Ecology and education are the essence of concepts
It is often the most obvious that seems most incomprehensible. The concept of “ecology” has long become common, familiar, and most importantly, universal. The problem is that ecology is a very complex science, formed at the intersection of biology, geography, chemistry and, to some extent, physics. To be even more precise, ecology is a particular manifestation of general systems theory.
If we ask a person far from science what ecology is, we usually get the answer: “It’s something about cleanliness on the planet.” Somehow it happened that this concept was reduced from a complex systems science to actions to cleanse the territory of garbage.
Without going into the details of this transformation, we will give a purely scientific definition of ecology: it is the science of the patterns of functioning of ecological systems. It is logical to continue this definition with the concept of ecological systems. These are living systems, the functional units of which are organisms of different species in their interaction with each other and with components of inanimate nature. Thus, the object of the science of ecology is all living matter on the planet.
However, biology should not be confused with ecology. In biology, the object is the organism in all its manifestations except the psyche. In ecology, the object is the process of interactions of organisms with each other. Since these interactions are constant, they form an ecological system.
Thus, to simplify the definition, ecology is a system of knowledge about how organisms interact with each other to form an ecological system.
Before moving on to the problems of environmental education, it is necessary to touch upon one more concept - the ecological environment. Many people believe that ecology and environment are synonymous. However, it is not. The environment is not a completely correct concept. The environment is what is in the middle, what surrounds the object. Thus, we get a tautology.
It would be more correct to use the term ecological environment, which is interpreted as a specific environment created by the interaction of living objects. Since any organism can live only in such an environment, this definition can be interpreted somewhat differently. The ecological environment is those parameters of the external environment for a given organism that are formed by the activities of various organisms in their interaction with each other.
And the concept of “environment,” despite its incorrectness, has been included in textbooks and laws. For this reason, it is more of a legal term relating to the safety of human life than a scientific concept.
The essence and content of environmental education for preschool children
Environmental education is the acquisition by an individual of environmental knowledge, skills and abilities.
Environmental education is the assimilation by an individual not only of environmental knowledge, but also of special environmental ethics and their transition into a life position, and therefore it includes intellectual and moral aspects.
Ecological culture is knowledge of the basic laws of nature; awareness of the need to take them into account and be guided by them in individual and collective activities; the desire for optimality in personal and industrial use of natural resources; developing a sense of responsible attitude towards nature, the environment around the individual, and people’s health.
This concept includes the intellectual, aesthetic, ethical, activity-volitional aspect of an individual’s life, as well as his practical everyday and professional activities. Ecological consciousness is a set of views, theories, concepts and social emotions that reflect the problems of the relationship between society and the natural environment. Ecological thinking is a mental act for solving a specific environmental problem. Ecological thinking requires environmental knowledge, which is applied in practice to overcome any problematic environmental situation. 3 As a result of environmental education and upbringing, children develop environmental thinking and environmental consciousness, and lay the foundations of an environmental culture.
Environmental education of preschool children is a continuous process of training, education and personal development, aimed at developing a system of scientific and practical knowledge and skills that ensure the child’s responsible attitude towards the natural environment and health. The continuity of environmental education of preschoolers can be traced in the tasks of their environmental education, arising from its main goal, which is to educate children in the initial forms of ecological culture, their understanding of elementary relationships in nature, and the development of initial practical skills of humanely creative and emotional-sensory interaction with natural objects of the immediate environment.
S.N. Nikolaeva considers environmental education as a process of introducing children to nature, which is based on an ecological approach, i.e. basic environmental ideas and concepts. But when organizing environmental education for preschool children, it is necessary to adapt environmental concepts for preschool age. Environmental education of preschool children is carried out on the basis of content that includes leading ideas and concepts of theoretical ecology. Ecology as a science studies the relationships of organisms with their environment and with each other.
