CONSULTATION “Types of play activities and their role in the mental development of preschool children” consultation on the topic

Play activities in preschool age

Play activities in preschool age

The play activity of preschool children is a significant social phenomenon in which the development and culture of society as a whole are noticeably reflected. The development of play activity in preschoolers is manifested primarily in role-playing. In the process of play, the child reproduces models of adult life, work and relationships, and also realizes his cognitive, aesthetic and moral needs. It is the game that allows the child, over time, to minimize the existing contradictions between his aspirations to be a full-fledged participant in the adult world and the real opportunities available. In addition to the fact that play takes up a significant part of a child’s free time, it serves as a means for qualitative changes in his self-awareness. Play is a means where education turns into self-education.

Play is closely related to the development of personality, and it is during the period of particularly intensive development in childhood that it acquires special significance.

Play is the first activity that plays a particularly significant role in the development of personality, in the formation of properties and enrichment of its internal content.

The game prepares children to continue the work of the older generation, forming and developing in them the abilities and qualities necessary for the activities that they will have to perform in the future.

In play, a child’s imagination is formed, which includes both a departure from reality and penetration into it. The abilities to transform reality in an image and transform it in action, to change it, are laid down and prepared in play action, and in play the path is paved from feeling to organized action and from action to feeling. In a word, in the game, as in a focus, all aspects of the mental life of the individual are collected, manifested in it and through it are formed in the roles that the child, while playing, assumes; the child’s personality itself expands, enriches, and deepens.

In the game, to one degree or another, the properties necessary for studying at school are formed, which determine readiness for learning. At different stages of development, children are characterized by different games in natural accordance with the general nature of this stage. By participating in the development of the child, the game itself develops.

Play, the most important activity, plays a huge role in the development and upbringing of a child. It is an effective means of shaping a child’s personality, his moral and volitional qualities; the game fulfills the need to influence the world. The game causes a significant change in his psyche. The most famous teacher in our country A.S. Makarenko characterized the role of children’s games in the following way: “Play is important in a child’s life, it has the same importance as the activity of work and service for an adult. What a child is like at play, so in many ways he will be at work. Therefore, the education of a future leader occurs, first of all, in the game...” The question of the nature and essence of the game worried and still continues to attract the attention of many researchers, such as Galperin P.Ya., Danilova V.L., Zaporozhets A.V., Elkonin D.B. Soviet teacher V.A. Sukhomlinsky emphasized that “game is a huge bright window through which a life-giving stream of ideas and concepts about the surrounding world flows into the child’s spiritual world. Play is the spark that ignites the flame of inquisitiveness and curiosity.” The educational significance of the game largely depends on the professional skills of the teacher, on his knowledge of the child’s psychology, taking into account his age and individual characteristics, on the correct methodological guidance of children’s relationships, on the precise organization and conduct of all kinds of games.

Development of play activity in preschool age.

Game is a special type of human activity. It arises in response to the social need to prepare the younger generation for life.

Role-playing play involves children reproducing the actions of adults and the relationships between them. That is, in the game the child models the world of adults and their relationships.

Role-playing play arises at the border between the early and preschool ages and reaches its peak in the middle of preschool childhood. In addition to this type of game, the preschooler masters games with rules (didactic and active), which contribute to the child’s intellectual development, improvement of basic movements and motor qualities. Play affects all aspects of mental development, which has been repeatedly emphasized by both teachers and psychologists. Thus, A.S. Makarenko wrote: “Play is important in a child’s life, it has the same meaning as activity, work, service for an adult. What a child is like at play, so in many ways he will be at work when he grows up. Therefore, the education of a future leader occurs primarily in play. And the whole history of an individual as an actor or worker can be represented in the development of play and in its gradual transition into work.”

