienced educators form useful habits in their students and eradicate harmful ones through their influence on the consciousness and feelings of the students.

Educational methods - scientifically based methods of pedagogical

expedient interaction between the teacher and students,

contributing to the organization of the life of pupils, their activities,

relationships that stimulate their activity and regulate behavior.

Teaching methods are ways of interconnected activities of the teacher and students, in which children acquire skills, knowledge and abilities,

their worldview is formed, their inherent abilities are developed.

Each method distinguishes between internal and external sides: on the one hand, the mental cognitive processes underlying the methods of action, on the other, the system of methods of action and the child.

Each method is a set of techniques used to solve didactic problems (introduce new things, consolidate a skill or skill, creatively rework what has been learned). A technique is an element of a method.

The following educational methods and techniques exist:

The choice of teaching method will depend on the purpose and content of the upcoming lesson.

1. Visual methods :

a) observation - the ability to peer into the phenomena of the surrounding world, highlighting the main ones in them, notice changes, establish the cause, draw conclusions;

b) demonstration – gives the child a visual image of familiar and unfamiliar objects;

2. Practical methods:

a) exercise – repeated repetition of mental and practical actions of a given content;

b) experiments and experimentation - aimed at helping in acquiring knowledge about a particular subject;

c) modeling - a visual and practical method (globe, map, site plan, etc.);

3. Gaming methods and techniques:

a) didactic game - improving and consolidating knowledge, mastering new knowledge and skills of different content;

b) an imaginary situation in an expanded form - for the assimilation of certain knowledge (“Flower shop” - knowledge about plants, speech development, etc.);

4. Verbal methods:

a) teacher’s story - study of educational material;

b) conversation - when children have knowledge about the subject;

c) reading fiction is a source of knowledge about the world around us, educates feelings, develops thinking, imagination, and memory.

A set of techniques is usually used in one lesson. For example, a comparison of objects or illustrations is accompanied by naming, (a sample word), an explanation, a literary word, and appeals to children. The teacher must first not only think through the general course of the lesson, but also carefully outline teaching techniques (precision and brevity of formulations, compatibility of individual techniques).

In preschool educational institutions, visual and game methods in combination with verbal ones predominate. For example, E.I. Tikheyeva believed that the learning process for children in kindergarten should be based on visualization in teaching. She argued that the special organization of the environment contributes to the expansion and deepening of children’s ideas.

Literature.

Preschool pedagogy (edited by V.I. Loginova and P.G. Samorukova). —

M.: Education, 1988

Platonov K.K., Golubev G.G. Psychology. – M., 1977

Ponomarev Ya. A. Knowledge, thinking and mental development. – M., 1967

Shaporinsky S. A. Education and scientific knowledge. – M., 1981

Promotion

A similar method of teaching, preschool education and upbringing allows you to adjust the child’s behavior. A child who is preparing to go to school must learn to distinguish bad deeds from good ones and correctly place emphasis. He must not behave inappropriately in society. It is important to develop respect for his parents.

Thanks to encouragement, the child’s positive thinking is strengthened. If he feels positive by doing something good, then it will help him become a good person. It is worth considering that until the age of six, children really need praise, so this method is very effective. However, it is important not to develop too much of a consumerist attitude in your child.

Therefore, this method of preschool education must be used very carefully. For example, you should not say: “If you brush your teeth today, I will give you a new toy.” It’s better to wait until the baby completes the required action and give him a small present, as if for no reason. His brain will automatically associate pleasant emotions with brushing his teeth.

Punishment

Modern methods of education in the field of preschool education, as a rule, exclude such methods of interaction with children. However, in some situations there is simply no other way to do it. For example, if the child is hyperactive and cannot be controlled by parents. However, physical punishment should be completely excluded.

It is also important to take into account some features of this approach. First of all, you cannot scold your child for actions that he committed a long time ago. Also, preventive punishment will not lead to anything good. Sometimes, in order to prevent the child from misbehaving, parents begin to punish him for something that he has not yet done at all.

Experts do not recommend using such methods, as parents often resort to humiliation. If they do not punish, but insult the child, then this will negatively affect his psyche.

Belief

With the development of preschool education methods, specialists are increasingly using precisely these methods of interaction with children. In this case, we are talking about the fact that the parents talk to the baby as to an adult, explaining to him the correct actions and unacceptable ones.

In this case, it is important to take into account the individual characteristics of the child’s behavior. The conversation should be conducted in such a way that the conversation is as logical as possible for the child. There is no need to indulge in complex demagoguery and jump from one topic to another. The child must focus and understand what is required of him.

