The preschool period in a child’s life is a wonderful time when there is a desire and opportunity to accumulate mental and physical strength. To properly raise children, it is necessary to know and take into account the psychological and age characteristics of children of preschool and school age. After all, development is directly dependent on the capabilities of a preschool child.

Preschool age is the life period from three to seven years. This period is marked by the rapid growth of the body, the active development of the brain and the complication of processes in the central nervous system. The child's intellectual behavior improves. This manifests itself in the development of moral concepts and responsibilities.

Age and individual characteristics of preschool children

The main need and activity of a child at this age is play. The child’s personal development is formed on the basis of play. The game develops imagination and promotes a sense of teamwork. Getting to know the world, people, their place and role in society occurs through play.

Social and moral norms are also conveyed in the game. Therefore, a necessary condition for this period is to establish the gameplay. In addition to the need for play, this time is characterized by the need for independence, communication and respect.

Psychological features of the development of preschool children are expressed in the following:

• tendency to imitate;
• impulsiveness;
• inability to self-control;
• the predominance of feelings over reason;
• unlimited desire to be independent;
• active learning of new things.

Age characteristics of children of primary preschool age are based on perception. Children's games are role-playing in nature. This time is indicative:

• Development of imagination. This occurs by replacing one item with another.
• Acquiring meaning. Children's consciousness acquires a semantic structure.
• Performing mental operations. The child can analyze, synthesize, generalize and compare.
• Ability to perform similar actions. A step-by-step explanation to a child gives a stunning result.
• Sensitivity and attention to other people. This is expressed periodically.
• A manifestation of character, stubbornness and self-will.
• Age characteristics of children of middle preschool age are based on the need for communication and cognitive activity. The course of this period is accompanied by role-playing games with a predominance of visual and figurative thinking.

The features of this age are:

• Complication of volitional manifestations.
• The emergence of the ability to reflect. This happens through the reaction of another child to his actions.
• Complicating the plot-role-playing game.
• Awareness of the actions being performed arises.
• Communication with peers reaches a higher level. The ability to cooperate appears. In particular, the rules of priority are followed.
• The ability to empathize and care for a neighbor or animal.
• The age-related characteristics of older preschoolers lie in the urgent need for communication, where imagination is the leading function. Children at this age have the following characteristics:
• Unconditional trust in an adult.
• Special sensitivity.
• Predominance of visual-figurative thinking.
• Forming an opinion about yourself through others, i.e. formation of self-awareness.
• Expecting others to evaluate your actions.
• Awareness of your own experiences.
• The emergence of an educational motive.

Age and individual characteristics of junior schoolchildren

Junior school age is the period when purposeful learning begins. The main activity now is study. The game is still important and necessary, but its role is noticeably weakening. Further formation and development of mental properties and human qualities is based on study. Educational activity has a complex structure, so the path to its formation is quite long.

The psychological characteristics of children of primary school age are difficult to describe briefly. Initially, they are determined by the formation of a primary integral worldview. The following changes also take place:

• The emergence of ethical standards.
• The predominance of reason over feelings. Deliberate actions prevail in most cases.
• The emergence of a desire to control one's own actions.
• Formation of personal consciousness and self-esteem.
• Development of intelligence as a result of educational activities.

Age characteristics of primary and secondary school age can be briefly defined by the active development of the central nervous system. The receptivity of the nervous system during this period guarantees the mastery of complex movements. The child’s routine should be filled with mandatory physical exercises. Regular physical activity at this age is subject to rapid recovery.

In modern Russian psychology, the problem of interpersonal relationships began to be studied in the 1950-60s. At the beginning of the 20th century A.F. Lazursky made the first research on this problem. He characterized relationships as the mental content of the personality, and the personality from the point of view of its active interaction with the surrounding reality. The author noted that a person’s individuality is determined by the uniqueness of his internal mental functions (features of imagination, memory, etc.), as well as his relationship to the phenomena around him.

The concept of “interpersonal relationships” by S. A. Rubinshtein characterizes a specific form of reflection of reality. In his opinion, attitude towards other people is the basis of human life.

S. A. Rubinstein considered relationships within the framework of consciousness. Human consciousness in its own internal content, according to the researcher, is determined through its relationship to the objective world. Consequently, the presence of consciousness presupposes the separation of a person from his environment.

The most complete study of interpersonal relationships is presented in the theory of relationships by V.N. Myasishcheva. He defined relationships as “an integral system of individual, selective, conscious connections of a person with various aspects of objective reality.” Thus, interpersonal relationships flow from the entire history of human development and determine the nature of the individual’s experience, the characteristics of his perception, behavioral reactions, etc.

M.I. made her contribution to the development of relationship psychology. Lisina. She distinguishes three types of relationships: attitude towards oneself, attitude towards other people and attitude towards the objective world. These relationships are interconnected, since through things we relate to a person, and our relationship to the objective world is mediated by our relationship to ourselves and other people.

B.F. also studied interpersonal relationships. Lomov, A.A. Bodalev, Ya.L. Kolomensky and other domestic psychologists. In particular, Ya.L. Kolomensky characterizes interpersonal relationships as an internal state of a person, reflecting the attitude of people towards each other.

Many interpersonal relationships can be qualified by taking into account the components of interaction: people's perception and understanding of each other; interpersonal attractiveness (attraction and sympathy); mutual influence and behavior (in particular role).

Sympathy is an emotional positive attitude towards the subject of interaction. Attraction is mainly related to a person's need to be together with another specific person.

For the formation of friendly relations in couples, joint activities and belonging to the same group are of great importance.

In the process of deepening interaction by increasing the duration and significance of joint activities and communication, the role of leading interests and value orientations intensifies.