There are three sections of bioecology that consider these relationships: - autecology - considers the relationship of an individual organism with its environment; — demecology – examines the relationships between populations of different species of animals and plants and their habitat; 4 - synecology - examines the relationships between communities of living organisms and the environment where they live together. These sections of ecology can be the basis of environmental education for preschool children, taking into account their age, mental and personal developmental characteristics. The main thing is that all the material for the implementation of environmental education for preschoolers is visual and can be included in the practical activities of children. The section of autecology has the greatest opportunities for environmental education, since within it preschoolers are surrounded by specific, individual living organisms, for example, indoor plants and outdoor plants (in a kindergarten area, near the house, etc.), domestic and ornamental animals , insects, birds. All of them are available to the child for direct perception and awareness of their interaction with the environment. Within this section, preschoolers become familiar with the relationships between a living organism and its environment: any living organism has needs that cannot be satisfied through its internal resources, but are satisfied through environmental factors (needs for nutrition, water, oxygen). Another important concept in the autecology section for the environmental education of preschool children is the morphofunctional adaptation (adaptation) of the organism to its environment. This concept deciphers the previous one, revealing the mechanisms of the relationship of living organisms with their environment. Since the external morphological (related to the structure) features of animals and plants are accessible to the perception of preschoolers, they easily acquire knowledge about fitness, shown in specific examples. The concept of the relationship between a living organism and its environment should be concretized for preschoolers with the concept of habitat. For example, a teacher discusses with preschoolers what is needed for the life of an animal or plant (substrate, air, water, food, a certain temperature, etc.), what objects and materials with certain properties surround them. Through these concepts, preschoolers comprehend the main ecological idea that any living organism, with its needs and the need to satisfy them, is connected with its environment through morphofunctional adaptability, i.e. adaptation to specific living conditions. Concepts from the section of demecology are not used in organizing environmental education for preschool children, since it is impossible to visually monitor the life of any population, and children can only gain verbal knowledge about it if they have well-developed verbal thinking. Therefore, environmental education of preschool children may not include knowledge from the demecology section. The section of synecology in the environmental education of preschool children, which examines the life of animals and plants in the community, should be used adapted to the level of cognitive capabilities of preschool age. The main concept of synecology is an ecosystem - a community of living beings and their habitat, united into a single functional whole, arising on the basis of interdependence and cause-and-effect relationships between individual environmental components.
S.N. Nikolaeva gives three levels of ecosystems: microecosystem (rotten stump), mesoecosystem (forest, meadow, pond), macroecosystem (continent, ocean). Environmental education of preschoolers can be carried out within the framework of this section, since, for example, when walking with adults in the forest, meadow, or park, preschoolers, under their guidance, can learn the main inhabitants of these ecosystems and their relationships with each other and with the environment. Also, within the framework of this section of ecology, preschoolers can learn the concept of food chains - food relationships between representatives of the ecosystem. In each natural community there is a biological cycle (of energy and substances) through food chains. Preschoolers can learn in general terms the links of the food chain (using the example of a forest): a complex of factors of inanimate nature (climate, soil, etc.) determines the composition of trees and other plants that serve as food for various herbivores (caterpillars, beetles, birds, rodents, ungulates). Herbivorous forest inhabitants serve as food for small and large predators. The last link in the chain is organisms (bacteria, fungi) that convert all organic residues (fallen leaves, animal corpses) into inorganic substances (minerals) that enter the soil and are absorbed by plants. In environmental education of preschool children S.N. Nikolaeva proposes the identification of a special ecological concept of human interaction with nature, through which any human impact on nature, on ecosystems as a whole and on their individual links is demonstrated. For example: the destruction of wolves (reducing the predator link in the food chain of a forest ecosystem to a minimum) leads to a sharp increase in the number of herbivorous animals, as a result of which many plants are destroyed and, consequently, the entire ecosystem is disrupted. In-depth knowledge of the ecosystem is available only to specialists, and only visible, easily detectable phenomena are presented to the attention of preschoolers as part of their environmental education. The teacher can show preschoolers the connection between 2 and 4 links of biogeocenosis. Observations on walks, in the forest, in the park, in the meadow, followed by visual modeling and discussion, enable preschoolers to understand the idea of a “common home,” by which the author means a community of plants and animals living together in the same territory, under the same conditions, interconnected with each other. The system of environmental education for preschool children consists of blocks (subsystems) covering all aspects of the environmental and pedagogical process in kindergarten: - content of environmental education; 7 - ways to implement the content of environmental education (methods and technologies); — organization of environmental education; — management of the process of environmental education.
Environmental education for preschool children includes such components as various types of environmental activities; greening various types of children's activities; environmental education of parents; training and retraining of teaching staff; greening of the developing subject environment; environmental assessment; coordination of work with other institutions, primarily with the school. At the same time, in the environmental education of preschoolers, its specific content for children of each age stage should be determined, and the need for its environmental focus should be identified. Thus, environmental education of preschool children is aimed at instilling the initial forms of ecological culture, creating conditions for them to understand elementary relationships in nature, and developing their initial practical skills in humane, creative and emotional-sensory interaction with natural objects of the immediate environment. The content is based on bioecological concepts, adapted to the level of cognitive abilities of preschoolers. A didactic system of knowledge about nature, built on various aspects of the relationship between plants, animals, and humans with the external environment and being ecological in its essence, constitutes an essential characteristic of the environmental education of preschool children. Types of activities of preschool children during direct educational activities in the environmental education system
Knowledge about inanimate nature. During preschool age, children develop knowledge about the change of day and night, about typical weather phenomena characteristic of the local region: the presence of warm and cold days, cloudy and sunny weather, typical atmospheric phenomena - rain, snowfall, wind, frost, frost, thunderstorm etc. Preschoolers learn to recognize the state of the weather and define it with the appropriate term-word. Gradually, children begin to correlate the weather conditions with one time or another of the year and establish the reasons for seasonal changes.