Development of play in infancy and early childhood

Gaming activity goes through a long development process. Its elements first appear in infancy, and in preschool, higher forms take shape, in particular, role-playing play. Let us trace the stages of development of play activity in infancy and early childhood (F.A. Fradkina, N.Ya. Mikhailenko, Z.V. Zvorygina, S.L. Novoselova, N.N. Palagina, etc.). Game action arises in the course of mastering objective actions, that is, in objective activity the game arises as an object-play activity. Play with elements of an imaginary situation is preceded by two stages of the baby’s play: familiarization and display. At first, actions with toys, like with any other objects, are manipulative in nature. The motive is set through the toy object. The baby moves to the second when he himself or with the help of an adult discovers some of its properties in the toy (the ball bounces, rolls, it is elastic and smooth). Gradually, children learn ways of operating with different toys related to their physical properties (putting one object into another, rolling, moving, knocking, hitting one against the other to hear a sound, etc.). The motive for such object-game activity lies in the probabilistic nature of the result of the game action: the ball can be pushed away or brought closer to oneself. Displayive object-play actions are typical for a child aged 5-6 months. up to 1 year 6 months

In the second half of the second year of life, the baby’s sphere of interaction with others expands. The child’s need for joint activities with adults increases. Closely observing the world of adults, the baby highlights their actions. The experience gained in actions with toys and in everyday life gives the child the opportunity to display the actions of people with objects in accordance with the purpose accepted in society (for example, the process of feeding, treatment). Now actions are directed not at obtaining a result, but at fulfilling a conditional goal that is understandable from past experience. That is, the action becomes conditional, and its result becomes not real, but imaginary. The child moves on to the plot-display stage of play development.

In the third year of life, the baby begins to strive to realize the play goal, so these actions acquire a certain meaning: he feeds the doll in order to feed it lunch. The actions are gradually generalized and become conditional: the child brings the spoon to the doll several times and, considering that lunch is over, moves on to another play action. The child constantly compares his actions with the actions of an adult. We emphasize that the emergence of play goals is possible if the child has formed an image of an adult and his actions.

In a plot-based game, children convey not only individual actions, but also elements of adult behavior in real life. In games, a “role in action” appears. The child performs the function of a mother-hairdresser without identifying himself in accordance with this function. And to the adult’s question: “Who are you?” answers: “I am Yulia (Lena, Andryusha).” In such games, actions with plot-shaped toys are at first very similar to real practical actions with objects and gradually become generalized, turning into conventional ones. Then the child begins to act with imaginary objects: he feeds the doll non-existent candy.

The development of game actions is determined by the development of subject actions. Mastering objective actions leads to their generalization and inclusion in other situations. The transition of the child’s object-based actions into play ones is facilitated by an adult when he shows the play ones or encourages the child to perform them: “Feed the bear. Rock Lala." Later, children themselves transform object-based actions into playful ones.

By the end of the third year of life, plots are observed in which, along with a set of actions, certain relationships between the characters are specified. For example, the relationship of leadership and subordination in the game “kindergarten”, when the teacher leads the lesson and the children listen. Or a combination of leadership and submission with an equal exchange of actions, when in the same game the music director replaces the teacher, then the parents take the children. In the third year of life, children’s relationships in play develop. At first they arise for an extra-game reason - a place or a toy that attracts the child. Then children who continue to play alone develop the ability to play with toys, show interest in the activities of their peers and imitate their actions. Relationships also arise for non-game reasons. The child complains if one of the children interferes with his play or takes away a toy. The baby protests against the interference of another child in his play.

The next stage in the development of relationships in the game is associated with the formation of the actual play interaction between children based on the general place of the game, the action performed simultaneously (one builds, the other hands out bricks). Children join a peer playing nearby, rejoice in joint efforts, understand when one of the children does not perform a common action, and express complaints about its quality. At the end of the third year of life, interaction with peers arises regarding the role action, the quality of its implementation, and the achieved result. Thus, the prerequisites for a role-playing game are being formed, which will develop intensively in preschool childhood. Let us list these prerequisites:

- the child involves objects in the game that replace real ones, and names these substitute objects in accordance with their game meaning;

— the organization of actions becomes more complicated, acquiring the character of a chain reflecting the logic of life connections;

- actions are generalized and separated from the subject;

- the child begins to compare his actions with the actions of adults and, in accordance with this, call himself by the name of the adult;

- emancipation from an adult occurs, in which the adult acts as a model of action, when the child strives to act independently, but as an adult.

Let us emphasize the features of the development of gaming activity at an early age:

— the first gaming skills are formed;

— the ability to set and solve game problems develops;

— interaction with peers in joint games begins to develop;

— the prerequisites for a role-playing game are formed.

