Cognitive research activities of preschool children: types, development

The child learns well what he is interested in on his own initiative and does it himself. This is facilitated by search activity, which is one of the main and natural manifestations of the child’s psyche. Preschoolers think, reason and transform what they have in their arsenal of experience. It is important to create conditions for them so that their experience expands, and new knowledge is passed through and firmly assimilated. The cognitive and research activities of children are rich in such opportunities.

Cognitive and research activity as a natural need of a child

Have you noticed how your child looks with interest at a piece of wood floating in a rain stream or how he is sincerely surprised by the frosty patterns on the winter windows? And numerous questions in the process of watching birds or milk running onto the stove: “Why?”, “Where from?”, “Why?”, “How?”. This behavior of a child is natural and only confirms that he, due to his age, is a researcher. Genetically predetermined search activity creates conditions for the child’s mental development to initially follow the path of self-development.

It should be noted that children are in special conditions: they are bombarded with information every day, and their knowledge is extremely limited.

What is important for a child’s development is not the amount of knowledge transferred to him, but how he appropriates it. This is why the exploratory nature of reflection and action is so important.

The preschooler observes, reasons, and his own discoveries arise. It is this kind of experience that is firmly assimilated by the child, and he subsequently uses it when faced with a familiar situation.

Younger preschoolers show the simplest cognitive activity. By interacting with objects, observing what is happening, asking questions, they assimilate primary information. This is their – and very valuable – way of understanding the world.

Every year the interests of children deepen. Older preschoolers are no longer just interested, but are trying to get to the bottom of the truth. Their activity is aimed at finding a solution, testing experimentally the properties of objects, and unraveling natural phenomena. Actually, the formation of cognitive and research activities is taking place.

The adult’s task is to stimulate the child’s natural search activity and develop his research abilities.

Types of cognitive and research activities in preschool age

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

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

Asking questions

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

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

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

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

Reasoning

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

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

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

Experimentation

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

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

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

Cognitive and research activities of preschool children under the conditions of the introduction of the Federal State Educational Standard DO Article

Cognitive and research activities of preschool children in the context of the introduction of the Federal State Educational Standard for Education

It is known that preschool childhood is a unique time for the development of a child’s abilities. One of the most important abilities is the ability to cognition. The development of cognitive activity has been considered in various works by teachers and psychologists. Y. A. Komensky, K. D. Ushinsky, D. Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau defined cognitive activity as the natural desire of preschool children to learn. A.K. Markova, V.P. Lozovaya, Zh.N Telnova, G.I. Shchukina and others studied the characteristics of cognitive activity and ways of activating it in preschool children.

The basic principles of preschool education in accordance with the Federal State Educational Standard for Preschool Education are the formation of cognitive interests and cognitive actions of the child in various types of activities. In addition, the standard is aimed at developing the intellectual qualities of preschoolers. According to it, the program should ensure the development of the personality of preschool children in various types of activities.

Federal State Educational Standards for Advanced Education pays special attention to cognitive and research activities (studying objects of the surrounding world and experimenting with them). Typical activities for the implementation of this area of work are:

– organization of solving cognitive problems;

– the use of experimentation in working with children;

– use of design.

The cognitive and research activities of a preschooler are based on curiosity, the desire for discovery, and the thirst for knowledge. Experimental activities in preschool educational institutions make it possible to satisfy these needs and thereby advance the development of the preschooler forward, develop his personal, physical and intellectual qualities.

In accordance with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard, kindergarten teachers are recommended to organize daily situations that provoke the cognitive activity of pupils. One of the forms of such influence is experimental research activities in preschool educational institutions.

Experimental research activities in kindergarten are effective activities aimed at developing the cognitive activity of preschoolers.

The content of the research involves the formation of the following ideas.

About the world of animals and plants: how animals live in winter and summer; vegetables, fruits, etc.; conditions necessary for their growth and development (light, moisture, heat).
About materials: clay, paper, fabric, wood, metal, plastic.
About a person: my assistants are eyes, nose, ears, mouth.
About natural phenomena: seasons, weather phenomena, objects of living and inanimate nature - water, ice, snow, etc.
About the objective world: dishes, furniture, toys, shoes, transport.
About geometric standards: circle, rectangle, prism, rhombus.