Children develop ideas about the aggregate state of water and its dependence on air temperature: liquid water can be solid (ice, snow, frost); in frosty weather, the snow crumbles, creaks underfoot - it is impossible to sculpt anything from it; When warm, it begins to melt, become moist, and plastic—you can sculpt various shapes from it.
In kindergarten, pupils are introduced to such objects of inanimate nature as sand and clay. Children love to play with these natural materials. However, for the development of gaming activity, it is important to have a clear understanding of their properties. Dry sand flows, water passes through it freely, and if it is moistened, it becomes plastic, and then you can build and sculpt from it. Clay does not allow water to pass through, dry clay crumbles, but wet clay can take on any shape.
Children get acquainted with the soil, its cultivation, and preparation for growing plants. The children also form ideas about some cosmic bodies: the Moon, stars, the Sun. Children learn that the Sun is the source of light and heat on Earth. The system of knowledge about inanimate nature underlies the understanding of the relationships between living and inanimate nature. Knowledge about plants. In preschool age, it is necessary to teach children to distinguish and name the most typical trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants that are often found in a given area. The teacher selects the plants of the local region that bloom most brightly at different times of the year and shows them to the children. In the garden, he suggests observing the growth and development of vegetable crops, and in the flower garden - admiring ornamental plants blooming in different periods - from spring to autumn. When visiting the field with children, the teacher organizes observations of the cultivation of grain crops. In the forest you can show the children trees and shrubs, berries and mushrooms. And in the meadow - introduce them to flowering herbaceous plants. Kindergarten students are also introduced to indoor plants, taught to recognize, distinguish and name the brightest and most common of them.
In preschool age, children have access to knowledge about the needs of plants: for life, growth and development, plants need light, warmth, moisture, and soil nutrition. Children learn to distinguish parts of plants (leaf, stem, root, flower, bud, seed, fruit), learn about the functions of some of them, for example, the root takes moisture and nutrients from the ground. Children are introduced to various ways to care for indoor plants, as well as plants in the garden and flower garden. The children learn that all plants need to be watered, cleaned of dust, fed, weeded, and in addition, they need to loosen the soil for them. They develop knowledge about where plants grow (in a vegetable garden, flower garden, park, meadow, forest).
During preschool age, children form ideas about changes in the state of plants in different seasons: awakening, rapid growth and development in spring and summer, ripening of fruits and seeds in summer and autumn, dormancy in winter. It is necessary to ensure that children understand the essence of the state of the trees, shrubs, and grasses known to them in a given season and can explain the reasons for this state. It is very important to give students basic knowledge about plant protection. Knowledge about animals. Preschool children are introduced to the most common representatives of mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, amphibians and insects.
They are told about domestic animals and wild animals of their native land. Gradually, children learn about the lives of the most typical animals in other zones. The teacher introduces them to birds - wintering and migratory, living near people (it’s good if they can be observed all year round) - and, if possible, teaches the children how to care for domestic birds or those kept in a corner of nature. Preschoolers develop ideas about reptiles and amphibians. Knowledge about fish and their habits is well formed in the process of observing and caring for aquarium fish. By observing and caring for animals, children gain knowledge about their appearance, behavior, adaptation to environmental conditions, including seasonal changes in nature.
Knowledge about the work of adults in nature. The teacher tells children about methods of growing plants and caring for animals, about nature conservation and its use by humans. The children will learn about the conditions necessary for the growth and development of plants, about methods of soil cultivation, about how sowing, planting, weeding, fertilizing, etc. of grain, vegetable and other crops are carried out.
In rural kindergartens, children develop knowledge about caring for pets. Visiting collective and state farms, children observe feeding animals, cleaning premises, grazing livestock, and preparing feed.
Preschoolers will learn about some ways to protect nature: feeding animals in the cold season, attracting birds by constructing feeders and nesting areas. Children have access to knowledge about rare animals and plants of their region, protected by the state.
In conjunction with the accumulation of knowledge about the work of adults, the formation of labor skills and abilities in children occurs. Preschoolers learn to care for plants and animals in a corner of nature, on the site. Knowledge about seasonal changes in nature. At preschool age, the following knowledge about changes in nature is available: each season has its own length of day and night, a certain type of weather, air temperature, typical precipitation; The characteristics of inanimate natural phenomena determine the state of the plant world and the way of life of animals in a given season: in winter, plants are at rest, in spring, as the length of the day and air temperature increase, favorable conditions are created for the growth and development of plants - the period of active growing season begins. The most favorable conditions for plant life are created in the summer: the days are long, the air temperature rises, and heavy rainfall occurs. In autumn, the length of the day gradually shortens, the air temperature drops, and plant life freezes: they prepare for a state of dormancy.