Characteristics of the main types of games and their classification

Play activity is a natural need of a child, which is based on intuitive imitation of adults. Play is necessary to prepare the younger generation for work; it can become one of the active methods of teaching and education.

For games to become a true organizer of people’s lives, their active activities, their interests and needs, it is necessary that the practice of education should include a richness and variety of games. Children's life can be interesting and meaningful if children have the opportunity to play different games and constantly replenish their gaming baggage.

Each individual type of game has numerous variations. Children are very creative. They complicate and simplify well-known games, come up with new rules and details. They are not passive towards games. For them this is always creative inventive activity.

Children's games are characterized by the following features:

1. the game is a form of active reflection by the child of the people around him.

2. a distinctive feature of the game is the very method that the child uses in this activity

3. the game, like any other human activity, has a social character, so it changes with changes in the historical conditions of people’s lives

4. play is a form of creative reflection of reality by the child.

5. play is the manipulation of knowledge, a means of clarification and enrichment, a way of exercise, and therefore the development of the child’s cognitive and moral abilities and strengths.

6. in its expanded form, the game is a collective activity

7. By developing children in many ways, the game itself also changes and develops.

Games can be divided according to the age characteristics of children. Let's look at the category:

1) games for preschool children;

The leading activity of a preschool child is play. But if in the early preschool age, during the game, the child pays more attention to the knowledge of things, their properties, connections, then in the middle and older preschool age, in the process of role-playing games, he is absorbed in the knowledge of the relationships of the people around him, which creates new needs.

Emerging at the border of early childhood and preschool age, role-playing game develops intensively and reaches its highest level in the second half. In the game, the role plays a role as a mediating link between the child and the rule. Accepting the role makes it much easier for the child to follow the rules.

The games of children of the third and fourth year of life are varied in content. A large place is occupied by mobile games (catch-up, hide-and-seek), manipulative games with objects (moving objects, toys for riding). Children love to play with sand and water; by the fourth year of life, children not only make thoughtless movements with building materials, but also try to construct something. In the third year of life, children's desire to

collective games. At first, children, demanding participants for the game, often play, forgetting that there are comrades around them, and later the whole game takes on a collective character, although there is no strict distribution of roles, and children usually do not notice that there is already a group of players.

It is interesting to note that play is so closely connected with fantasy that children prefer simple and crude toys to expensive and luxurious ones, which leave no work to the imagination and require the utmost care in handling them.

In middle preschool age, creatively plot-based play begins to predominate in children, and both the plots or themes of these games and their content (the action that reveals the plot) become more and more diverse, reproducing phenomena of everyday, industrial, social life, as well as the material of fairy tales and stories.

By the age of 6-7, thanks to the accumulation of life experience, the development of new and relatively more stable interests, imagination and thinking, children’s games become more meaningful and more complex in form.

Often the plots of children are events of school life, that is, the game “school”, being a close perspective of older preschoolers.

Older preschoolers, to a much greater extent than younger ones, allow all kinds of conventions in the game, replace some objects with others, give them fictitious names, change the order of the depicted actions, etc. And yet, the leading activity of a preschooler is play.

The essence of the game, as a leading activity, is that children reflect in the game various aspects of life, features of the activities and relationships of adults, acquire and clarify their knowledge about the surrounding activities.

In a play group, children develop a need to regulate relationships with peers, and norms of moral behavior develop. In play, children are active, they creatively transform what they previously perceived, they are freer and better manage their behavior. Thus, role-playing play has a great influence on the formation of a child’s personality. Let us note the most characteristic features of the play of older preschoolers.

Children usually agree on roles, and then unfold the plot of the game according to a certain plan, recreating the objective breakdown of events in a certain sequence. Every action performed by a child has its logical continuation in another action that replaces it. Things, toys and furnishings receive certain game meanings that remain throughout the game. Children play together, and the actions of one child are related to the actions of the other.

Role-playing fills the entire game. It is important for children to fulfill all the requirements associated with the role, and they subordinate all their play actions to these requirements.

Nowhere is a child’s behavior so regulated by rules as in play, and nowhere does it take such a free moral and educational form.