In the process of experimentation, the child’s memory is enriched, his thought processes are activated, as the need constantly arises to perform operations of analysis and synthesis, comparison, classification and generalization. The need to give an account of what is seen, to form discovered patterns and conclusions stimulates the development of speech. The consequence is not only the child’s familiarization with new facts, but also the accumulation of a fund of mental techniques and operations that are considered as mental skills.

At what age is it supposed to start experimenting in kindergarten?

From the second early age group (2–3 years), children begin to take part in joint experimental activities with the teacher. For now, they represent the simplest studies that help kids examine objects, noting their color, size or shape.

In the younger group (3–4 years), cognitive and research activities become more complicated. Together with the teacher, children learn to conduct experiments using sensory standards as an example. Thanks to experiments, they become clear about the previously hidden properties of the objects being studied.

Experimentation in the middle group (4–5 years old) is aimed at developing in children the ability to independently obtain information about a new object. All senses are actively used for experiments.

Using experimentation in the older group (5–6 years old), it is necessary to encourage children to independently carry out experimental actions and identify the hidden properties of phenomena and objects.

In the school preparatory group (6-7 years old), cognitive and research activities are improved. Not only independent work is encouraged, but also the choice of the optimal way to carry it out.

Preschoolers in the group should have free access to a special area - an experimentation corner, in which the following are located:

experiment kits with picture instructions;
toys for research - balls, cubes, small objects made of different materials;
various natural materials - sand, water, clay, shell, wool;
measuring instruments - scales, measuring containers, hourglasses, rulers;
tools - pipettes, spatulas, measuring spoons, toothpicks, transparent and colored glasses;
another rich object environment - a mirror, a magnifying glass, salt, magnets;
writing utensils for recording results.

In the experimental activity corner the following should be highlighted:

senior preschool age;
didactic component;
equipment component;
stimulating component;

— diagrams, tables, models with algorithms for performing experiments;

— a series of paintings depicting natural communities;

— educational books, atlases;

— thematic albums;

- collections;

— mini-museum (themes vary, for example, “There are different watches:”, “Stone products”;

— materials are divided into sections: “Sand, clay, water”, “Sound”, “Magnets”, “Paper”, “Light”, “Glass”, “Rubber”;

— natural material: stones, shells, saw cuts and leaves of trees, moss, seeds, different types of soil, etc.;

- recycled material: wire, pieces of leather, fur, fabric, plastic, wood, cork, etc.;

— technical materials: nuts, paper clips, bolts, nails, cogs, screws, construction parts, etc.;

— different types of paper: plain, cardboard, sandpaper, copy paper, etc.;

— dyes: food and non-food (gouache, watercolors, etc.);

— medical materials: pipettes with rounded ends, flasks, wooden sticks, measuring spoons, rubber bulbs, syringes without needles;

- other materials: mirrors, balloons, butter, flour, salt, sugar, colored and transparent glass, candles, etc.;

- sieve, funnels;

- halves of soap dishes, ice trays;

— parting assistants: magnifying glass, hourglass, microscopes, magnifying glasses;

- oilcloth aprons, sleeves, rubber gloves, rags;

— mini-stand “What I want to know about tomorrow”;

— personal notebooks for children to record the results of experiments;

— hint cards (permitting and prohibiting signs) “What is possible, what is not”;

- characters endowed with certain traits (“Pochemuchka”) on whose behalf a problematic situation is modeled.

In senior preschool, conducting experiments should become the norm; they should be considered not as entertainment, but as a way to familiarize children with the world around them and the most effective way to develop thought processes. Experiments and experiences make it possible to combine all types of activities and all aspects of education, develop observation and inquisitiveness of the mind, develop the desire to understand the world, all cognitive abilities, the ability to invent, use non-standard solutions in difficult situations, and create a creative personality.

Some important tips:

1. It is better to conduct experiments in the morning, when the child is full of strength and energy.

2. It is important for us not only to teach, but also to interest the child, to make him want to gain knowledge and do new experiments himself.

3. Explain to your child that you cannot taste unknown substances, no matter how beautiful and appetizing they look.

4. Don’t just show your child an interesting experience, but also explain in a language he understands why this happens.

5. Do not ignore your child’s questions - look for answers to them in books, reference books, and the Internet.

6. Where there is no danger, give the child more independence.

7. Invite your child to show his favorite experiments to his friends.

8. And most importantly: rejoice in your child’s successes, praise him and encourage his desire to learn. Only positive emotions can instill a love for new knowledge.