From the above text one can come to the following definition:

Interpersonal relationships are objectively experienced, to varying degrees perceived, relationships between people, without which the full formation of mental functions, processes and properties of a person is impossible. Stable interpersonal relationships are interactions between individuals that are based on stability in choosing a partner, stability of shared goals, motives, content, methods, forms of communication and emotional experience in socially acceptable norms.

Domestic psychologists, in particular JI.C. Vygotsky, A.B. Zaporozhets pointed out the role of interpersonal relationships in the formation of a child’s personal qualities, in the formation of forms of his behavior and interactions with people around him. A.B. Zaporozhets and M.I. Lisin put forward a hypothesis about the multiplicity of reasons that determine the child’s need to communicate with people around him. A.A. Bodalev, L.I. Bozhovich, E.A. Vovchik-Blakitnaya also argue that communication is crucial for child development

Many domestic psychologists associate the concept of personality with the unique system of relationships of a particular person to the world, with his individual abilities of social interaction.

An essential aspect of a personality is its attitude to society, to individuals, to itself and to its social and labor responsibilities. A personality is characterized by the level of awareness of its relationships and their stability.

A person’s abilities, interests, and character are formed throughout life on a certain hereditary basis: anatomical and physiological characteristics, the basic qualities of the nervous system, the dynamics of nervous processes.

The formation of a person’s personal qualities is a consistent change and complication of the system of relationships to the surrounding world, nature, work, other people and to oneself. It happens throughout his life

Primary school age is especially important in this regard. Psychologists and teachers argue that personal qualities are formed and developed in activity and communication. The leading personality traits develop as a result of external influence on the personality and its inner world.

At primary school age, children have significant development reserves. Their identification and effective use is one of the main tasks of developmental and educational psychology. When a child enters school, under the influence of learning, a restructuring of all his conscious processes begins, their acquisition of qualities characteristic of adults, as children are involved in new types of activities and a system of interpersonal relationships. The common characteristics of all cognitive processes of a child are their arbitrariness, productivity and stability.
In order to skillfully use the child’s existing reserves, it is necessary to adapt children to work at school and at home as quickly as possible, teach them to study, be attentive, and diligent. Before entering school, a child must have sufficiently developed self-control, work skills, the ability to communicate with people, and role behavior.

In connection with the child’s entry into school, a new significant step takes place in the development of communication and the complication of the system of relationships with others. This is determined by the expansion of the child’s social circle and the involvement of new people in it, as well as the variety of relationships that are established between these people and the child. In connection with the change in the external and internal position of a junior schoolchild, the topics of his communication with people are expanding, in particular, issues related to educational and work activities are included in the circle of communication.

The nature of social interaction of younger schoolchildren changes significantly from the time they enter school and towards the end of the period of primary education. Upon arrival at school, there is a decrease in interpersonal connections and relationships between children of primary school age compared to the preparatory group of kindergarten. Psychologists explain this by the novelty of the team and the new learning activity for the child. At first, the younger student is absorbed only in studies, has little contact with classmates and for some time feels like a stranger, whereas in kindergarten, during group games, he constantly communicated with peers. At first, the student perceives his classmates “through the teacher” and pays attention to them when, during lessons, the teacher evaluates them and emphasizes their successes or failures. In direct contacts between children, the teacher also often has to act as a mediator, since they avoid speaking or addressing each other, even if there is a direct need for this. Gradually, in the process of joint learning activities, children establish new relationships. After a few weeks at school, most first-graders adapt to the new conditions, their timidity and embarrassment disappear, they begin to carefully look at other children and try to establish contacts with classmates who sympathize with them or show similar interests.

At primary school age, a child has to overcome many

difficulties in communication, and above all - with peers. Here, in situations of formal equality, children are faced with different natural energies, different cultures of verbal and emotional communication among peers, different wills and different senses of personality. Such collisions can take on pronounced expressive forms, for example, tearfulness, aggressive reactions, motor disinhibition.

When a child enters school, active acquisition of communication skills begins. And the formation of his personality in the system of interpersonal relationships depends on building relationships with peers, on the child’s position, his status in the group. The foundation for the development of a child’s personality and the formation of his self-awareness is the experience of interpersonal relationships with adults and peers.

In the system of a child’s interpersonal relationships with other people – with adults and peers – a primary schoolchild experiences and develops a complex range of feelings that characterize him as an already socialized person. For example, a child’s desire for self-affirmation and competition with other people expresses self-esteem. Understanding a specific situation and complying with social norms in society contributes to a sense of responsibility. This feeling develops most intensively in a child during educational activities.

The positive qualities of a child’s social development should also include his disposition towards other people (adults and children), which is expressed in an internal sense of trust in them and is manifested in the child’s ability to empathize. The empathy of a “successful” child with an “unsuccessful” one creates a special atmosphere of solidarity between children: all participants in this situation become more attentive to each other and more friendly.

As the child masters school reality, a system of personal relationships in the classroom gradually develops. It is based on direct emotional relationships with peers and the teacher, which prevail over all others. Acquiring skills for social interaction with a group of peers and the ability to make friends is one of the most important stages in the development of a child of primary school age.

It is at primary school age that children learn to resolve difficult situations in friendly relationships, observe customs, social norms, conventions associated with gender, understand issues of justice, respect authority, power and the moral law. They gradually comprehend the rules and principles by which the human world exists.

The most essential property of a child’s relationships with peers is their fundamental equality, including equality of rights to their own emotional assessment of everything that happens in the children’s group. The pleasure of spending time together, doing things together, a strong desire to continue them - all this helps children overcome difficulties associated with differences in opinions, desires, and intentions.

Children develop the ability to build equal cooperation among their peers who think and feel differently. This contributes to the formation of a new stage of the child’s emotional development, characterized by the emergence of the ability to perceive the emotional states of another person.