The child obeys the rule not because he is threatened with punishment, but only because compliance with the rule promises him inner satisfaction from the game.

The game is social not only in origin, but also in its content. All researchers describing role play indicated that it is greatly influenced by the reality surrounding the child, and that the plots of children's games are determined by the social, everyday, and family conditions of the child's life.

The plot-role-playing game consists of children reproducing the actions of adults and the relationships between them. That is, in the game the child models adults and their relationships.

Role-playing play arises at the border between the early and preschool ages and reaches its peak in the middle of preschool childhood.

Elkonin D.B. identified in the structure of a plot-role-playing game such components as plot - that sphere of reality that is reflected in the game. Those moments in the activities and relationships of adults that the child reproduces constitute the content of the game; the plot and content of the game are embodied in the roles.

The development of play action, the role and rules of the game occurs throughout preschool childhood along the following lines: from games with an expanded system of actions and hidden roles and rules behind them - to games with a collapsed system of actions, with clearly defined roles, but hidden rules - and, finally , to games with open rules and hidden roles behind them. D. B. Elkonin showed that the central component of a plot-based role-playing game is a role - a way of behavior of people in various situations that corresponds to accepted social norms and rules.

In addition to this type of game, the preschooler masters games with rules that contribute to the child’s intellectual development, improvement of basic movements and motor qualities.

Thus, the game changes and reaches a high level of development by the end of preschool age. There are two main phases or stages in the development of the game. The first stage (3 – 5 years) is characterized by the reproduction of the logic of people’s real actions; The content of the game is objective actions. At the second stage (5–7 years), real relationships between people are modeled, and the content of the game becomes social relationships, the social meaning of an adult’s activity.

In preschool age, there are three classes of games:

– games that arise on the child’s initiative – amateur games;

– games that arise on the initiative of an adult who introduces them for educational and educational purposes;

- games that come from the historically established traditions of the ethnic group - folk games that can arise both on the initiative of an adult and older children.

Each of the listed classes of games, in turn, is represented by types and subtypes. So, the first class includes:

1.Creative role-playing games.

The concept of “creative play” covers role-playing games, dramatization games, and construction games. The content of creative games is invented by the children themselves. Freedom, independence, self-organization and creativity of children in this group are especially fully manifested. Various life experiences are not copied, they are processed by children, some of them are replaced by others, etc.

a) Role-playing game

- This is the main type of game for a preschool child. It has the main features of the game: emotional richness and enthusiasm of children, independence, activity, creativity. The first story games proceed as games without role-playing or games with a hidden role. Children's actions acquire a plot character and are combined into a chain that has vital meaning. Actions with objects and toys are carried out by each of the players independently. Joint games are possible with the participation of an adult.

b) Dramatization games

- they have the main features of creative games: the presence of a plan, a combination of role-playing and real actions and relationships and other elements of an imaginary situation. Games are built on the basis of a literary work: the plot of the game, roles, actions of the characters and their speech are determined by the text of the work. Dramatization play has a great influence on a child’s speech. The child assimilates the riches of his native language, its means of expression, uses various intonations that correspond to the character of the characters and actions, and tries to speak clearly so that everyone understands him. The beginning of work on a dramatization game consists of selecting a work of art. It is important that it interests children and evokes strong feelings and experiences. The teacher takes part in the conspiracy and preparation of the game. Based on the content of the work, the plot of the game is drawn up with the children, roles are assigned, and speech material is selected. The teacher uses questions, advice, re-reading the work, conversations with children about the game and thus helps to achieve the greatest expressiveness in the depiction of the characters.

c) Construction games

- a type of creative game. In them, children reflect their knowledge and impressions about the world around them. In construction games, some objects are replaced by others: buildings are erected from specially created building materials and construction materials, or from natural materials (sand, snow).

All this gives reason to consider such activity as one of the types of creative play. Many construction games take the form of role-playing games. Children take on the role of construction workers who are erecting a building, drivers deliver construction materials to them, during breaks the workers have lunch in the canteen, after work they go to the theater, etc. During the game, the child’s orientation in space, the ability to distinguish and establish the size and proportions of an object, and spatial relationships are formed and developed. Thus, in construction-constructive play there is a multifaceted development of children’s mental activity.

2.