Animal life also depends to a large extent on changes in nature. Many animals adapt to the winter cold: birds and animals are molting in autumn; some of them prepare food and change shelter. Changes in the life of plants lead to changes in the life of animals: insects disappear, then migratory birds fly away. These general patterns can be learned by children provided that during preschool age they develop specific ideas about each season (length of day, air temperature, typical precipitation, state of plants, lifestyle of animals, work of adults, changes in the lives of children themselves in one season or another). The children should know the sequence of seasons.
All this knowledge is gradually acquired by children by the end of preschool age.
Formation of a careful and caring attitude towards nature. Love for nature can be cultivated only on the basis of knowledge, as we have already noted, about plants and animals, their living conditions, basic needs, as well as skills and abilities to care for plants and animals. Its aesthetic perception also contributes to the formation of a caring attitude towards nature. In addition, children of all age groups need to develop a cognitive attitude towards nature and a desire to learn as much as possible about it.
Objectives and content of knowledge about. nature, children's skills and abilities expand and become more complex from one age group to another. At each age level, what has been achieved is improved.
Children in the first and second junior groups begin to systematically introduce children to nature. At this age, it is important that children accumulate knowledge, that is, specific ideas about individual objects of nature: about natural material (sand, water, snow, ice) and its properties, about the structure of plants (stem, leaf, flower) and Their needs for moisture, the appearance of animals (fish, birds, mammals) and their methods of movement, nutrition. Children are introduced to the babies of some animals: a kitten, a puppy, rabbits, chickens. They are given the first knowledge of the distinctive features of the seasons.
Younger preschoolers should understand some connections between natural phenomena: the wind blows - the trees sway, the sun shines - it becomes warmer. The teacher teaches children to observe objects and natural phenomena. In this case, children are given an observation task and a plan to follow. As the observation progresses, the teacher teaches children survey actions. It is very important to teach children to talk about the results of observations. The teacher’s task is to form in children an emotionally positive, caring attitude towards nature (the ability to rejoice at the sight of a flower, bird, or sun).
In the middle group, children’s ideas about the properties and qualities of inanimate objects expand and become more specific (for example, water is a transparent liquid that flows; some objects float in water, others sink; snow and water change their properties depending on air temperature).
Children develop the idea that plants need warmth and moisture, and animals cannot live without a variety of food, water, and a warm home.
Children also learn general concepts, such as: trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants, garden and flower garden plants, vegetables, fruits, domestic and wild animals.
Pupils in the middle group continue to learn to observe natural objects. This activity is more complicated than in previous groups. Children are taught to accept the task of observation, they master investigative actions, try to compare, talk coherently about what they observe, and draw conclusions.
As in early preschool age, in the middle group children continue to develop a love for animals and plants, but now they must show it in practice - by caring for their pets in a corner of nature. In the older group, the main task becomes to develop in children knowledge about the connections and relationships that exist in nature: about the needs of plants and animals depending on living conditions and condition, about the connections between certain organs and their functions.
Children will learn about the stages of plant growth and development, about seasonal changes in nature and their causes, and about a certain sequence of seasonal changes. In older preschool age, children's knowledge is systematized: connections are established between the needs of plants, animals and human labor aimed at satisfying these needs; between the organs of animals, their functions and habitat (a fish has fins, it swims in water; a bird has wings and legs, it flies in the air, walks on the ground, and jumps).
Systematization of knowledge about the seasons occurs on the basis of establishing temporal (what happens after what) and cause-and-effect (what causes certain phenomena) connections. It is important to develop in children the ability to observe changes in natural phenomena, cultivate a sense of love for all living things, and teach some simple ways to protect nature. In the preparatory group for school, the main task is to clarify and expand knowledge about the regular changes in inanimate natural phenomena, their further systematization and generalization. It is necessary to form ideas about the change of seasons, about the increase (or decrease) in the length of day and night, about natural changes in air temperature, and the nature of precipitation.
Children develop clear ideas that every animal and plant is adapted to a specific environment. Preschoolers acquire knowledge about seasonal changes in the life of plants and animals, establishing connections between their needs and the degree of their satisfaction at different times of the year.
The generalization and systematization of knowledge about the growth and development of plants and animals, about their main groups (based on the nature of their adaptation to the conditions of the environment and the territory they occupy - forest, meadow, pond, field, etc.) continues. Knowledge about seasonal changes in nature is generalized based on a deeper understanding of temporal and causal dependencies. Knowledge about the work of adults in nature is systematized on the basis of an understanding of its necessity to meet the needs of plants and animals.
Increasing the complexity of knowledge requires improving the mental activity of children. They are taught to set the task of observation, to plan it in an elementary way, and to use different methods of observation. The first skills of search activity are formed: the ability to analyze a situation, accept or set a simple task, make an assumption, compare accumulated facts, and draw conclusions.