I offer some of the most interesting experiences and experiments that can be very interesting for children!

1. "Vanishing Chalk"

For a spectacular experience, we will need a small piece of chalk. Dip chalk into a glass of vinegar and see what happens. The chalk in the glass will begin to hiss, bubble, decrease in size and soon disappear completely.

Chalk is limestone; when it comes into contact with acetic acid, it turns into other substances, one of which is carbon dioxide, which is rapidly released in the form of bubbles.

2. “Magic Magnet”

1. Take a glass of water.

2. Place a wooden cube and paper clips in it.

3. Place a magnet against the wall of the glass: the magnet attracts only metal objects, even through glass and water.

3. “Tricks with magnets”

Task: identify objects that interact with a magnet.

Materials: magnets, a goose cut out of foam plastic with a metal rod inserted into its beak; a bowl of water, a jar of jam, a jar of mustard; a wooden stick, on one end of which a magnet is attached and covered with cotton wool on top, and on the other - only cotton wool at the end; animal figurines on cardboard stands; a shoe box with one side cut off; paper clips; a magnet attached with tape to a pencil; a glass of water, small metal rods or a needle.

The magician shows the children pictures of animals and asks: “Can my animals move on their own?” (No.) The magician replaces these animals with pictures with paper clips attached to their bottom edges. Places the figures on the box and moves the magnet inside the box. Why did the animals start moving? Children look at the figures and see that there are paper clips attached to the stands. Children try to control animals. A magician “accidentally” drops a needle into a glass of water. How to get it without getting your hands wet? (Bring the magnet to the glass.) Children use a magnet to independently remove various objects from the water.

Drawing with magnets

Materials for the experiment: 2 disposable plates, paints of different colors, magnetic balls, magnets.

Children are asked to pour a little paint into a plate and move the balls with a magnet under the plate.

4. Making soap bubbles. Objective: to introduce children to the method of making soap bubbles, to the properties of liquid soap: it can stretch and form a film.

Materials: liquid soap, pieces of soap, a loop with a wire handle, cups, water, spoons, trays.

5. Mysterious pictures Task: show children that surrounding objects change color if you look at them through colored glasses.

Materials: colored glasses, worksheets, colored pencils. Children sketch “mysterious pictures” on a worksheet.

6. Magic glass. Objectives: introduce children to observation instruments - microscope, magnifying glass, telescope, telescope, binoculars; explain why a person needs them.

Materials: magnifying glasses, microscopes, various small objects, small seeds of fruits, vegetables, leaves of trees, plants, tree bark; binoculars, pictures of a spyglass, telescope.

7. Experiments with water and salt

Freeze the water, slightly tinted with paint, and inside there are figurines of sea creatures. Purpose: to defrost and help the inhabitants free themselves from ice. Sprinkle salt and the ice melts.

8. Experiments with sand. Why is an hourglass called an hourglass?

Goal: to identify the properties of sand and clay.

Materials: containers with dry sand and clay. Transparent cups; planks; magnifying glass; sieve; hourglass.

Conducting the experiment:

- Take cups, fill one cup with clay, the other with sand.

— Look at clay and sand through a magnifying glass, compare how they differ? (Sand consists of small grains of sand, clay consists of lumps.)

- Take sand in your hands and rub it. Take the clay and grind it. Let's explain what's happening. (Sand pours out of hand, clay kneads.)

- Pour sand on one side of the board, clay on the other side of the board. Compare clay and sand slides. (A hill made of sand is smooth, a hill made of clay is uneven.) Why (Grains of sand are smooth and hard; lumps of clay are uneven and soft.)

- Take sand, clay and sift through a sieve one by one. Compare how grains of sand and clay lumps pass through a sieve. (Grains of sand pass easily and quickly, lumps of clay pass poorly and slowly.)

To summarize:

The main property of sand is flowability.

The main property of clay is friability.

Why? Sand consists of small grains of sand. They are hard, round, and do not stick to each other. The sand is pouring down. Clay consists of clay particles. They are soft, uneven, stick to each other. Clay doesn't flow

Conclusion: only sand is suitable for an hourglass, which is why this clock is called an hourglass

The project method also has wide opportunities for educational and research activities. This is a special technology of integrated learning, the meaning of which is the independent activity of children - research, cognitive, productive, during which the child learns about the world around him and translates new knowledge into real products.

