PEDAGOGICAL PROJECT “Development of children’s cognitive activity through children’s experimentation”

The basic component of preschool education states that the child must “have an idea of cognitive activity in his own development, be interested in the peculiarities of his perception, memory, imagination, thinking; master the initial forms of research, experimentation, and simply study the world around us.” Preschool age is the age of “why”. Why is the rainbow multicolored? Where does the breeze come from? When did dinosaurs go extinct? Why is the water wet? How many more different questions do you have to hear and look for answers for little “curious” people?

How to teach a child in the modern world of innovative technologies, computerization and a huge number of television programs and literature to find the necessary information. In this regard, there is a need to choose more effective methods of education and training that give children the key to understanding reality, and not an exhaustive amount of knowledge. In preschool age, the main structural component of cognitive development becomes problematic, which ensures the child’s constant openness to new things and is expressed in the search for inconsistencies and contradictions.

The experience of my teaching activity confirms that when children are captivated by current events, when they have a certain amount of knowledge and impressions about a given phenomenon, they can set new tasks themselves, come up with game actions and ways to carry them out. Therefore, I begin training and education not with the transfer of “ready-made” knowledge and skills, but with the formulation of problematic tasks, in the process of solving which cognitive activity develops and creative abilities are formed.

I believe that if you use project activities as a means of cognitive development, this will contribute to the formation of specific skills, general educational and communicative skills; will develop the creative activity of children in the process of play and cognitive activity; activates the desire and ability to create new images and projects; invent and solve more complex problems, achieving success; will open up great opportunities for the teacher to activate the mental activity and personality development of preschoolers.

The method of project activity is based on a person-oriented approach to training and education, it develops interest, curiosity, develops cooperation skills and practical skills.

In the Russian Pedagogical Encyclopedia, the project method is defined as “a teaching system in which students acquire knowledge and skills in the process of planning and performing gradually more complex practical tasks - projects” [vol. 1, p. 567].

In Latin, where the word “projectus” comes to us, this participle means “thrown forward,” “protruding,” “conspicuous.” In pedagogy, a “project” is usually understood as a special creative situation when a person ceases to be the owner of an idea: he abandons the personal in order to collectively find a solution to the problem posed.

The project method is not fundamentally new in world pedagogy. The founders of this method were the American philosopher and teacher J. Dewey and his student