In the elementary grades, the child already strives to occupy a certain position in the system of personal relationships and in the structure of the team. The discrepancy between aspirations and the actual state in this area has a negative impact on the emotional sphere of the child. Thus, schoolchildren whose position in the group of peers is good, attend school with great desire, are active in educational and social work, and have a positive attitude towards the team and its social interests. Children who do not receive reciprocation are not satisfied with their situation. As a rule, in the classroom they are unfriendly, have conflicts and seek communication with peers outside the classroom, which hinders their personal development.

Informal differentiation of a group of junior schoolchildren often occurs for the following reasons: the positive personality traits of the person chosen, the need for playful communication, the ability for any specific type of activity. Some younger schoolchildren sometimes motivate their choice by external factors: “we live next door,” “my mother knows her mother,” etc. . In addition, the relationships of first-graders are largely determined by the teacher through the organization of the educational process.

When conducting sociometric measurements, psychologists find that among the preferred ones there are often children who study well, who are praised and singled out by the teacher. Success at school is perceived by students as the main characteristic of their personality. However, scientists, based on research materials, argue that until the 3rd grade, the expectations of the group of peers do not yet become the true motive of children’s behavior, and if the desires of a junior schoolchild diverge from the desires of the team, the child, without much internal conflict and without struggling with follows his own desires.

In 3-4th grade the situation changes. A children's team begins to take shape with its own requirements, norms, and expectations, and the more deeply a student is “involved” in the team, the more his emotional well-being depends on the approval of his peers. And it is precisely the need for their approval, according to M.S. Neimark becomes the force that encourages children to learn and accept the values ​​of the team.

From this period, the group of peers occupies an important place in the child’s life. Conformity to the standards, rules and norms of the collective takes the form of “religious worship”. Children unite in various communities, the organizational structure of which sometimes even takes on a strictly regulated character, expressed in the adoption of certain laws, rituals of entry and membership. Predilection for codes, ciphers, secret signs and signals, secret languages ​​are one of the manifestations of the tendency to isolate themselves from the adult world and create their own. Interest in such things, according to M.V. Osorina, usually manifests itself in children after 7 years of age and blossoms, sometimes becoming a real passion, between 8 and 11 years.

Such groups tend to almost always consist of members of the same gender. They are united by common interests, occupations and certain forms of interaction between members of a given community. In addition, relations between such groups often become hostile.

Gender division at this age characterizes not only the composition of groups, but also the places where games and entertainment are held. Throughout the entire territory of the games, special “girls’ and boys’ places are formed, not externally marked in any way, but protected from the invasion of “outsiders” and avoided by them.

Communication and friendship with members of the same sex, as well as differentiation of groups by gender, contribute to the formation of a definite and stable identification with gender in a child of primary school age, the development of his self-awareness, and also prepares the ground for the formation of new relationships in him in adolescence and youth.

The desire for peers and the thirst for communication with them make the peer group extremely valuable and attractive for a primary school student. They value their participation in the group very much, which is why sanctions from the group applied to those who have violated its laws become so effective. In this case, very strong, sometimes even cruel, measures of influence are used: ridicule, bullying, beatings, expulsion from the “collective”.

One of the leading needs of children is self-affirmation and gaining the highest possible status in the group. In this case, we can talk about both the common features that unite children who have won a favorable position in the peer group, and about the features characteristic of children who have not received sufficient status in the group. Thus, children who have a disadvantaged position in the system of interpersonal relations in the classroom usually have difficulties communicating with peers and are difficult to get along with, which can manifest itself in pugnacity, irascibility, capriciousness, rudeness, and isolation; They are often distinguished by snitching, arrogance, and greed; many of these children are sloppy and untidy. Schoolchildren who have a high sociometric status in the group have an even character, are sociable, are distinguished by initiative and rich imagination; most of them are good students; girls have an attractive appearance.

The criteria for assessing classmates characteristic of younger schoolchildren reflect the peculiarities of their perception and understanding of another person, which is associated with the general patterns of development of the cognitive sphere at this age: poor ability to highlight the main thing in a subject, situational nature, emotionality, reliance on specific facts, difficulties in establishing cause-and-effect relationships . During primary school age, these criteria undergo changes, apparently associated, among other things, with the development of the cognitive sphere of the primary school student.

N.I. Babich came to the conclusion that the process of perceiving another person at the first meeting with him has age differences. So, for example, in the first grade, having a positive attitude towards all newcomers, children, as a rule, give a general definition - “kind”. In the second grade, the reflection of a stranger is already more flexible, i.e. Children note the states of those present in a communication situation and identify several signs. Perception becomes directly situational. For third-graders, the time allotted for the perception of one object is divided into a number of moments recorded by them; children note the qualities manifested in the current situation, often without connecting them to each other and without making generalizations. Their perception is indirect and situational.

When creating an image of another person at the first meeting, children use a wide variety of vocabulary. A peculiarity of first-graders is that, with their limited vocabulary, they use definitions that they have mastered well. Most often, epithets are used that children remember when reading fairy tales: “kind”, “good”, “cheerful”. There are direct comparisons with fairy tale heroes. The vocabulary reflects the content of the standards with which objects of perception are compared.

Second-graders already use words whose meanings are learned at school: “responsive,” “shy,” “caring,” but the epithets “kind” and “good” are still often used.

The vocabulary of third graders is more voluminous. When perceiving new acquaintances, they say: careful, active, attentive. Often words do not reflect the essence of the phenomenon seen.

Consequently, first-graders evaluate their peers by those qualities that are easily manifested externally, as well as by those that the teacher most often pays attention to.