In the process of work, children develop the ability to see the need for this or that work, plan its sequence, and interact with peers. The acquired knowledge and skills contribute to the formation of a negative attitude towards the manifestation of negligence or cruelty in contact with nature, and evoke a desire to protect it.
Thus, by the end of preschool age, children acquire an elementary system of knowledge about nature, which contributes to the development of mental activity and the formation of a stable positive attitude towards nature.
Education: variety of approaches to definition
The concept of “education” is equally multifaceted and contradictory. It may include the following definitions.
- a personality trait formed by his environment (educated and uneducated child);
- a set of technologies aimed at shaping the personality of a child, who must have certain qualities;
- a purposeful process of personality change in accordance with the requirements of society or another system (for example, the state);
- the formation of skills, values, socially significant habits, motivations, a system of self-restraints that are adequate to the state of society at this stage of its development.
Environmental education: the borders of contact between two sciences
Based on all the above definitions, the goal of environmental education is to form in a child a system of values, skills and motivations that would be aimed at preserving the stable state of local ecosystems and the global ecosystem called the “biosphere.”
The environmental education of a child, like any person, is self-restraint in accordance with a system of environmental values. A distinctive feature of environmental education is the increased level of prohibitions aimed at preserving the stable state of ecosystems.
Childhood makes significant adjustments to achieving the goals of environmental education and upbringing. Indeed, how can you explain to a four-year-old child what an ecosystem is and why something needs to be protected? It seems that environmental education is all about prohibitions. This can sometimes make a repulsive impression, so such education is a delicate matter, requiring knowledge of the subject.
Environmental education of children of middle preschool age. article (middle group) on the topic
GBDOU No. 52 Frunzensky district
Saint Petersburg
"Ecological education of children of middle preschool age"
Educator: Voronko E.A.
2017
Nowadays, the problems of environmental education have come to the fore and
they are receiving increasing attention.
Why did these problems become relevant?
The reason is human activity in nature, which is often illiterate and incorrect from an environmental point of view, wasteful, leading to a disruption of the ecological balance.
Each of those who brought and are causing harm to nature was once a child. That is why the role of preschool institutions in the environmental education of children, starting from an early age, is so great.
Our task is to show parents the need to instill an environmental culture in their children.
What does the concept of “ecological culture” include?
Ecological culture is knowledge, practical skills, aesthetic experiences, emotional attitude and practical actions and behavior of children (empathy, sympathy, interest and desire to help nature, the ability to admire its beauty, etc.)
The main task of getting to know the environment in a preschool educational institution is to form in children a holistic perception and understanding of various objects and phenomena of the surrounding reality.
Classes to familiarize yourself with the environment include familiarization with the phenomena of social life; familiarization with the objective world created by man; familiarization with the phenomena of living and inanimate nature.
During classes, we introduce children to a certain type of properties, connections and relationships, specific to each of the four main areas of pedagogical work highlighted in the program: “Man”, “Objective World”, “Living Nature”, “Inanimate Nature”.
Preschool childhood is the initial stage of personality formation and its value orientation in the world around us. At this age, the child develops a positive attitude towards nature, himself and the people around him.
Fostering a caring attitude towards the natural environment in middle-aged children begins in the family and continues to develop in the preschool years in kindergarten.
The goal of environmental education is the formation of a new type of person with new ecological thinking, capable of realizing the consequences of his actions in relation to the environment and able to live in relative harmony with nature.
Elementary environmental knowledge acquired by children at a young age will help them in the future to master environmental subjects; it is necessary to form the environmental culture of preschoolers in kindergarten from the moment children arrive in the first junior group.
Despite the visual-figurative nature of the thinking of preschoolers, we consider it necessary to acquaint them not only with the visible and tangible connections and relationships that exist in nature, but also with the hidden causes of natural phenomena. It is important to give the child not only the joyful surprise of a naturalist, but also to introduce him to the inquisitive analysis of a naturalist.
The process of developing a consciously correct attitude towards nature is accompanied by certain forms of child behavior, which can serve as a criterion for assessing the level of his environmental education. These are independent observations, experiments, questions, the desire to talk about experiences and impressions, to translate them into reality (reflect them in a game, in an art activity, care for animals and plants, etc.). Adults (parents and teachers) should help them with this.
Children of middle preschool age have a very developed cognitive interest, in particular in nature. It is at this age that they perceive the world as a whole, which contributes to the formation of an ecological culture. It is very important to maintain this cognitive interest.
The content of the formation of the principles of environmental education should be scientific. It should contribute to the formation in children of a holistic perception of the world around them, on the one hand, and the interconnections of the parts of this whole, on the other.
A child receives a volume of knowledge, skills, and value relations in the field of environmental education appropriate for preschool age in the family, kindergarten, through the media, observations, and reading fiction. The influence of the family on the formation of the beginnings of the child’s ecological culture is determined by the attitude of its members to the surrounding nature and the general culture of the family members.