W. H. Kilpatrick. Of course, over time, the idea of the project method has undergone some evolution. Born from the idea of free education, it has now become an integrated component of the education system. But its essence remains the same - to stimulate the child’s interest in problems. When using the project method, I adhere to the following requirements: The presence of a significant problem in a creative research plan. Practical, cognitive significance of the expected results. Independent (individual, pair, group) activities of children. Project structuring (stage-by-stage results). Use of research methods: - identification of the problem and the ensuing research objectives; — putting forward hypotheses for their solution; -discussion of research methods; -discussion of ways to form final results (presentation, defense, creative reports, screenings); — collection, systematization, analysis of the data obtained; — summing up, drawing up the results, their presentation; - conclusions, raising new problems. In my work I use the following forms of children's projects. Research: “Why do tears flow”, “Why do nails grow”. Educational: “How bread came to our table”, “In the garden or in the vegetable garden”, “The beloved beauty of Russia”, “Pets”. Creative: creation of the album “Big Book of Children's Stories”, creation of the “Red Book of Animals and Plants of the Urals”, creation of the Museum “Petushka”, creation of the tabletop theater “Kolobok”. Gaming: “Traveling around the city of Orsk”, “Flight to Mars”, “Building a city of the future” In terms of duration, projects can be short-term (1 lesson) and long-term (from one week to several months), they can be individual and group. I begin work on the project by drawing up a well-founded action plan, which is formed and refined throughout the entire period and takes place in several stages: - Goal setting; — Search for a form of project implementation; — Development of the content of educational work based on the topic of the project; — Organization of a developmental, cognitive, subject environment; — Determination of directions for search and practical activities; — Organization of joint activities with teachers, parents and children; — Work on the project, its correction; — Collective implementation of the project, its presentation, defense. Planning the project “Pets” (2ml.gr.) through OED (organized educational activities), joint activities of adults and children, independent activities of children in educational areas. COGNITION: Didactic games: “Whose house”, “Who helps a person how”, “Whose children are these”, “Find mom”, “Who screams how”, “Tower for the Cockerel”, “I know 5 names of pets”, “ What will you do”, “Who eats what”, “The third wheel”, “What has changed”. Experimentation: “Let's treat the dog to grass”, “Feeding the cat”, “Rabbit and cat - who is better?”, “What happens if a pet is released into the wild?” Construction: “Let’s build a home: a kennel for a dog, a chicken coop for a chicken, a barn for a cow.” COMMUNICATION: Compiling the story “Find Mom” according to the scheme: color – nose – ears – eyes – tail – hooves – horns. Children's stories on the topic: “My favorite animal”, “Description of a cat” (toy). Imitation game: “Who walks how”, “Sleeping baby”. Composing a fairy tale: “How a little goat was looking for its mother” according to the suggested beginning. Guessing riddles. Examination of the paintings: “Cat and cat with kittens”, “Dog with puppies”. Game dramatization “Cat House”, “Sparrows and the Cat”. Situations - communication: “How I take care of animals”, “How a kitten became friends with a puppy”, “Help Pinocchio find out which child belongs to which mother”, “Why does a hen teach a chicken to cluck”, “Why does the Barbos puppy get sick”, “Like a wild cat decided to become a pet,” “What happens if a kitten is fed hay.” Physical exercises. Finger gymnastics. ARTISTIC CREATIVITY: Drawing “Let's go herd animals in the green meadow”, “Cat” (let's finish drawing the cat). Application: “Different cats are needed, different cats are important.” Modeling: “A milk cup to feed the young,” “Soft paws, and scratches in the paws.” SOCIALIZATION: Work with parents: photo exhibition “Our Pets”, survey “Cultivating love for animals”. Exhibition of joint crafts “Pets”, moving folders, consultations: “Animals are the best therapists for you and your children.” Creation of a mini museum of Cockerel. Psycho-gymnastics “Happy and Sad Animals”. Story situation “Tanya came home from a walk, sad - the Cockerel got lost.” Tabletop theater based on Chukovsky's fairy tale "Chicken". READING FICTION: Reading: O. Vysotskaya “Cat”, G. Vieru “Chicken”, Chukovsky “Chicken”, Villager “Kitten”, V. Berestov “Kitten”, D. Kharms “Chicken” and Duckling”, I. Chapek “The Adventure of a Dog and a Cat”, N. Nosov “Who Said “Meow”. Reading nursery rhymes “I will tie the goats to the white birch tree”, “How I love my little cow!” V. Suteev “Three kittens”. Counting rhymes: “A goat was walking along the bridge”, “A zealous horse”, “A pig was walking through the forest”. Memorization: r.n. song “Kitsonka Murysonka”, “The cat went to the stove”, “Kitten - cat”. PHYSICAL EDUCATION: Outdoor games: “The chicken went out for a walk”, “I am a cow…”, “Cat with kittens”, “Cockerels”, “Shaggy dog”, “Sparrows and the cat”, “Cat and mice”, “Shepherd and sheep” ", "Sick cat", "Plasticine figures". MUSIC: Listening: “Cat” (music by Alexandrov, lyrics by Frenkel), “Dog” (music by Rukhverg, lyrics by Komissarov), “Grey Kitty” (music by Vitlin, lyrics by Naydenov). Listening to audio recordings of pets' voices. WORK: Work assignments, joint activities in caring for pets. HEALTH AND SAFETY: Conversations “How and why cats wash themselves”, “Is a dog friend or foe?” Planning the project “Bread is the head of everything” by type of activity. Organized educational activities: 1. CONVERSATIONS - “The process of growing bread” - “Cereals” - “Getting to know the production process” - “What bread is made from” - “Rye and wheat bread” - “How can we save bread” - “Bread in Rus'" - "Bread from different countries" - "I'm glad to put the bread on the tablecloth, it's like the sun on it." 1.2.READING STORIES - “I’m here” by Y. Taits - “Fox Bread” by M. Prishvin - “Bread” by M. Glinskaya 1.3.GUESSING RIDDLES 1.4.LEARNING PROVERBS, SAYINGS, POEMS ABOUT BREAD - “bread” by Y. Akim - “ Rye" J. Dyagutyte 1.5. TELLING FAIRY TALES - "Kolobok" Russian folk - "Kolobok" Russian folk - "At the mill" German folk 1.6. EXPERIMENTAL ACTIVITY - “How to turn grain into flour” - “What determines the taste of the product” - “How to prepare sour dough” - “Comparison of the taste of products made from different grains” 1.7. EXAMINATION OF PICTURES - “Plowing”, “Sowing”, “ Cleaning", "Winter crops", "Rye". I.I. Shishkina. 