Towards the end of primary school age, eligibility criteria change. When assessing peers, social activity also comes first, in which children really value organizational abilities, and not just the very fact of a social assignment given by the teacher, as was the case in the first grade; and still has an attractive appearance. At this age, certain personal qualities become significant for children: honesty, independence, self-confidence. Indicators related to learning among third-graders are less significant and fade into the background [p. 423]. “Unattractive” third-graders are most characterized by such traits as social passivity; unscrupulous attitude towards work, towards other people's things.

At primary school age, social relationships increasingly expand and differentiate. The social world becomes wider for the child, relationships become deeper, and their content becomes more diverse. With a gradually increasing focus on peers, the child’s emotional dependence on the parent becomes less and less significant. It is at this age that the gradual psychological separation of the child from the adult and the acquisition of independence and independence begin.

In parallel with this, at primary school age, communication with peers becomes increasingly important for the child’s development. In a child’s communication with peers, not only cognitive subject-related activities are more readily carried out, but also the most important skills of interpersonal communication and moral behavior are formed.

When communicating with peers at primary school age, this type of relationship arises as friendship. Children benefit greatly from close, trusting relationships with each other. Through friendships, children learn social concepts, master social skills, and develop self-esteem.

Friendship reinforces and reinforces group norms, attitudes and values, and also serves as a backdrop for individual and group rivalry. Children who have regular, satisfying friends have better academic attitudes and achieve greater success in life. The nature of friendship changes throughout childhood.

A child’s attitude towards friends, the very understanding of friendship, have certain dynamics throughout primary school childhood. For children 5-7 years old, friends are those with whom the child plays and whom he sees more often than others. The choice of a friend is determined mainly by external reasons: children sit at the same desk, live in the same house, etc.

Between 8 and 11 years old, children consider as friends those who help them, respond to their requests and share their interests. For the emergence of mutual sympathy and friendship between children, such personality qualities as kindness and attentiveness, independence, self-confidence, and honesty become important.

At the end of childhood and adolescence, group friendships become most common. Groups are usually large and contain a core of several boys and girls who regularly participate in common activities.

Friendly couples that have existed for a long time are most often characterized by the presence of common values, views and expectations for both friends. With a friend, children can share their feelings and fears, discuss in detail all the details of their lives. When a child has a trusted best friend, he learns to communicate openly with others without feeling embarrassed. Additionally, if two children are friends, it allows them to share secrets. It should be noted that close friendships are more common among girls; boys tend to open up less to their friends.

Despite the fact that research shows that almost all children are in friendship relationships, many of them lack mutual friendships characterized by mutual exchange and mutual assistance.

Children who are rejected by their peers are at risk of experiencing social adjustment problems later in life. However, the results of some studies suggest that having even just one close friend helps a child overcome the negative impact of loneliness and hostility from other children.

We can say that with the onset of primary school age and the start of school, the child’s lifestyle changes radically.

And first of all, the social environment changes significantly: the child enters into complex relationships of mediation between two institutions of socialization - family and school. The orientation of children in their behavior towards adults throughout primary school age is gradually replaced by an orientation towards a group of peers. At this age, communication with peers becomes increasingly important for the child’s development, which contributes to the formation of stable children’s groups and the assimilation of emotional-evaluative relationships, such as sympathy and antipathy, affection, and friendship.

During the school years, the child's circle of friends begins to grow rapidly, and personal attachments become more permanent. Communication moves to a qualitatively different level, as children begin to better understand the motives of the actions of their peers, which contributes to the establishment of good relationships with them. During the period of primary education at school, informal groups of children with certain rules of behavior in them are formed for the first time. Children of primary school age spend a lot of time in various games, but in the company of peers, not adults. During games, children's groups establish their own specific relationships in accordance with more or less pronounced motives of interpersonal preferences.

Thus, as a result of the study of psychological and pedagogical literature, a definition of interpersonal relationships of junior schoolchildren was formulated - this is a set of certain orientations and expectations of the student, which are mediated by the goals, content and organization of his joint activities, primarily with peers. Interpersonal relationships that develop in a team of junior schoolchildren shape the personality of each member.

When a child enters school, active acquisition of communication skills begins. At primary school age, children learn to solve difficult situations in friendly relationships, observe customs, social norms, understand issues of justice, respect authorities, power and the moral law.

In the elementary grades, the child already strives to occupy a certain position in the system of personal relationships and in the structure of the team. The discrepancy between aspirations and the actual state in this area has a negative impact on the emotional sphere of the child. Thus, schoolchildren whose position in the group of peers is good, attend school with great desire, are active in educational and social work, and have a positive attitude towards the team and its social interests. Children who do not receive reciprocation are not satisfied with their situation.

Age characteristics of children of primary school age

The initial period of school life occupies the age range from 6-7 to 10-11 years (grades 1-4). At primary school age, children have significant development reserves. Their identification and effective use is one of the main tasks of developmental and educational psychology. When a child enters school, under the influence of learning, a restructuring of all his conscious processes begins, their acquisition of qualities characteristic of adults, as children are involved in new types of activities and a system of interpersonal relationships. The common characteristics of all cognitive processes of a child are their arbitrariness, productivity and stability.

In order to skillfully use the child’s existing reserves, it is necessary to adapt children to work at school and at home as quickly as possible, teach them to study, be attentive, and diligent. Before entering school, a child must have sufficiently developed self-control, work skills, the ability to communicate with people, and role behavior.

During this period, further physical and psychophysiological development of the child occurs, providing the opportunity for systematic learning at school. First of all, the functioning of the brain and nervous system is improved. According to physiologists, by the age of 7 the cerebral cortex is already largely mature. However, the most important, specifically human parts of the brain, responsible for programming, regulation and control of complex forms of mental activity, have not yet completed their formation in children of this age (the development of the frontal parts of the brain ends only by the age of 12), as a result of which the regulatory and inhibitory influence of the cortex on subcortical structures is insufficient. The imperfection of the regulatory function of the cortex is manifested in the peculiarities of behavior, organization of activity and emotional sphere characteristic of children of this age: younger schoolchildren are easily distracted, are not capable of long-term concentration, are excitable, and emotional.