This is one of the so-called blocks of teaching methods in preschool education. First of all, a child needs to be formed into a personality that will be ready for educational activities. Considerable importance should also be given to mental preparation and motor development. It is worth considering these features in more detail.

Mental education

If parents do not pay enough attention to this aspect, then it will be much more difficult for the child to integrate into the educational process at school. Therefore, it is extremely important that the baby is inquisitive and able to think from a very early age. At the same time, attention is paid to the development of memory, speech and attention.

According to teaching methods in the field of preschool education, by the age of six, a child should be able to draw. This means that you need to teach your child to at least repeat certain patterns. If he has a penchant for creativity, then you should not limit him. Children who draw rather than copy have great potential, which is recommended to be developed more.

Also, before going to school, the child must learn to color pictures and be able to at least partially follow the contours. This is important, since in the first years at school he will focus on spelling.

In addition, parents are recommended to teach their child to learn short rhymes. It would be good if he knew what a retelling is. Therefore, you can read short stories to your child and then ask him to describe what he remembers.

By the age of six, children can often count to at least 10. They know where they live, can name the last and first names of their mother and father, and understand the seasons. It is worth teaching the baby months. Some parents, even before going to school, explain how to correctly determine the time on the clock.

It’s easy to see that a lot is required from mom and dad. Parents should teach their child the basics so that in first grade not all information is a discovery of a new world for him. To achieve the best results, it is recommended to study the basics of preschool education methods.

As a rule, mental development involves the use of various educational games. It is worth reading books to your child as much as possible, and not allowing him to spend all his free time in front of the computer or with a mobile phone in his hands.

Waldorf school

This is an education system invented by the German educator Rudolf Steiner. He believed that children should discover and receive methods of self-development and self-knowledge through their own thinking.

The entire method is aimed primarily at spiritual development. Teachers are required to reveal the child’s potential and his talents in such a way as to give him faith in his own strength.

How to raise a child

All development occurs at a pace convenient for the child: education begins at the age of 7, but basic subjects are introduced only after 2-3 years.

The main thing is not to memorize the material, but to imitate adults through role-playing games. Therefore, the main activities of Waldorf schools are dancing, singing, theatrical performances, drawing and working with various natural materials.

Development is divided into 3 stages, which have different goals:

• previous education - mainly practical exercises and games;
• primary education – socialization and artistic development;
• secondary education – development of critical thinking and empathy for others.

One of the features of Rudolf Steiner's technique is considered to be eurythmic dances - these are 20-minute breaks for physical activity (claps, stomping, dancing, reading poetry and singing). These can often be related to topics that children are currently learning.

Moreover, the material is presented not in the usual order, but in epochs. If the era of native literature is studied, then it is reflected in all subjects. Even history is not taught in chronological order, but with topics that relate to the basic concepts of the current era.

The teacher does not grade students and does not leave unsuccessful students for a second year. But at the end of each school year, he writes a detailed report on each of the students, which is given to parents.

Advantages and disadvantages

Among the advantages of the Waldorf school are:

• comfortable conditions and pace of learning suitable for each student;
• comprehensive personality development;
• creative development and unlocking the potential of each child;
• an atmosphere of goodwill helps to unite people and learn to interact with them.

There are also disadvantages:

• the educational system is built on the principles of anthroposophy (the idea of ​​the trinity of man - Spirit, Soul and Body), which not all parents support;
• the peculiarities of the Waldorf school may make it difficult for the student to socialize and defend his point of view;
• children with high intellectual development may lose interest in learning due to lack of new information;
• students are always busy with some kind of activity and do not have free time, so they get very tired;
• The technique implies that parents must spend a lot of time with their child both at school and outside of it.

Physical education

Do not forget that at school the child will be engaged in more than just mental activities. You need to understand that the first 6-7 years of a child’s life are characterized by increased activity and mobility. During this period, it is very important to direct it in the right direction. As a rule, this responsibility falls on the parents. Or you can send your child to a sports section for the little ones, where a specialist will take on this mission.

If we talk about working independently with a child, then in this case it is worth paying attention to several important stages. First of all, the child must understand what recovery is. Experts recommend practicing hardening procedures, preventing flat feet, etc.

By the age of 6, it is worth teaching your child to swim, run, jump and the simplest games on the playground. This will help build his endurance, agility and speed of reaction. Since children at this age are quite active themselves, it will not be difficult to involve them in such activities. For example, parents can start doing sports or recreational treatments in the fresh air with their child. This will also help strengthen the family bond.

It would be a good idea to buy sports equipment. If a child has a horizontal bar, a jump rope and a ball in his room, he will be able to practice independently, without the participation of adults. However, the area of ​​a children's room does not always allow you to place everything you need there. In this case, you can enroll your child in the sports section.