The formation of an ecological culture in a kindergarten involves the development of the child’s aesthetic and ethical feelings, which evoke joyful communication with nature, individual for each child, and have different emotional shades, positive or negative. With positive emotions, an awareness of the value of nature, its beauty, an aesthetic attitude towards it is formed, and the spiritual enrichment of the child’s personality occurs.
When organizing and conducting observations in nature in kindergarten, the following positions are important: the presence of natural objects; determining the content of observation; search for optimal forms and methods of including children in them.
Depending on the object and the age of the children, observations can be episodic, lasting several minutes (observation of a snowflake in the palm of your hand; observation of frost, the behavior of birds at the feeder; on a frosty day, listen to the creaking of snow; admire how the snow glistens in sunny weather; the melting of icicles; for a spring thunderstorm;) and long-term ones, which last for many days and sometimes weeks (for the behavior of fish in an aquarium; for snow; for the awakening and growth of plants; for buds on trees; for changes in the color of leaves; for a dandelion).
Long-term observations are valuable in that they allow us to capture the sequence in the occurrence of natural phenomena, their visible connection, which is accessible to the visual perception of a preschool child.
There is an opinion that in environmental education knowledge is not so important, and the main emphasis is on instilling a caring attitude towards nature and developing working skills in natural conditions. Of course, children’s emotional attitude towards natural objects, familiarity with a number of animals and plants, and caring for them play a big role in the formation of environmentally literate ideas about the environment. However, this is not enough: children need a minimum of environmental knowledge that will help them understand the need to behave environmentally competently. The combination of an emotional attitude towards nature and knowledge about it will give a much greater effect. It is necessary to combine the spiritual and intellectual development of the child wisely, taking into account the psychological and physiological characteristics. It should be noted that many teachers in the learning process draw children’s attention, first of all, to living objects, especially animals. Very little attention is paid to objects of inanimate nature. At the same time, it is known that children have a great interest in objects of inanimate nature, and with proper organization of work (conducting experiments, observations), the child easily acquires knowledge about inanimate nature and its connection with living nature. Children should understand the reasons for the need to preserve all species of animals and plants without exception. They must be taught not to pick beautiful flowers, because... these flowers may also disappear due to habitat disturbance. It is important that children understand the need to preserve all living organisms on Earth. The teacher should not use the words “harmful, useful” in conversations with children.
Environmental knowledge becomes the basis of environmental education.
The child develops a certain system of values, an idea of man as a part of nature, of the dependence of his life and his health on its condition. It is also important to cultivate an understanding of the need for reasonable consumption. Environmental education is also associated with the development of a child’s emotions, the ability to sympathize, be surprised, empathize, take care of living organisms, perceive them as fellow creatures in nature, and be able to see the beauty of the world around them. The child should develop an active position, a desire to change something around him for the better. The teacher must make the children feel that even their feasible, seemingly insignificant, actions determine what the world around them will be like. The child must understand his responsibility for the state of the environment. It is also important to involve children in practical activities: in the courtyard of the kindergarten and throughout the premises, at home, during excursions. The need for children to communicate with nature during the formation of the principles of ecological culture can be satisfied by specially organized observation in kindergarten. Its essence lies in the sensory knowledge of natural objects, through various forms of perception - visual, auditory, tactile. Thus, I realized that children show great interest in natural objects and easily learn a variety of information if it attracts them. The main aspects of a teacher’s work with children are a variety of activities, an integrated approach to teaching, which contributes to the formation of not only an environmentally literate, but also a comprehensively developed person. A kindergarten teacher is one of the figures in the pedagogical process, including environmental education. Being a bearer of ecological culture, mastering the methodology of environmental education, he organizes children’s activities so that they are meaningful, emotionally rich, contribute to the formation of practical skills and necessary ideas about nature, and gradually turn into independent behavior of children. The leading role in this process should be the joint activity of an adult and a child.
The main place in the system of environmental education should be given to activities through which all living things within the child’s field of vision develop normally (grow, give birth, bloom, etc.). This activity is nothing more than the creation and maintenance of conditions for plants and animals located in various “ecological spaces” of the preschool institution.
Creating a stationary ecological and developmental environment in a kindergarten is a continuous pedagogical process, which includes the organization of group nature corners, a room or nature office, a greenhouse, etc., and the daily maintenance of conditions necessary for the full life of all living beings. Such constant activity teaches us to think and systematically and really take care of the “little brothers” who share the same living space with children. This activity becomes a method only if it is included in the pedagogical process and is performed together with adults and children. Teachers who do everything themselves and do not give preschoolers the opportunity to observe and participate in creating normal conditions for the inhabitants of living corners develop in children indifference, callousness and inattention in general to life as a unique value. Joint organizational and economic activities, labor activities in the green area of the kindergarten, growing plants, caring for adults and animals and their offspring can take different forms and take place with varying degrees of participation, both adults and children. Preschoolers can become involved in this activity in three ways:
- listening to the teacher’s story about various affairs and events in the preschool educational institution;
- observing the activities of adults;
- practically participating in it.