Children love to share news, and so the problem arises: how to satisfy the desires of all children. The topic of the project should be proposed by the children themselves, based on their interests and needs. In junior and middle groups, you need to guide children to choose a project topic. Choosing a topic and children's interests begins with the “three questions model”:

- What do you know?

- What do you want to know?

- What should be done in order to find out?

The specific result of the work can be a drawing, an application, a written fairy tale, a performance, a concert, etc. During the implementation of the project, children develop independence, activity, responsibility, a sense of trust in each other, and most importantly, an interest in knowledge.

As part of educational and research activities, you can propose the projects “Water Sorceress”, “Products that are healthy and not so healthy”, “Scented soap”, “Vegetable garden on the windowsill”.

For example, during the project “Products that are healthy and not so good,” children explore the harmful effects of Coca-Cola and chips on the human body. After all, information obtained with one’s own hands is remembered by the child firmly and for a long time. Through entertaining experiments, children satisfy their natural curiosity and cognitive activity.

During the “Scented Soap” project, children, through experiments, confirm the hypothesis that the properties of soap directly depend on its composition. Children, together with their parents, will be able to make soap with different compositions at home.

I consider close interaction with parents and their involvement in joint activities to be an integral part of the work on developing children’s cognitive activity. For this purpose, consultations, holidays and entertainment, involving parents in the implementation of joint child-parent projects, etc. Parents and students should be involved in creating a cognitive and developmental environment in the group, replenishing them with the necessary materials.

In the parent’s corner, you can create a permanent section in “Let’s Experiment!”, in which educators offer parents various forms of conducting experiments and experiments together with their children. For parents, you can create a card index of elementary experiences and experiments that can be done at home. For example, “Colored Ice” (ice can be seen not only in winter, but also at any other time of the year if water is frozen in the refrigerator). The result of this work can be interesting stories from children and parents about how they together made soap and paper at home, grew crystals, dyed fabric, and made colored pieces of ice.

It is necessary to develop booklets and instructions for parents: “What not to do and what to do to maintain children’s interest in experimenting,” “How to help a little researcher,” “Entertaining experiments in the kitchen.”

Childhood years are the most important and how they will pass depends on the parents and on us, teachers. It is very important to reveal to parents in a timely manner the developmental aspects of each child and recommend appropriate parenting techniques. Analyzing all of the above, we can conclude that specially organized research activities allow our students to obtain information about the objects or phenomena being studied, and the teacher to make the learning process as effective as possible and more fully satisfy the natural curiosity of preschoolers, developing their cognitive activity.

In conclusion, I would like to quote the words of K. E. Timiryazev: “People who have learned... observations and experiments acquire the ability to pose questions themselves and receive factual answers to them at a higher mental and moral level in comparison with those who have not gone through such a school.”

Bibliography:

Babina N.V. 500 how and why for children. – M.: TC Sfera, 2012. – 96 p.
Dybina O. V. What happened before...: Games-traveling into the past of objects. - M.: TC Sfera, 2011. - 160 p.
Ivanova A.I. Living ecology. Environmental education program for preschoolers. – M.: TC Sfera, 2009. – 80 p.
Kuznetsova A. E. The best educational games for children from 3 to 7 years old. – M.: LLC ID RIPOL CLASSIC, LLC publishing house Dom.XXI century, 2010. – 189 p.
Marudova E.V. Familiarization of preschoolers with the world around them. Experimentation. – St. Petersburg: OOO publishing house Detstvo-press, 2013. – 128 p.
Khabarova T.V. Pedagogical technologies in preschool education. – St. Petersburg: OOO publishing house Detstvo-press, 2012. – 80 p.
Khabarova T.V., Shafigullina N.V. Planning lessons on ecology and pedagogical diagnostics of environmental education of preschoolers. – St. Petersburg: OOO publishing house Detstvo-press, 2010. – 128 p.
Chernyakova V.N. Environmental work in preschool educational institutions. Toolkit. M.: TC Sfera, 2010. – 144 p.
I go for a walk: Walking with children on a day off. A guide for parents. M.: Publishing House Karapuz, 2002. – 72 p.

Methods and means of implementing research activities

The level of development of older preschoolers allows them to express themselves in any of the considered types of cognitive and research activities. Gifted children are especially active in this direction. But every child can be stirred up, a spark of curiosity can be ignited in him and pushed towards a deeper comprehension of the surrounding reality.