1.8.MAKE FROM SALT DOUGH - “I bake, bake, bake...” 2.Photo exhibition “Bread and Children” 3.Exhibition of crafts made from salt dough 4.Design of an album about bread - “Bread is a treasure, take care of it, in moderation for dinner take it" 5. Excursions - to a bread store; - to the kitchen 6. Meetings with interesting people - with a pastry chef; — with a baker 7. Exhibition of drawings “He is famous for being the first on Earth” 8. Museum of Bread 9. Theatrical activities — panorama theater with musical accompaniment “Dove and Grain of Wheat” — tabletop theater “Spikelet” — dramatization “At the Mill” — puppet theater "Kolobok" 10. Entertainment - "Harvest Festival" - "Spring is red with flowers, and autumn with sheaves" - "Bread is life" - "Feast of the loaf" - "Fair" - KVN "Bread and porridge is our food" 11. Game activities - role-playing games: “Bread store”, “Guests have arrived”, “Where the bread came from” - didactic games: “Taste”, “Know by smell”, “Know by touch”, “Professions” - word games : “Say differently”, “Who can name more dough products”, “What first, what then”, “What was done wrong”, “We won’t tell you what we did, but we’ll show you how we did it” 12. Labor activity - growing cereals for bird feed; - preparation of straws for crafts: - manual labor using cereals, straws; — making crafts from dough; — testoplasty; — design of mini albums, children’s books about bread. 13.Work with parents - Parent meeting “Cultivating a caring attitude towards bread”; — “Share your recipe” competition; — Dad’s workshop: making a model “How bread came to our table.” The project “The Beloved Beauty of Russia” was developed using the “system web” method. COGNITION The leading activity is cognitive and research. Forms: DED (direct educational activity): - excursion to a Russian hut; acquaintance with the national Russian costume; meeting a rag doll; acquaintance with the nesting doll; Bogorodskaya toy; Dymkovo horse; Filimonovskaya whistle. SOCIALIZATION V.D. – gaming. Forms: Conversations: “I live in Russia”, “I am a girl”, And I am a boy”, “My favorite toy”; role-playing games “Family”, “Dressing a doll”. HEALTH V.D. – integration. Forms: finger games; Healthy lifestyle – acquaintance with folk traditions. ARTISTIC CREATIVITY V.D. – productive. Forms: GCD in fine arts: acquaintance with folk crafts (Gzhel, Khokhloma, Zhostovo); applique; modeling; manual labor. READING FICTION V.D. – reading. Forms: GCD acquaintance with Russian folklore (sayings, proverbs, riddles, reading fairy tales). LABOR V.D. – labor. Forms: DIY Toys workshop); acquaintance with professions (weaver, potter, blacksmith, baker). PHYSICAL CULTURE V.D. – motor. Forms: thematic physical exercises. MUSIC V.D. – Musical and artistic. Forms: acquaintance with Russian folk songs, dances, chants, ditties. COMMUNICATION V.D. – communicative. Forms: role-playing games, theatrical activities, educational activities for speech development (composing descriptive stories about toys, stories from personal experience). SAFETY V.D. – integration. Forms: introduction to amulets. FORMS OF INTERACTION WITH FAMILY AND SOCIAL PARTNERS Forms: entertainment “Russian Fair”, “Maslenitsa”, creation of the “Museum of Folk Toys”, exhibition of folk crafts, exhibition of drawings “Folk Crafts”. MOMENTS V.D. – integration of different types of activities. Forms: examination of illustrations, albums, filmstrips, acquaintance with folk toys. When developing projects, I use the “Three Questions Model”, the “Three I” technology, and the “Seven We” image. I always involve parents in the children’s activities, because... One child cannot cope with search and creative activities. I offer children and parents different tasks: prepare an album, layout, poster, collect a herbarium, make a craft, take a photograph, draw, etc. I carefully think through the tasks so that they are not too labor-intensive and are completed with desire and joy, and if necessary, I provide reference practical material or recommend where it can be found. The most striking and spectacular stage is always the last stage – the defense of the project. I always invite parents and guests to defend me. And for the child it is also responsible and significant. It is at this moment that the highest point of emotional intensity occurs, due to the social significance of the project. The project defense form is bright and interesting in such a way as to highlight and demonstrate the contribution of each child, parent, and teacher. Exhibitions of joint creativity always attract the attention of all children and parents, not only of our group, but of the entire kindergarten. I share my work experience with teachers, speaking at teacher councils and posting video materials on the kindergarten website (see video clip). Analyzing the results of the work on introducing the project method, I came to the following conclusions: work on the project is of great importance for the cognitive development of the child, for the development of the child’s creative abilities. In the preschool period, integration occurs between common methods of thinking, speech, art and other types of activity. Visual arts skills improve, hand motor skills develop, the preschooler’s vocabulary is activated and enriched, contacts with other children and adults are easily established, and the ability to think independently and draw conclusions is formed. The project method provides a good opportunity for insecure and shy children to realize their creative abilities. Working on a project develops communication and moral qualities: the ability to negotiate, show patience and respect for each other, and the ability to listen to the opinions of others. Of great importance is the relationship between the teacher and parents, who become not outside observers, but participants involved in the educational process. The development of such qualities prepares the child for success in school. REFERENCES: 1. Erofeeva T.I. Modern educational programs for preschool institutions. - M, 2000. 2. Zhuravleva V.N. Project activities of older preschoolers. - Volgograd: Teacher, 2009. 3. Zaire-Bek E.S. Fundamentals of pedagogical design. - St. Petersburg, 1997. 4. Kiseleva L.S., Rakilina T.A., Zuikova M.B. Project method of activity of a preschool institution. -M. : ARKTI, 2005. 5. Nikitina I.V. Innovative activities of a modern teacher. - Volgograd: Teacher, 2007. 6. New pedagogical and information technologies in the education system / Ed. E.S.Polat/. -M. 2000. 7. Stupnitskaya M.A. New pedagogical technologies: learning to work on projects. -Yaroslavl: Development Academy, 2008.