Primary school age is a period of intensive development and qualitative transformation of cognitive processes: they begin to acquire an indirect character and become conscious and voluntary. The child gradually masters his mental processes, learns to control perception, attention, and memory.

When a child enters school, a new social development situation is established. The teacher becomes the center of the social situation of development. At primary school age, educational activity becomes the leading one. Educational activity is a special form of student activity aimed at changing oneself as a subject of learning. Thinking becomes the dominant function at primary school age. The transition from visual-figurative to verbal-logical thinking, which began in preschool age, is completed.

School education is structured in such a way that verbal and logical thinking receives preferential development. If in the first two years of schooling children work a lot with visual examples, then in subsequent grades the volume of such activities is reduced. Imaginative thinking is becoming less and less necessary in educational activities.

At the end of primary school age (and later), individual differences appear: among children. Psychologists distinguish groups of “theoreticians” or “thinkers” who easily solve educational problems verbally, “practitioners” who need support from visualization and practical actions, and “artists” with vivid imaginative thinking. Most children exhibit a relative balance between different types of thinking.

An important condition for the formation of theoretical thinking is the formation of scientific concepts. Theoretical thinking allows the student to solve problems, focusing not on external, visual signs and connections of objects, but on internal, essential properties and relationships.

At the beginning of primary school age, perception is not sufficiently differentiated. Because of this, the child “sometimes confuses letters and numbers that are similar in spelling (for example, 9 and 6 or the letters Z and R). Although he can purposefully examine objects and drawings, he is allocated, just as in preschool age, the brightest ones, "conspicuous" properties - mainly color, shape and size.

If preschoolers were characterized by analyzing perception, then by the end of primary school age, with appropriate training, synthesizing perception appears. Developing intelligence creates the ability to establish connections between elements of what is perceived. This can be easily seen when children describe the picture. These features must be taken into account when communicating with a child and his development.

Age stages of perception:

2-5 years - the stage of listing objects in the picture;

6-9 years - description of the picture;

after 9 years - interpretation of what was seen.

Memory in primary school age develops in two directions - arbitrariness and meaningfulness. Children involuntarily remember educational material that arouses their interest, presented in a playful way, associated with bright visual aids, etc. But, unlike preschoolers, they are able to purposefully, voluntarily memorize material that is not very interesting to them. Every year, learning is increasingly based on voluntary memory. Younger schoolchildren, just like preschoolers, usually have good mechanical memory. Many of them mechanically memorize educational texts throughout their entire education in primary school, which most often leads to significant difficulties in secondary school, when the material becomes more complex and larger in volume, and solving educational problems requires not only the ability to reproduce the material. Improving semantic memory at this age will make it possible to master a fairly wide range of mnemonic techniques, i.e. rational methods of memorization (dividing the text into parts, drawing up a plan, etc.).

It is at primary school age that attention develops. Without the formation of this mental function, the learning process is impossible. During the lesson, the teacher attracts the students' attention to the educational material and holds it for a long time. A younger student can concentrate on one thing for 10-20 minutes. The volume of attention increases by 2 times, its stability, switching and distribution increases.

Junior school age– the age of quite noticeable personality formation.

It is characterized by new relationships with adults and peers, inclusion in a whole system of teams, inclusion in a new type of activity - teaching, which makes a number of serious demands on the student.

All this has a decisive impact on the formation and consolidation of a new system of relationships towards people, the team, learning and related responsibilities, forms character, will, expands the range of interests, and develops abilities.

At primary school age, the foundation of moral behavior is laid, moral norms and rules of behavior are learned, and the social orientation of the individual begins to take shape.

The character of younger schoolchildren differs in some ways. First of all, they are impulsive - they tend to act immediately under the influence of immediate impulses, promptings, without thinking or weighing all the circumstances, for random reasons. The reason is the need for active external release due to age-related weakness of volitional regulation of behavior.

An age-related feature is also a general lack of will: a junior schoolchild does not yet have much experience in long-term struggle for an intended goal, overcoming difficulties and obstacles. He may give up if he fails, lose faith in his strengths and impossibilities. Capriciousness and stubbornness are often observed. The usual reason for them is shortcomings in family upbringing. The child was accustomed to the fact that all his desires and demands were satisfied; he did not see refusal in anything. Capriciousness and stubbornness are a peculiar form of a child’s protest against the strict demands that the school makes on him, against the need to sacrifice what he wants for the sake of what he needs.

Younger schoolchildren are very emotional. Emotionality is reflected, firstly, in the fact that their mental activity is usually colored by emotions. Everything that children observe, think about, and do evokes in them an emotionally charged attitude. Secondly, younger schoolchildren do not know how to restrain their feelings or control their external manifestation; they are very spontaneous and frank in expressing joy. Grief, sadness, fear, pleasure or displeasure. Thirdly, emotionality is expressed in their great emotional instability, frequent mood swings, a tendency to affect, short-term and violent manifestations of joy, grief, anger, fear. Over the years, the ability to regulate one’s feelings and restrain their unwanted manifestations develops more and more.

Primary school age provides great opportunities for developing collectivist relationships. Over the course of several years, with proper upbringing, a junior schoolchild accumulates the experience of collective activity that is important for his further development—activity in the team and for the team. Children’s participation in public, collective affairs helps foster collectivism. It is here that the child acquires the main experience of collective social activity.

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Vygotsky L.S. Pedagogical psychology. M., 1996.