Two games with ready-made content and rules are designed to form and develop certain qualities of a child’s personality and belong
to the second class of preschool games
.
In preschool pedagogy, it is customary to divide games with ready-made content and rules into: didactic, active and musical
.

1.Didactic games

- this is a type of games with rules, specially created by a pedagogical school for the purpose of teaching and raising children. Didactic games are aimed at solving specific problems in teaching children, but at the same time, the educational and developmental influence of gaming activities appears in them.

A didactic game has a certain structure that characterizes the game as a form of learning and gaming activity. The following structural components of the didactic game are distinguished:

1) didactic task;

2) game actions;

3) rules of the game;

4) result.

The didactic task is determined by the purpose of teaching and educational influence. It is formed by the teacher and reflects his teaching activities. For example, in a number of didactic games, in accordance with the program objectives of the relevant educational subjects, the ability to compose words from letters is reinforced, and counting skills are practiced. The game task is carried out by children. The didactic task in a didactic game is realized through a game task. It determines play actions and becomes the task of the child himself.

Game actions are the basis of the game. The more diverse the game actions, the more interesting the game itself is for children and the more successfully cognitive and gaming tasks are solved.

In different games, game actions differ in their focus and in relation to the players. These are, for example, role-playing activities, solving riddles, spatial transformations, etc. They are related to the game concept and come from it. Game actions are means of realizing the game plan, but also include actions aimed at fulfilling the didactic task.

In a didactic game, the rules are given. With the help of rules, the teacher controls the game, the processes of cognitive activity, and the behavior of children. The rules also influence the solution of the didactic task - they imperceptibly limit the actions of children, direct their attention to the implementation of a specific task of the academic subject.

Summing up – the result is summed up immediately after the end of the game. This could be scoring; identifying children who performed the game task better; determination of the winning team, etc. At the same time, it is necessary to note the achievements of each child and emphasize the successes of lagging children.

When holding games, it is necessary to preserve all structural elements. Since it is with their help that didactic tasks are solved.

The relationship between children and the teacher is determined not by the learning situation, but by the game. Children and teacher are participants in the same game. This condition is violated, and the teacher takes the path of direct teaching.

Thus, a didactic game is a game only for a child, but for an adult it is a way of learning. The purpose of didactic games is to facilitate the transition to learning tasks and make it gradual. All didactic games can be divided into three main types:

1) in games with objects (toys, natural materials), toys and real objects are used. By playing with them, children learn to compare, establish similarities and differences between objects. The value of these games is that with their help children become familiar with the properties of objects and their characteristics: color, size, shape, quality. The games solve problems involving comparison, classification, and establishing sequence in solving problems.

2) the teacher uses games with natural materials when conducting such didactic games as “Whose traces? “, “Which tree is the leaf from?”, “Arrange the leaves in descending order,” etc. In such games, knowledge about the natural environment is consolidated and mental processes are formed (analysis, synthesis, classification).

3) printed board games are varied in type: paired pictures, various types of lotto, dominoes. When using them, various developmental tasks are solved. For example, a game based on matching pictures in pairs. Students combine pictures not only by external features, but also by meaning.

1.1. Word games

built on the words and actions of the players. In such games, children learn, based on existing ideas about objects, to deepen their knowledge about them, since in these games it is necessary to use previously acquired knowledge about new connections in new circumstances. Children independently solve various mental problems: describe objects, highlighting their characteristic features; guess from the description; find signs of similarities and differences; group objects according to various properties and characteristics; find illogicalities in judgments, etc.

With the help of verbal games, children develop a desire to engage in mental work. In play, the thinking process itself is more active; the child easily overcomes the difficulties of mental work, without noticing that he is being taught.

For ease of use of word games in the pedagogical process, they can be conditionally divided into four main groups. The first group includes games with the help of which they develop the ability to identify essential features of objects and phenomena: “Guess it,” “Shop,” etc.

The second group consists of games used to develop the ability to compare, juxtapose, and give correct conclusions: “Similar - not similar,” “Who will notice the most fables,” and others.

Games that help develop the ability to generalize and classify objects according to various criteria are combined in the third group: “Who needs what?”, “Name three objects,” “Name them in one word.” A special fourth group includes games for the development of attention, intelligence, and quick thinking: “Colors”, “Flies, does not fly” and others.