MAGAZINE Preschooler.RF

Educational - research project for children of the senior group “The World Around Us”

(Experimental activities)

preparatory
basic

Monitoring.
Working with parents.
Applications.

“Tell me and I’ll forget,

show me - and I will remember,

let me try and I’ll understand.”

(Chinese folk wisdom.)

Brief summary

This work is devoted to the experimental activities of preschool children. Today in Russia, preschool institutions play a critical role in ensuring the development of the cognitive development of preschool children, while simultaneously being educational centers for parents.

The project proposes a solution to the problems of cognitive development of preschool children through the organization of a number of activities in kindergarten aimed at studying the nature around us through experimental activities.

The practical use of this development will allow preschoolers to develop knowledge about the world around them through practical skills.

Relevance

A preschool child by nature is characterized by an orientation towards understanding the world around him and experimenting with objects and phenomena of reality.

Experimentation as a specially organized activity contributes to the formation of a holistic picture of the world of a preschool child and the foundations of his cultural knowledge of the world around him.

Federal State Educational Standard for Education: ...Cognitive development involves the development of children's interests, curiosity and cognitive motivation; formation of cognitive actions, formation of consciousness; development of imagination and creative activity; the formation of primary ideas about oneself, other people, objects of the surrounding world, about the properties and relationships of objects of the surrounding world (shape, color, size, material, sound, rhythm, tempo, quantity, number, part and whole, space and time, movement and rest , causes and consequences, etc.)

The development of children's ability to experiment is a specific system that includes demonstration experiments carried out by the teacher in specially organized activities, observations, and laboratory work performed by children independently in the spatial-subject environment of the group.

As practice shows, the knowledge gained during experiments is remembered for a long time. A Chinese proverb says: “Tell me and I will forget, show me and I will remember, let me try and I will understand . It is important that each child conducts his own experiments.

Experimentation has a positive effect on the emotional sphere of the child, on the development of creative abilities, on the formation of work skills and on improving health (by increasing the overall level of motor activity).

The project will allow:

Develop a series of classes and activities for experimental activities using presentations. Enrich the subject environment in the group.

Project participants:

Children, teachers, parents of the older group.

Goal and objectives of the project:

Expand children's knowledge about the world around them through experimental activities, cultivate curiosity, activity, and develop knowledge about science and professions.