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Galperin P.Ya. Teaching methods and mental development of the child. M., 1985.

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Elkonin D.B. Developmental psychology: Textbook. aid for students higher textbook establishments. M., 2001.

Children grow, develop and constantly change. Just recently you were running after your child in the kindergarten, but now he is already 7 years old, it’s time to go to school. And the parents become afraid. How to behave correctly with younger schoolchildren? How not to harm the child and make this period as comfortable as possible?

The most important thing is that your child remains the same, he just has new interests and responsibilities. And to help him, you just need to know the age characteristics of younger schoolchildren. Brief characteristics are described in the table below.

Junior school age is the period from 6-7 to 10 years. Now the child is changing physiologically. Features of development in this period - muscles grow, the child wants activity and mobility. Particular attention should be paid to posture - it is formed precisely at the age of 6-7 years. Remember - a junior schoolchild can sit calmly at the table for ten minutes at most! Therefore, it is very important to properly organize his workplace, monitor the correct light in order to protect his vision.

Particular attention should be paid to the psychological and age characteristics of younger schoolchildren. At this age, attention is not stable enough and is limited in volume. They cannot sit still and frequently change activities. The main way to obtain information is still play - children perfectly remember what evokes emotions in them. Visualization and bright, positive emotions allow younger schoolchildren to easily remember and assimilate the material. Use various tables, drawings, toys when teaching your child at home. But everything needs moderation. Small exercise minutes allow you to relieve muscle tension, relax and switch from study to rest, thereby increasing your motivation to study. It is now that the child’s attitude towards learning is formed - faith in his own strength, desire to learn and gain knowledge.

Younger schoolchildren are very active and proactive. But do not forget that at this age they are very easily influenced by the environment. Children become aware of themselves as individuals, compare themselves with others, and begin to build relationships with peers and adults. The psychological characteristic of younger schoolchildren is pliability and gullibility. Authority plays an important role for children at this age. And here it is very important to control the environment in which the child is. Keep track of who your baby communicates with. But the most important thing should still be the authority of the parents. Communicate with your child, express your point of view, listen to him. Mutual understanding is very important for younger schoolchildren, because right now their own position and self-esteem begins to form. And you must fully support him and help him in this.

Topic: “General characteristics of development

Junior schoolchild and teenager"

1. General characteristics of primary school age.

2. General characteristics of adolescence.

General characteristics of primary school age

Junior school age covers the age range from 6-7 to 10-11 years and occupies the initial period of school life (I – IV grades of school).

Primary school age is called the peak of childhood. The child retains many childish qualities: frivolity, naivety, looking up to the adult. But he is already beginning to lose his childish spontaneity in behavior; he has a different logic of thinking. Teaching is a meaningful activity for him. At school, he acquires not only new knowledge and skills, but also a certain social status. The interests, values ​​of the child, and his entire way of life change. When a child enters school, his position in the family changes; he begins to have his first serious responsibilities at home related to learning and work. Adults begin to place increased demands on him. All this taken together creates problems that the child needs to solve with the help of adults at the initial stage of schooling.

CRISIS 7 YEARS

At the border between preschool and primary school age, the child goes through another age crisis. This fracture may begin at age 7, or may shift by age 6 or 8.

Causes of the 7-year crisis. The reason for the crisis is that the child outgrew that system of relationships, in which it is included.

The crisis of 3 years was associated with awareness of oneself as an active subject in the world of objects. Saying “I myself,” the child sought to act in this world, to change it. Now he comes to realize his places in the world of public relations. He discovers the meaning of a new social position - the position of a schoolchild, associated with the performance of educational work highly valued by adults.

The formation of an appropriate internal position radically changes the child’s self-awareness. According to L.I. Bozovic, the crisis of 7 years is the period of birth social "I" child.

Changing self-awareness leads to revaluation of values. What was important before becomes secondary. Old interests and motives lose their motivating power and are replaced by new ones. Everything that is related to educational activities (primarily grades) turns out to be valuable, everything related to the game is less important. A little schoolboy plays with enthusiasm, but the game ceases to be the main content of his life.

During a crisis period, deep changes in the emotional sphere child, prepared by the entire course of personal development in preschool age.

The individual emotions and feelings that the four-year-old child experienced were fleeting, situational, and did not leave a noticeable trace in his memory. The fact that he periodically encountered failures in some of his affairs or sometimes received unflattering comments about his appearance and felt upset about this did not affect the development of his personality.

During the crisis period of 7 years, it becomes clear that L.S. Vygotsky calls generalization of experiences. A chain of failures or successes (in learning, in communication), each time experienced approximately equally by the child, leads to the formation stable affective complex – feelings of inferiority, humiliation, wounded pride or feelings of self-worth, competence, exclusivity. Of course, in the future these affective formations may change, even disappear, as experience of a different kind is accumulated. But some of them, reinforced by relevant events and assessments, will be recorded in the personality structure and influence the development of the child’s self-esteem and his level of aspirations.

The complication of the emotional and motivational sphere leads to the emergence inner life child. This is not a copy of his external life. Although external events constitute the content of experiences, they are refracted in a unique way in consciousness.

An important aspect of inner life becomes semantic orientation in one’s own actions. This is an intellectual link in the chain of a child’s actions, allowing him to adequately assess a future action from the point of view of its results and more distant consequences. It eliminates impulsiveness and spontaneity of the child’s behavior. Thanks to this mechanism childlike spontaneity is lost: the child thinks before acting, begins to hide his experiences and hesitations, and tries not to show others that he feels bad. The child is no longer the same externally as he is “internally,” although throughout primary school age there will still be a significant degree of openness and the desire to throw out all the emotions on children and close adults, to do what one really wants.