Whatever forms the joint activity of adults and preschoolers takes, the greatest importance in it is the teacher’s attitude to the object of the activity, which is manifested in his interested story, emotional reactions, assessments, explanations and actions that are correct from an environmental point of view. An adult, by his behavior, creates a model of interaction with nature, a caring attitude towards it, demonstrates the necessity and significance of everything that happens in front of children. Joint activities can be carried out in any “ecological space” in the premises and area of the kindergarten. Its most common form is the creation and maintenance of the necessary conditions for the inhabitants of a group nature corner in a kindergarten.
Kindergarten is the first link in the system of continuous environmental education, so it is no coincidence that teachers are faced with the task of forming the foundations of a culture of rational environmental management among preschoolers.
Specifics of environmental education for preschoolers
Environmental education of children of primary preschool age has special specifics. A good teacher, of course, can even explain the theory of relativity to a five-year-old child. However, in the child’s psyche there will only remain a vague idea that the world is ambiguous and very strangely structured.
You can explain to your child what ecosystems are. At the figurative level, this is done very simply. After all, there is a good lifesaver for this - the trophic pyramid, which is understandable even to a three-year-old child, if explained correctly.
The concept of environmental education for preschool children consists of the following rules and principles:
1. Any theoretical message must be supported by action or inaction. For example, if you explain to a child that plants produce oxygen, which we breathe, then you cannot set fire to fallen leaves. This prohibition, which is not very logical at first glance, is based on the fact that plants need soil, which is formed from rotting fallen leaves.
2. The trophic pyramid as the basis of the foundations of an ecological system is explained very simply: if a species exists in nature, then it means nature needs it, that is, ecosystems need it. Example: what are spiders for? They eat insects, many of which are plant eaters. If there were no spiders, then herbivorous insects would multiply and eat all the plants that are known to produce oxygen. Motivation for action: spiders and other predators should not be killed, because they benefit the ecosystem, and therefore us.
3. Environmental education of children of senior preschool age should be based on the principle of the unacceptability of dividing organisms into harmful and beneficial. Everything in nature is useful. There are only organisms that are directly dangerous to humans. A striking example is mosquitoes. They bite and carry diseases, but in nature they provide food for a large number of animals. Therefore, you cannot kill them, but you need to defend yourself from them.
4. Usually, the system of environmental education for young children includes hanging feeders and all sorts of birdhouses. However, this often puts the cart before the horse. Why feed the birds if they find their own food? Why hang up all sorts of birdhouses if the nest can be built in another place? Here we need a connection with man: he has so destroyed the birds’ habitat (cutting trees, building houses, land covered with asphalt, etc.) that without our help they will die.
The entire methodology of environmental education for preschool children is based on observing the connection between individual environmental rules and the rules of human behavior.
In conclusion, we need to say a few more words about what should never be done in the environmental education of preschool children:
1. You cannot collect bouquets of flowers, because after this the plants cannot reproduce. Since the cult of flower bouquets is ineradicable, at least draw children’s attention to the fact that they should not pick wild flowers.
2. You cannot collect any herbariums or catch butterflies with a net. The reason is the same as when picking flowers.
3. You should not kill any animal if it suddenly seems unpleasant to you. For example, this category includes spiders, centipede flycatchers, earwigs, etc. The only exceptions are animals that pose a real and immediate danger to the child: ticks, biting mosquitoes, etc.
Let's summarize. Environmental education for kids is a system of rules aimed at preserving natural objects, as well as honoring all living things as a special value on our planet.
Tags:Parenting
Forms and methods of work on environmental education in preschool educational institutions
Kuzenkova
Forms and methods of work on environmental education in preschool educational institutions
Consultation for the pedagogical council on the topic: “ Forms and methods of work on environmental education in preschool educational institutions ”
Environmental education of preschool children has important social significance for the whole society. At this time, the foundations of ecological culture are laid in the human personality, and at the same time, a significant part of the country’s adult population— workers in the field of preschool education and parents of children— .
Methods of working with children on environmental education.
methods are ways of joint activities between educators and children , during which the formation of knowledge , skills and abilities is carried out, as well as the development of attitudes towards the world around us.
teaching methods are widely used in environmental education : visual, practical, verbal.
Visual methods include observation, looking at paintings, demonstrating models, films, videos, and presentations. Visual methods most fully correspond to the possibilities of cognitive activity of preschool children and allow them to form vivid , concrete ideas about nature.