Project objectives:

Expand children's understanding of the physical properties of the world around them
Introduce the various properties of substances (hardness, softness, flowability, viscosity, buoyancy, solubility.)
Develop ideas about basic physical phenomena (reflection, refraction of light, magnetic attraction)
Develop children's ideas about certain environmental factors (light, air temperature and its variability; water - transition to various states: liquid, solid, gaseous, their differences from each other; Air - its pressure and strength; Soil - composition, humidity, dryness
Expand the understanding of how humans use natural environmental factors: sun, earth, air, water, plants and animals to meet their needs. Expand children's understanding of the importance of water and air in human life
Introduce children to the properties of soil and its constituent sand and clay
To develop experience in following safety rules when conducting physical experiments
Develop an emotional and value-based attitude towards the world around you
To develop the intellectual emotions of children: to create conditions for the emergence of surprise in relation to the observed phenomena, for awakening interest in solving assigned problems, for the opportunity to rejoice at the discovery made.
To form in children different ways of knowing, which are necessary for solving cognitive problems;
Teach children to purposefully search for answers to questions - to make assumptions, means and methods for checking them, carry out this verification and draw adequate conclusions.

Expected results:

Formation of prerequisites for search activity and intellectual initiative in children. The ability to identify possible methods of solving a problem with the help of an adult, and then independently. Ability to apply methods that contribute to solving a given problem using various options. The desire to use special terminology, conduct a constructive conversation in the process of joint and then independent research activities. Increased level of curiosity and observation. Activation of children's speech, replenishing vocabulary with many concepts. The desire to independently draw conclusions and put forward hypotheses.

Implementation deadlines:

from September to March of the academic year.

Materials and equipment:

Experimentation corner, individual sets: straws, funnels, magnifying glasses, test tubes, disposable glasses, microscope, caps, masks, aprons (according to the number of children), equipment for classes.

Albums with experiment diagrams, experiment card index, projector, screen, laptop, Power Point presentations.

Bibliography:

“The unknown is nearby: entertaining experiences and experiences for preschoolers” O.V. Dybina, N.P. Rakhmanova, V.V. Shchetinina. –M.: Sphere shopping , 2005.
"Natural science observations and experiments in kindergarten" . Plants. children's encyclopedia by A. I. Ivanov – M.: Sphere , 2004.
Poddyakov A.I. “Combinatorial experimentation of preschool children with a multiply connected object - a “black box”” Questions of Psychology, 1990 No. 5.
Poddyakov N.N. “Creativity and self-development of preschool children. Conceptual aspect" - Volgograd: Peremena, 1995.
Prokhorova L.N., BalakshinaTA. “Children's experimentation is the way to understand the world around us” , “Formation of the principles of ecological culture of preschool children” (from the experience of kindergarten No. 15 “Podsolnushki” in Vladimir) Ed. L.N. Prokhorova. — Vladimir, VOIUU, 2001.
Ryzhova N. A. “Water Sorceress” N. A. Ryzhova. – M.: Linka-Press, 1997.
7. Ryzhova N. A. “Games with water and sand” , Hoop, No. 2.
8. Ryzhova NA. “Experiments with sand and clay” Hoop, - No. 2.
Tugusheva G.P., Chistyakova A.V. “Game-experimentation for children of senior preschool age” , Preschool pedagogy, 2001. - No. 1.
Tsyplyakova O. “Where is the fifth ocean?” Preschool education. – 2006. – No. 8.
Internet resources.

Project implementation stages

Selection of methodological literature, Internet resources.
Development of a long-term plan for working with children.
Development of lesson notes for children on experimental activities.
Organizing a developmental environment in a group - setting up an experimentation corner.
Parent survey.
Development of a long-term plan for working with parents.
Preparation of advisory material for parents.

Brief summary:

The content of experimental activities is structured:

specially organized training in the form of classes;
joint activities between adults and children;
free independent activity of children

Forms of work:

Classes;
Experiments;
Conversations;
Observation and labor;
Work in the laboratory.

The form of organization of children can be: individual, group (with a subgroup), frontal (with the whole group).

Preference is given to the subgroup form of organizing experimental work. Observations and experiments can be random, they do not require special preparation and depend on the situation that has arisen or the question asked, they are carried out on the site or in the “Nature Corner”, planned observations and experiments are carried out on a specific subject or object.

There are experiments that are carried out as an answer to a child’s question: the child, after simple observation, establishes the truth himself.