TYPES OF ACTIVITIES OF JUNIOR SCHOOL CHILDREN

When a child enters school, his development begins to be determined by educational activities, which become leading. This activity determines the nature of other activities: gaming, work And communication.

Each of the four named types of activity has its own characteristics at primary school age.

Educational activities. Teaching at primary school age it is just beginning, and therefore it needs to be talked about as a developing activity. Educational activity goes through a long process of development.

The development of educational activities will continue throughout all years of school life, but the foundations are laid in the first years of education. Primary school age bears the main burden in the formation of educational activities, since at this age the main components of educational activities: learning activities, control and self-regulation.

Components of educational activities. Educational activities have a certain structure. Let us briefly consider the components of educational activities, in accordance with the ideas of D.B. Elkonina.

The first component is motivation. The basis of educational and cognitive motives are cognitive need And need for self-development. This is an interest in the content side of educational activity, in what is being studied, and interest in the process of educational activity - how, in what ways educational tasks are solved. This is also a motive for one’s own growth, self-improvement, and development of one’s abilities.

Second component - educational task, those. a system of tasks during which the child masters the most common methods of action. A learning task must be distinguished from individual tasks. Typically, children, when solving multi-specific problems, spontaneously discover for themselves a general way to solve them.

Third component - training operations, they are part of way of doing things. Operations and the learning task are considered the main link in the structure of learning activities. The operator content will be those specific actions that the child performs while solving particular problems.

The fourth component is control. Initially, the children's educational work is supervised by the teacher. But gradually they begin to control it themselves, learning this partly spontaneously, partly under the guidance of a teacher. Without self-control, it is impossible to fully develop educational activities, so teaching control is an important and complex pedagogical task.

The fifth component of the structure of educational activities is grade. The child, while controlling his work, must learn to evaluate it adequately. At the same time, a general assessment is not enough - how correctly and efficiently the task was completed; you need to evaluate your actions - whether you have mastered the method of solving problems or not, what operations have not yet been worked out. The teacher, evaluating the work of students, is not limited to giving a grade. For the development of self-regulation in children, it is not the mark as such that is important, but meaningful assessment – an explanation of why this mark was placed, what pros and cons the answer or written work has.

Labor activity. Upon entering school, the child adjusts to a new labor system of relations. It is important that the home work activities of a primary school student reflect and apply the knowledge and skills that he acquires at school.

Game activity. At this age, play takes second place after educational activity as the leading activity and significantly influences the development of children. The formation of educational motives influences the development of gaming activities. Children 3-5 years old enjoy the process of playing, and at 5-6 years old - not only from the process, but also from the result, i.e. winning. In gaming motivation, the emphasis shifts from process to result; in addition, it is developing achievement motivation.

In games according to the rules typical for senior preschool and primary school ages, the winner is the one who has mastered the game better. Games take on more advanced forms and become educational. Individual subject games acquire constructive nature, they make extensive use of new knowledge. At this age, it is important that the younger student is provided with a sufficient number of educational games and has time to practice them.

The very course of development of children's play leads to the fact that play motivation gradually gives way to educational motivation, in which actions are performed for the sake of specific knowledge and skills, which, in turn, makes it possible to receive approval, recognition from adults and peers, and a special status.

Communication. The scope and content of the child’s communication with people around him is expanding, especially adults, who for younger schoolchildren act as teachers, serve as role models and the main source of diverse knowledge.

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

At primary school age, basic cognitive processes develop.

Imagination.

Until the age of seven, children can only detect reproductive images-representations about known objects or events that are not perceived at a given moment in time, and these images are mostly static. Preschoolers, for example, have difficulty trying to imagine intermediate positions of a falling stick between its vertical and horizontal positions.

Productive images-representations as a new combination of familiar elements appear in children after 7-8 years of age, and the development of these images is probably associated with the beginning of school.

Perception.

At the beginning of primary school age, perception is not sufficiently differentiated. Because of this, the child sometimes confuses letters and numbers that are similar in spelling (for example, 9 and 6). The child can purposefully examine objects and drawings, but at the same time, just as in preschool age, the most striking, “conspicuous” properties are highlighted to him - mainly color, shape and size. In order for the student to more subtly analyze the qualities of objects, the teacher must carry out special work, teaching observation.

If preschoolers were characterized by analyzing perception, then by the end of primary school age, with appropriate training, synthesizing perception. Developing intelligence makes it possible to establish connections between elements of the perceived.

A. Binet and V. Stern called the stage of drawing perception at the age of 2-5 years transfer stage, and at 6-9 years old – description stage. Later, after 9-10 years, the holistic description of the picture is supplemented by a logical explanation of the phenomena and events depicted on it ( interpretation stage).

Memory.

Memory in primary school age develops in two directions - randomness and meaningfulness.

Children involuntarily remember educational material that arouses their interest, presented in a playful form, associated with vivid visual aids or memory images, etc. But, unlike preschoolers, they are able to purposefully, voluntarily remember material that is not interesting to them. Every year, training is increasingly based on random memory.

The memory of children of primary school age is good, and this primarily concerns mechanical memory, which progresses quite quickly over the first three to four years of school. Slightly behind in development indirect, logical memory(or semantic memory), since in most cases a child, being busy with learning, work, play and communication, makes do with mechanical memory.

Improving semantic memory at this age occurs through comprehension of educational material. When a child comprehends educational material, understands it, he at the same time remembers it. Thus, intellectual work is at the same time a mnemonic activity; thinking and semantic memory are inextricably linked.

Attention.

At primary school age, attention develops. Without sufficient development of this mental function, the learning process is impossible.

Compared to preschoolers, younger schoolchildren are much more attentive. They are already capable concentrate attention on uninteresting activities, develops in educational activities voluntary attention child.