There are two main forms of cognitive and research activity:

The child is the source of activity. He sets a goal himself and strives to achieve it, satisfying his curiosity.
The research process is organized by an adult, awakening interest and motivating knowledge. A preschooler learns to act.

Each of these forms is aimed at solving a single task: to help the child understand a problematic issue, firmly assimilate new knowledge and gain new experience.

Methods and techniques for organizing research activities of preschoolers vary from conversations to carrying out small projects to obtain a specific result. They are widely used in preschool educational institutions. Also perfect for home use.

Developmental conversations

When it comes to developmental conversations, the dialogue should motivate the child not only to receive ready-made information, but also to the desire to reflect, analyze and draw conclusions.

For example, a preschooler became interested in why hail suddenly fell in the middle of summer. There is no need to rush with explanations. Explain what each hailstone is, why drops of water freeze, and what happened in the atmosphere the day before. The child thinks, builds a logical chain and formulates his assumption. Some correction may be required, but the young researcher will already be able to draw a conclusion.

Or a child has heard a new word and wonders what it means. Let your son or daughter think about it, and only at the end comment and formulate the child’s thought more clearly.

Organization of observations

You can observe with your child living nature (animals, insects, plants), inanimate nature (seasonal changes and natural phenomena) and social life. When organizing observations, it is necessary to determine:

observation location (park, meadow, pond, urban environment);
object of observation (plant, animal, inanimate object).

If necessary, prepare and take with you special instruments (magnifying glass, thermometer, etc.) or items (bird food, brushes, etc.).

Summer weather conditions contribute to the cognitive and research activities of preschool children. The organization of observations at this time of year is aimed both at strengthening the child’s health and at creating conditions in which he could prove himself as an inquisitive researcher of the world around him.

You can organize observation at home. For example, growing onions. Game motivation works well: let’s set up a garden bed on the windowsill.

The child, with the help of an adult, pours water into cups, “plants” bulbs in them and places them on the windowsill. Joint observation of the bulbs is carried out for several days. You can keep an “Observation Sheet” and record changes using sketches. When the onion arrows are long enough, you can cut them off and crumble them into your child’s soup. He will be happy to try vitamins from his own garden.

Experiences and Experiments

In order for transformations in the world around them not only to be noticed by the child, but also to become an impetus for the development of his thinking, the preschooler must, while performing the task, be in the position of not a spectator, but a researcher. Therefore, it is so important that adults organize and conduct experiments and experiments together with the child.

The most interesting experiments are experiments with objects. The well-known experiment “Drowning or not drowning” will require simple equipment: a bowl of water, several objects from different materials (a feather, a nail, a plastic ball, a clothespin, a bead, a piece of paper, etc.).

During the experiment, the child must distribute objects according to the criterion “drowning or not drowning”:

Sinks immediately;
Sinks after getting wet;
Doesn't sink.

The preschooler independently checks the “buoyancy” of each object. A preliminary inspection and tactile examination of objects will indicate what qualities of objects affect the result of interaction with water.

Involvement in projects

In modern kindergartens, the method of project activities is widely used. Basically, three types of projects are addressed:

research (study of certain phenomena);
creative (creating a creative product);
normative (joint creation of a set of rules).

The organization of project-based cognitive and research activities allows children to be included in a common cause and create a joint creative product.

You can just as easily organize a project at home for your children or for a child and his friends.

For example, get excited about creating a general drawing on a large sheet of paper. And at the same time, you can jointly prepare unusual, magical paints (based on flour, salt and gouache). It is convenient to apply such paints onto the sheet directly by hand, which is extremely attractive to children.

MAGAZINE Preschooler.RF

COGNITIVE - RESEARCH ACTIVITIES IN DECREATIONAL IU IN THE CONDITIONS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FSES

Babynina T.N., Burmitskaya N.N., Moroz E.A. MDOU "Combined kindergarten No. 19, Razumnoye village, Belgorod district"

“The best discovery is the one that a child makes himself . Ralph W. Emerson.

The cognitive research activities of children in kindergarten are invaluable for the development of the personality of a preschooler. This type of activity is important and one of the leading ones. It is through exploration that children learn about the world around them and acquire new knowledge. Cognitive research activities are necessary in every age period of a preschooler. In different age groups, according to the principle of using age-appropriate types of children's activities, this can be observation, experimentation, targeted walks, excursions, and various problem situations.