Practical methods are games , elementary experiments and modeling. The use of these methods allows the teacher to clarify children's ideas, deepen them by establishing connections and relationships between individual objects and natural phenomena, systematize the acquired knowledge, and train preschoolers in applying knowledge.
Verbal methods are stories from the teacher and children , reading works of art about nature, conversations. Verbal methods are used to expand children's knowledge about nature, systematize and generalize it. Verbal methods help to form in children an emotionally positive attitude towards nature. When working on environmental education of children, it is necessary to use different methods in a complex and correctly combine them with each other. The choice of methods and the need for their integrated use are determined by the age capabilities of the children, the nature of the educational tasks that the teacher . For example, the formation of knowledge about the way of life of a rabbit is impossible without observations; children learn about ways to care for indoor plants in the process of work; about the properties of snow and ice - during experiments or games. Knowledge about wild animals is formed while reading or telling a story to the teacher .
Forms of organizing work with children on environmental education
Organized educational activities (classes)
Classes are the leading form of organizing work to familiarize children with nature. They allow the teacher to form knowledge about nature in a system and sequence, taking into account the age characteristics of children and the natural environment.
Under the guidance of the teacher, develop in the classroom and develop basic cognitive processes and abilities. Classes provide an opportunity to clarify and systematize children’s personal experience, which they accumulate during observations, games and work in everyday life.
Excursions. Excursions are one of the main types of classes and a special form of organizing work on environmental education . Excursions are conducted outside the preschool. This is a kind of outdoor activity.
The advantage of excursions is that they allow children to become acquainted with objects and natural phenomena in a natural setting.
On excursions, children get acquainted with plants, animals and at the same time their living conditions, and this contributes to the formation of primary ideas about the relationships in nature, as well as the development
Ecological holidays and leisure activities . The pedagogical meaning of holidays and leisure is to evoke in children a positive emotional response to their “natural”
content.
The scripts for these events use material that children are familiar with. More often than holidays, leisure activities are held on a variety of topics - they are organized by the teacher .
Environmental actions . An effective means of solving the problems of environmental education of preschool children are environmental actions . Environmental actions are event-significant events aimed at preserving the environment. During their implementation, preschoolers receive natural history knowledge, they develop environmental culture skills and an active life position. The promotions also serve as environmental propaganda among parents, who become active helpers.
Introducing children to nature in everyday life. Observations during classes and excursions are carried out in close connection with work in everyday life. Teachers widely use walks for environmental education of children . They provide an opportunity for children to accumulate ideas about natural phenomena that occur over a long period of time. Teachers introduce pupils to the daily changes of nature according to the seasons in the kindergarten area, organize a variety of games with natural materials - sand, clay, water, ice, etc. Children accumulate sensory experience, cultivate curiosity and observation.
And also in kindergarten groups it is necessary to create an appropriate subject-development environment, which provides for the construction of a variable developmental space, focused on the possibility of children freely choosing materials and participants in joint activities. It should be accessible, that is, provide students with free access to materials , manuals, and natural objects. Safe, i.e. all its elements must meet the requirements for ensuring reliability and safety of their use. And include not only a natural corner, but also a center of cognitive activity for experimenting with various materials, observing natural phenomena and inanimate objects.
Children's work in nature. Varied work in nature brings children a lot of joy and contributes to their all-round development. In the process of work, a love for nature , a careful and caring attitude towards it is cultivated. Children develop an interest in work activity and a conscious, responsible attitude towards it. Working in nature, children become familiar with the properties and qualities, states of natural objects, and learn ways to establish these properties. In the process of working in nature, children develop knowledge about plants and animals. Children observe plants, practice labor skills (watering plants, loosening, collecting seeds and harvests, etc.)
.
This work has a great influence on the development of hard work , independence and mutual assistance.
Working with parents is one of the most important forms of environmental education . A full educational effect is achieved when the kindergarten and the family act in the same direction. Therefore, working with parents is one of the most important forms of environmental education . When working with parents on environmental education of children, various forms :
• Questionnaires, conducting surveys
• Parent meetings, master classes, consultations;
• Joint leisure activities, holidays, KVNs, quizzes, etc.
• Participation in thematic exhibitions, competitions.
• Involving parents in joint work with their children on the kindergarten site, landscaping the kindergarten territory;
• Release of newspapers, photo newspapers, environmental albums , posters,
Such work with families helps to improve the pedagogical culture of parents, develop the correct forms of interaction between kindergarten and family, and helps create a more favorable environment in the family.
Conclusion. Thus, the formation of environmental consciousness , ecological culture is a long process, the beginning of this path is preschool childhood. The formation of the principles of ecological culture is the formation of a consciously correct attitude directly towards nature itself in all its diversity, towards the people who surround and create it. And in conclusion, I would like to say that the most important thing in environmental education is the personal conviction of the teacher, the ability to interest and awaken in children and their parents the desire to love, cherish and protect nature.