However, among younger schoolchildren it still prevails involuntary attention. For them, external impressions are a strong distraction; it is difficult for them to concentrate on incomprehensible, complex material.

The attention of younger schoolchildren is different small volume, low stability - they can concentrate on one thing for 10-20 minutes (while teenagers - 40-45 minutes, and high school students - up to 45-50 minutes). Obstructed distribution of attention and him switching from one learning task to another.

By the fourth grade of school, the volume, stability and concentration of voluntary attention of younger schoolchildren is almost the same as that of an adult. As for switchability, it is even higher at this age than on average in adults. This is due to the youth of the body and the mobility of processes in the child’s central nervous system.

Thinking.

Thinking becomes the dominant function at primary school age. The development of other mental functions depends on intelligence.

During the first three to four years of school, progress in children's mental development can be quite noticeable. From domination visually effective and elementary figurative thinking, from pre-conceptual thinking schoolboy rises to verbal-logical thinking at the level of specific concepts.

According to the terminology of J. Piaget, the beginning of this age is associated with the dominance of pre-operational thinking, and the end – with the predominance of operational thinking in concepts.

In the process of teaching junior schoolchildren scientific concepts are formed. Mastery of the system of scientific concepts makes it possible to speak about the development of the fundamentals of conceptual or theoretical thinking. Theoretical thinking allows the student to solve problems, focusing not on external, visual signs and connections of objects, but on internal, essential properties and relationships. The development of theoretical thinking depends on how and what the child is taught, i.e. depending on the type of training.

At the end of primary school age (and later), individual differences appear: among children, psychologists distinguish groups "theorists" who easily solve educational problems in verbal terms, "practitioners" who need support for visibility and practical actions, and "artists" with bright imaginative thinking. Most children exhibit a relative balance between different types of thinking. At the same age, children’s general and special abilities are revealed quite well.

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

A child’s entry into school creates new conditions for a person’s personal growth. During this period of time, educational activity becomes the leading activity for the child. In learning and other activities at a given time, many of the child’s personal qualities are formed.

Primary school age is sensitive for the development of such personal qualities of a child as hard work and independence.

Hard work arises as a consequence of repeated successes with sufficient effort. Favorable conditions for the development of hard work For schoolchildren, it is the fact that at first educational activity presents them with great difficulties that they have to overcome. This includes adaptation to new living conditions (daily routine, responsibilities, requirements), and problems associated with learning to read, count and write, and new concerns that arise for the child at school and at home.

A reasonable system of rewarding a child for success plays an important role in developing hard work. It should be focused not on those achievements that are relatively easy and depend on the child’s abilities, but on those that are difficult and are completely determined by the efforts made.

Independence Children of primary school age are combined with their dependence on adults, so this age can become a turning point, critical for the formation of independence.

On the one hand, gullibility, obedience and openness, if they are excessively expressed, can make the child dependent, dependent, and delay the development of this personality quality. On the other hand, too early an emphasis only on autonomy and independence can give rise to disobedience and closedness, making it difficult for a child to acquire meaningful life experience through trust and imitation of other people. In order for neither one nor the other of these undesirable tendencies to manifest itself, it is necessary to ensure that the education of independence and dependence is mutually balanced.

Communication. When a child enters school, changes occur in his relationships with people around him. During school years the child's circle of friends expands, and personal attachments become more permanent. Communication moves to a higher level, as children begin to improve understand the motives behind the actions of peers, which helps to establish good relationships with them.

During the initial period of schooling, between the ages of 6 and 8 years, informal groups of children with certain rules of behavior in them. However, these groups do not last long and are usually not stable enough in their composition.

Self-awareness. A feature of children of primary school age that makes them similar to preschoolers is unlimited trust in adults, mainly teachers, submission and imitation of them. Children of this age fully recognize the authority of an adult and almost unconditionally accept his assessments.

This feature of children's consciousness directly relates to such an important personal formation, which is consolidated at this age, as self-esteem. It directly depends on the nature of the assessments given to the adult child and his success in various activities. Children, based on the teacher’s assessment, consider themselves and their peers to be excellent students, “B” and “C” students, good and average students, endowing representatives of each group with a set of corresponding qualities. Assessment of academic performance at the beginning of school is essentially an assessment of the personality as a whole and determines the social status of the child.

In younger schoolchildren, unlike preschoolers, self-esteem of various types is already encountered: adequate, overestimated and underestimated. Excellent students and some well-achieving children develop inflated self-esteem. For underachieving and extremely weak students, systematic failures and low grades reduce their self-confidence and their abilities; such children develop low self-esteem.

The formation of self-awareness also depends on the development theoretical reflective thinking child. By the end of primary school age, reflection appears and thereby creates new opportunities for the formation of self-esteem. She becomes generally more adequate and differentiated, and judgments about herself become more justified.

At the same time, significant individual differences are observed in self-esteem. It should be especially emphasized that in children with high and low self-esteem, it is extremely difficult to change its level.

CONCLUSION:

Junior school age is the beginning of school life. By entering it, the child acquires the internal position of a schoolchild and learning motivation.

Educational activities becomes the leader for him.

During this period, the child develops theoretical thinking; he gets new ones knowledge, abilities, skills - creates the necessary basis for all subsequent training.

The development of the personality of a primary school student depends on the effectiveness of educational activities. School performance is an important criterion for assessing a child as an individual. The status of an excellent student or an underachiever is reflected in the self-assessment child, his self-respect And self-acceptance.

Successful studies, awareness of one’s abilities and skills lead to the formation feelings of competence - which, along with theoretical reflective thinking, becomes the central new formation of primary school age. If a sense of competence in educational activities is not formed, the child’s self-esteem decreases and a feeling of inferiority arises; Compensatory self-esteem and motivation may develop.