In each experiment, the following structure can be distinguished:

Awareness of what you want to know;
Forming a research problem, thinking through the experimental methodology, listening to instructions, predicting results;
Performing work, observing safety rules, observing results;
recording the results, analyzing the data obtained;
A thorough report of what was seen, formulation of conclusions.

Joint activity between an adult and children is fundamental to experimental activities.

Various experiments and observations are planned here, and educational conversations are held. Heuristic conversations can be used if children have rich and accurate ideas about the phenomena whose causes need to be found. Children are invited to play environmental games and read fiction and educational literature.

Classes are held every week. Once a month – final.

Experimental classes are based on the joint creativity of the teacher and children. They stimulate the cognitive and creative activity of children and fully meet the requirements of cooperation pedagogy.

Everyone knows how important it is to arouse and maintain children’s interest in the topic being studied in order to solve all the assigned tasks. And the experiments remind children of “tricks” , they are unusual, and, most importantly, the children do everything themselves and experience a feeling of joy from their small and large “discoveries” .

After classes, children have many questions based on a cognitive motive. The course of classes may vary. It depends on what exactly interests the children. For example: children really like experiments with water, so instead of two classes, three were held. Or, for example, after a lesson about volcanoes, the children asked to talk about a tsunami, a sea storm and a tornado. The classes were shown with viewing of a presentation, a video, and an experiment was conducted using a hairdryer (imitation of wind).

There are a total of twenty-seven lessons in the project, six of which are aimed at developing ideas about one’s own body, the human body.

The structure of conducting classes on research learning and experimentation is mainly as follows:

Creating a problematic situation.
Search for possible solutions.
Prediction of the result of the experiment.
Testing possible solutions based on data.
Formulation of the conclusion in accordance with the test results.
Generalization

Planning the work of free independent activity involves, first of all, the creation by the teacher of conditions for the emergence of independent activity of children. The subject-development environment surrounding children has a huge impact on the cognitive activity of a preschooler. Children conduct experiments in the “laboratory”, using manuals and research materials.

Children consolidate their knowledge in didactic games, and the results of experiments - in artistic activities.

Communication with children during experimental activities is confidential, friendly, encouraging children to independently explore and actively learn.

So, for example, you can invite parents to do a series of experiments with water and air at home, conduct research, answer questions, for example, where can you find water at home? What is water for and do you save it? Parents help and guide their children to complete tasks.

To educate parents, consultations can be held on the following topics: “Organizing children’s experimentation at home” , “Experimenting with water” .

Quantitative data will allow you to track the effectiveness of your work, track children’s results and plan your future work.

Cooperation with children's families and jointly organized events not only help to ensure the unity and continuity of the pedagogical process, but also introduce into this process the special positive emotional coloring necessary for the child. When working with parents to raise children, it is necessary to use both traditional and non-traditional forms, but all these forms must be based on the pedagogy of cooperation.

Questioning.
Long-term plan for working with parents
Conversations, discussions at parent meetings.
Consultations for the parent corner.
Joint leisure activities, holidays, KVNs, quizzes, etc.
Participation in exhibitions, competitions, etc.
Involving parents in joint activities with their children.

Conclusion

When implementing any project, first of all, you need to set the right goal and find the right and safe way to implement it. It is important to plan the educational process based on the theme of the project, to create a developing, educational, safe subject environment. It is equally important to determine the direction of search and practical activities, and organize joint activities (with teachers, parents and children). After all, it is necessary to remember that the project is a product of cooperation and co-creation of teachers, children, parents, and sometimes the entire kindergarten staff.

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Types of cognitive and research activities in preschool age

A child of preschool age comprehends the world around him only in those ways that are available to him due to limited experience. He can ask questions about the new and incomprehensible, he can reason and even come up with unexpected hypotheses. Can experimentally check what will happen if...

All of the listed methods of children's activity perform a search and research function. Thanks to them, the preschooler discovers a lot of new things, gradually broadens his horizons and forms his own picture of the world.

Asking questions

Children's thoughts usually begin with a question. Asking an adult about what interested or surprised is the simplest and most accessible type of cognitive research activity for a preschooler.

In preschool age, almost all children’s questions are cognitive in nature and are aimed at understanding the essence of phenomena, processes, and patterns. A child may wonder why a cat has soft fur and a hedgehog has sharp spines, why a bicycle doesn’t fall while moving, how light “gets” into a light bulb, etc.