Physical education helps to discipline a child. He gets used to the daily routine and begins to understand what a healthy lifestyle is. At the same time, strong-willed qualities are developed. The child begins to understand that not everything comes so easily. In order to achieve this goal, it is necessary to make considerable efforts. All this also has a positive impact on the formation of the future student’s personality.

It is also worth considering that today there may be outdated methods of preschool education. Retraining of specialists has become very important, since what worked 50 years ago is not so effective in the age of computer technology. Therefore, it is worth considering several techniques that are successfully used today.

Maria Montessori system

This program is designed for preschoolers from 3 years old, but modern experts say that it is acceptable at an earlier age. The main principle of the system is based on the fact that the child is given complete freedom. The child is free to choose what interests him and spend his free time as he wishes.

But this does not mean permissiveness. The point is that the child only thinks that he is not forced, but he does something himself. This means that parents are required to subtly push him into one activity or another. In this case, he will not have the impression that something is being imposed on him.

Reggio pedagogy

Italian technology, based on the ideas of Vygotsky and Maria Montessori. The author of the technology is Loris Malaguzzi. Malaguzzi believed that the child had at least 100 languages, but 99 of them were stolen. Much in a child’s life happens at the direction of adults, even holidays. The main postulate is that the environment must meet the needs and capabilities of the child.

What principles does it work on?

• A separate program includes space for the child. He can even retire and do only what he wants.

• The parent is completely immersed in the work of the kindergarten. He sometimes goes to kindergarten with the child, helps, and becomes a partner.

• There is no assessment and control - no final tests. The Reggio teacher uses observation, records the results of the child’s work, but does not give an assessment.

What goals does the child achieve?

• Learns partnership. Children are taught to work in groups so that they learn to negotiate, cooperate, and get used to the fact that they are “not alone.”

• Studies culture. Classes are not limited to the kindergarten environment: children are taken on excursions, helped to understand relationships between people, the rules of society, and traditions.

• Learns free choice. The child himself chooses the pace of classes and the materials with which he will play.

What should a teacher be like?

The teacher must follow six rules:

1. Respect the child and look him in the eye.
2. Explain the rules and ask a question. Only this way, and not the other way around.
3. Not “wrong”, but “different”.
4. Offer choice and don't rush.
5. Learn in any situation.
6. Fantasizing is more important than reading.

Zaitsev cubes

This technique is aimed at teaching reading and writing. Thanks to this, children show their first successful results already at the age of 2-3 years. The system is extremely simple. Parents purchase 52 cubes, each of which has letters, numbers, etc. written on it. Thanks to this, the baby begins to form words very quickly and imperceptibly. If you additionally hang warehouses on the wall, the child will repeat what he sees. In addition, this has a positive effect on the development of hand motor skills. If you regularly practice with cubes, the results will not take long to arrive.

Thus, parents can independently prepare their child for school. If mom and dad devote enough time to raising the baby, then he will sit at the school desk already prepared. If both parents work, it is recommended to consider the possibility of classes with specialists. In preschool institutions, children receive all the necessary basic knowledge. At the same time, the child will communicate with peers and learn to establish friendships.

Methodology of Nikolai Zaitsev

The famous teacher Nikolai Zaitsev developed his own method, with the help of which a child can easily learn to read at an early age. Children have fun during classes, actively using special cubes. They differ from each other in printed syllables, size and content (they make voiced or unvoiced sounds).

How to educate using this method

In addition to the cubes, there are special tables with the help of which the baby puts the cubes in the right order.

Classes are usually held 2 times a week and take from 30 minutes to an hour. It is worth figuring out how long a four-year-old child can withstand without fatigue. It is at this age that it is recommended to start training.

As with other methods, there are principles here:

• learning without coercion, which is playful in nature;
• reading by warehouses, and not by syllables (A warehouse is a special unit of speech, where one consonant letter is combined with a vowel or with hard or soft signs);
• reading is based on a kind of writing, because the baby “writes” a word, composing it from cubes;
• The work of the senses plays an important role; with their help, children distinguish cubes according to various parameters.

Advantages and disadvantages

In addition to the fact that Zaitsev’s technique gives excellent results, it has a number of other advantages:

• the baby prepares for writing in advance, which means he will do it with fewer mistakes than his peers;
• memory and logical thinking develops;
• classes do not require sitting at a desk, which has a good effect on children’s vision and posture;
• The technique can be adapted to counting, mathematics and teaching English.

But there are also disadvantages:

• Difficulties may arise with phonetic parsing of words;
• at school you will have to relearn different color symbols for letters;
• the allowance is quite expensive, and preparing it yourself will take a lot of time;
• Children who learn to read well using Zaitsev's cubes may become bored at school.