2. Outdoor games

. They are based on various movements - walking, running, jumping, climbing, etc. Outdoor games satisfy the growing child’s need for movement and contribute to the accumulation of diverse motor experience. The child’s activity, joyful experiences - all this has a beneficial effect on well-being and mood, creating a positive background for overall physical development. Outdoor games include complexes of various types of movements. These games develop the ability to act together, foster honesty and discipline. Children learn to come to agreements, unite to play their favorite games, take into account the opinions of their partners, and fairly resolve conflicts that arise.

3. Traditional or folk games

. Historically, they form the basis of many educational and leisure games. The subject matter of folk games is also traditional, they themselves, and are more often presented in museums rather than in children's groups. Research conducted in recent years has shown that folk games contribute to the formation in children of universal generic and mental abilities of a person (sensorimotor coordination, arbitrariness of behavior, symbolic function of thinking, etc.), as well as the most important features of the psychology of the ethnic group that created the game. Having studied the classifications and characteristics of the main types of games, we can conclude that gaming activity is an integral part in the development of personality.

In play activities, the mental qualities and personal characteristics of the child are most intensively formed. The game develops other types of activities, which then acquire independent meaning.

Gaming activity influences the formation of arbitrariness of mental processes. Thus, in play, children begin to develop voluntary attention and voluntary memory. During play, children concentrate better and remember more than in laboratory experiments. The very conditions of the game require the child to concentrate on the objects included in the game situation on the content of the actions and plot being played out.

The gaming situation and actions in it have a constant impact on the development of the mental activity of a preschool child. In the game, the child learns to act with a substitute object - he gives the substitute a new game name and acts with it in accordance with the name.

Gradually, playful actions with objects are reduced, the child learns to think about objects and act with them mentally. Thus, the game contributes to a greater extent to the child’s gradual transition to thinking in terms of ideas.

Role-playing play is crucial for the development of imagination. In play activities, the child learns to replace objects with other objects and take on different roles. This ability forms the basis of imagination. Children learn to identify objects and actions with substitutes and create new situations in their imagination.

The influence of the game on the development of a child’s personality lies in the fact that through it he becomes acquainted with the behavior and relationships of adults, who become a model for his own behavior, and in it he acquires basic communication skills and the qualities necessary to establish contact with peers.

The game has a very great influence on the development of speech. The game situation requires from each child included in it a certain level of development of verbal communication. The need to communicate with peers stimulates the development of coherent speech.

Play as a leading activity is of particular importance for the development of the sign function of a child’s speech. In the game, the development of the sign function is carried out through the replacement of some objects with others. Objects are substitutes as signs of absent objects. A sign can be any element of reality that acts as a substitute for another element of reality.

In addition, the substitute object mediates the connection between the missing object and the word and transforms the verbal content in a new way.

In play, the child comprehends specific signs of two types: individual conventional signs, which have little in common in their sensory nature with the designated object, and iconic signs, the sensory properties of which are visually close to the replaced object.

Play as a leading activity is of particular importance for the development of reflective thinking.

The game leads to the development of reflection, since in the game there is a real opportunity to control how an action that is part of the communication process is performed. Thus, when playing hospital, a child cries and suffers like a patient, and is pleased with himself as a good performer of the role.

20

Activities

Throughout a person’s life path, there are three main types of activities that replace each other. This is play, learning and work. They differ in the characteristics of motivation, organization and final results.

Labor is the main human activity, the end result of which is the creation of a product that is significant to the public. As a result of gaming activity, the production of a product does not occur, but it acts as the initial stage in the formation of personality as a subject of activity. Education is the direct preparation of a person for work, developing mental, physical and aesthetic skills and forming cultural and material values.

Children's play activities contribute to their mental development and prepare them for the adult world. Here the child himself acts as a subject and adapts to the simulated reality. The peculiarity of gaming activity is its freedom and unregulated nature. No one can force a child to play differently than he wants. The game proposed by an adult should be interesting and entertaining for the child. Study and work must have an organizational form. The work begins and ends at a set time, within which a person must submit its results. Classes for pupils and students also have a clear schedule and plan, which everyone strictly adheres to.