Heuristic questions (leading to discoveries) arise in children because they are faced with a certain problem, intellectual complexity, or practical task. For example, after hearing thunder, a preschooler shoots out questions, trying to understand how and why the roar is formed, where the source of such powerful sounds is located.

When asking questions, the child shows great persistence in finding an answer and demands detailed and reasoned explanations from adults.

Reasoning

For many preschoolers, answers to exciting questions push them to further reasoning. New knowledge must take its place in the child’s perception of the world, and for this there is not enough understanding of how it is connected with everything that the child already knows.

An inquisitive preschooler begins to think based on facts and images already known to him. “Birds fly south, but how will they find their way back? There are no roads in the sky like there are on earth,” the child is puzzled. Next, he builds a chain of inferences and draws the conclusion that the bird leader is guided by some signals.

In preschool age, reasoning is characterized by figurativeness and reliance on facts that are understandable to the child.

Experimentation

Children's experimentation is a type of cognitive research activity that allows one to discover implicit properties, transform objects, and experience objects in a new quality. Children are especially attracted to the fact that they can make tests, test their hypotheses, make as many mistakes as they want and repeat experiments.

Experiments hold children's attention and encourage them to independently search for reasons why the properties of an object or phenomenon appear in this particular way.

While observing the experiment, the child expresses his guesses. The bolder and more actively he voices different assumptions, the faster he gets to the right conclusion.

Cognitive development of preschool children

From the experience of a preschool teacher
“The best discovery is the one that a child makes himself” Ralph W. Emerson The Federal Law “On Education in the Russian Federation” states that preschool education should be aimed at the formation of a general culture, the development of physical, intellectual, moral , aesthetic and personal qualities, the formation of prerequisites for educational activities, the preservation and strengthening of the health of preschool children. One of the principles of the Federal State Educational Standards project for preschool education is the formation of cognitive interests and cognitive actions of the child in various types of activities. The educational field “Cognitive Development” involves the development of curiosity and cognitive motivation; formation of cognitive actions, formation of consciousness; development of imagination and creative activity; the formation of primary ideas about oneself, other people, objects of the surrounding world, etc. One of the types of activities to implement the tasks of this area is cognitive research (studying objects of the surrounding world and experimenting with them). In their works, many domestic teachers talk about the need to “include preschoolers in meaningful activities, during which they themselves could discover new things and about the opportunity to acquire knowledge on their own” (G.M. Lyamina, A.P. Usova, E.A. Panko etc.) It has long been no secret that the world opens up to a child through the experience of his personal feelings, actions, and experiences. “The more a child has seen, heard and experienced, the more he knows and has assimilated, the more elements of reality he has in his experience, the more significant and productive, other things being equal, his creative and research activity will be,” wrote the classic of Russian psychological science. science L.S.Vygodsky. Throughout preschool age, along with play activities, cognitive activity is of great importance in the development of the child’s personality, in the process of socialization, which is understood as the process of assimilation of knowledge, skills and abilities, and mainly as the search for knowledge, the acquisition of knowledge independently or tactfully. adult guidance. Cognitive - research activity begins in early childhood. When a child experiments with environmental objects, things, characterizing and highlighting their features. Already by the senior preschool age, cognitive and research activities become one of the leading ones. The child tries to understand how things work, to learn new things about the world and society. Tries to organize his ideas. The cognitive-research activity of an older preschooler manifests itself in the form of so-called children's experimentation with objects, as well as in the form of verbal exploration of questions that a child often asks adults ( why, why, how? ) In the process of learning about the surrounding reality of preschool children, the following stages can be distinguished : The first stage is curiosity. The child explores the surrounding reality with curiosity. A.N. Leontyev noted that a child is born already possessing certain inclinations, with “a readiness to perceive the world” and “the ability to acquire human abilities.” A feature of the second stage of perception of the surrounding world in preschoolers is an increase in its meaningfulness. Children highlight only interesting, significant and unusual objects for them. This promotes the development of curiosity and gives impetus to the emergence of research activities. The importance of the third stage in a preschooler’s knowledge of the world around him is acquired by visual-figurative thinking and imagination. At the fourth stage, the child uses different (acquired) methods of action and begins to focus on the process and the end result. The child develops a forecasting mechanism; he learns to foresee the result of his activities. The next stage of research activity is characterized by the fact that the main motive of reality is cognitive, not practical. The child performs this activity because “it is very interesting” to him. The child’s cognitive orientation allows him to receive various information from the surrounding reality that he encounters at every step. In the future, these skills and abilities acquired by the child in children's games and in specially organized activities are easily instilled and transferred in the future to all types of activities. After all, the most valuable and lasting knowledge is not that which is acquired through learning, but that which is acquired independently. The picture of the world gradually changes in the child’s mind. It becomes more adequate and holistic, reflects the objective properties of things and relationships. Cognitive activity is certainly an active activity in acquiring and using knowledge. It is characterized by the child’s cognitive activity, his active position as a subject of this activity. The motive for cognitive activity in preschool age is determined by the needs of other activities that are significant for the child, primarily play. A component of cognitive activity is cognitive interest—focus on the material (game, environmental, mathematical, etc.). associated with positive emotions. The principle of organizing the cognitive activity of preschool children is the principle of awareness and activity in the process of acquiring knowledge. The main task of a child’s cognitive development is the formation of the need and ability to think and overcome difficulties in solving various problems. Following from the above, this work on cognitive development should be carried out comprehensively. The full cognitive development of preschool children should be organized in three main blocks of the educational process: 1) cognitive classes; 2) in the joint cognitive activity of children with the teacher; 3) in the independent cognitive activity of children. Let us dwell on this in more detail. Organization of cognitive classes The content of cognitive classes depends on the educational program objectives, as well as on the content of the cognitive activity itself. A playful form of educational activities and the active use of gaming techniques during classes are recommended. Organizational structure of a game-based cognitive lesson In the introductory part, a cognitive task is set for children or a cognitive-game problem situation is created (help the hero, sew a dress, organize a trip, etc.). In the main part, the task is solved. In the process of completing a chain of tasks, the child acquires new knowledge and skills (mathematical, constructive), systematizes previously acquired ideas, and learns to apply them to new game problem situations. In the final part, children analyze the results obtained, the course of cognitive activity, and methods of implementation. In the classroom, it is recommended to widely use entertaining didactic material, playing it out in a variety of problem-game situations: didactic games, puzzles, rebuses, riddles, construction sets. The Danish construction set and its Russian analogues provide great opportunities for a child’s cognitive activity. “Dienesh Logic Blocks” are also an effective developmental tool. X. Cuisenaire's colored sticks are actively used in the educational process of modern preschool educational institutions. Organization of joint cognitive activities of the teacher and children. The main forms of organizing children's cognitive activity in this block are didactic and plot-didactic games. Working with children in this form excludes specially organized classes. Children's activity can be caused by the teacher. He involves them in educational and playful activities, showing his own passion for it. Also, the teacher can connect to the children’s already existing activities, directing them from within, as a partner. Alternatively, in some cases, it is possible to build joint cognitive activity so that the child, if desired, can continue it independently. Organization of independent cognitive activity of children Within the framework of this block, the creative activity of children develops in cognitive and play activities, free experimentation with various materials. The child gets the opportunity for self-realization. As part of free independent activity, children master the ability to act in a group, cooperate with friends, and enter into competitive relationships, which are necessary for the child’s prosperous existence in the children’s community. The project method as an option for integrating three blocks of the educational process of a preschool educational institution. To ensure the cognitive activity of children, the project method is widely used. It is used as an option for integrating different types of children's activities. Integration is the interpenetration of program sections and activities into each other, the mutual solution of various problems and educational technologies. The basis of integration is a single problem solved in the topic of the lesson; series of classes; classes; sections of the program. There are many options for working with children. The teacher has the right to choose. The teacher can independently develop and fill each option for organizing the cognitive activity of children of senior preschool age and fill it with content, depending on the characteristics of the educational program. The main thing is to skillfully and effectively use the possibilities of play in the cognitive development of each child. Literature : Federal State Educational Standard, Game education for children 5-7 years old. Methodical recommendations / Ed. N.V. Ivanova. - M.: TC Sfera, 2008. - 112 p., E. Krasheninnikova, Development of cognitive abilities of preschool children, Federal State Educational Standard.-M.: Mosaic - Synthesis, 2014, L.V. Godovkina, Correctional and developmental technologies in preschool educational institutions: programs development of the personal, cognitive sphere, Federal State Educational Standards. – M.: Teacher, 2014.

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