Preschool children are by nature inquisitive explorers of the world around them. “It’s better to test it once, try it, do it yourself ,” practice teachers say.

The work of a teacher, based on the Federal State Educational Standard (FSES), should be aimed at developing cognitive activity and research skills in children. In accordance with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard, kindergarten teachers need to organize situations that provoke the cognitive activity of pupils. One of the forms of such influence is experimental research activities in preschool educational institutions.

In the process of mastering methods of practical interaction with the environment, children transform objects in order to reveal their hidden significant connections with natural phenomena. Knowledge of the surrounding world as a whole is impossible without knowledge of nature. Studying problems to become familiar with natural phenomena is a means of mental, aesthetic education.

Cognitive research activity is not only to facilitate children’s assimilation of specific information about plants, animals, natural phenomena, to instill in them environmental skills and respect for the natural world and the environment, but also allows the child to develop qualitatively. Younger preschoolers, with the help of an adult, and older ones independently go in search of knowledge, are interested in everything new, unknown, ask adults a lot of questions, make guesses, reason, think, look for different ways to solve problem situations, experiment, rejoice and be surprised by their own discoveries.

Psychologists emphasize that for a child’s development, it is not the excess of knowledge that is crucial, but the method of acquiring it, determined by the type of activity in which this knowledge is acquired. Conducting experiments and organizing experimentation is one of the effective ways to educate preschoolers’ ecological culture. Research provides the child with the opportunity to find answers to the questions “how?” and why?" .

One of the general tasks of the kindergarten is to work on developing ideas about cause-and-effect relationships through experimental activities in nature, taking into account the regional component, using innovative programs and methods, as well as modern forms of education.

Research activities are of great interest to children. The practical actions performed by the child develop the cognitive, tentatively research function, creating conditions for revealing the content of a given object, and therefore knowledge about cause-and-effect relationships is formed. This type of activity has a positive effect on the emotional sphere of the child; to develop creative potential, to improve health by increasing the level of physical activity. In the process of cognitive research activities, children have the opportunity to realize their characteristic curiosity, to imagine themselves as a scientist, researcher, discoverer. At the same time, the teacher is not a mentor, but becomes a playing partner in joint activities, and this allows the child to show his own research activity.

In the process of children's experimentation, kids learn: to find and identify a problem, to accept and set a goal, to solve problems, to analyze an object or phenomenon, to identify essential features and connections, to compare various facts, to put forward hypotheses, proposals, to choose the means and materials necessary to carry out this activity, carry out an experiment and draw conclusions. Children experience great delight and surprise from their small and large “discoveries ,” which make them feel proud of the work they have done. In the course of such work, preschoolers are better and faster able to find a way out of difficult situations and cope more easily with the problems that arise.

In the process of research activities, the child gains experience:

Physical: learns to control your body and certain organs.
Natural history: gets acquainted with the real world around us, with the properties of objects and cause-and-effect relationships operating in the world.
Social: remember the individual characteristics of each person.
Cognitive: train thought processes, master a variety of mental operations.
Linguistic: engage in word creation, discuss the results of the experiment, play word games, that is, experiment with words.
Strong-willed: remember how he himself can influence people.
Personal: recognize your personal capabilities.
Behavioral: model your behavior in various situations.

Children's cognitive activity should be ensured through the use of methods of observation of natural objects and natural phenomena, game modeling and experimentation, problem-game situations, work in nature, and viewing illustrations. It is important that the methods used correspond to the interests of children, their cognitive abilities, and the characteristics of their attitude towards the environment.

The organization of a developmental environment is one of the conditions for solving the problems of research activities in kindergarten. “An experiment or experience is a special type of observation organized in specially created conditions” A.I. Vasilyev, and therefore each kindergarten group is equipped with “mini-laboratories” for experimentation, where children can independently and with the help of an adult reproduce simple and more complex experiments. The laboratory was created to develop children's interest in research activities, where the development of primary natural science concepts, observation, and curiosity occurs.

The laboratory is constantly updated with new materials for experimentation, which are in a place accessible to children.

Depending on the age of the children, the Experimentation Center may contain:

Various instruments: scales, magnifying glasses, magnets, microscopes, magnifying glasses;
A variety of vessels made from various materials
Natural materials: leaves, sand, clay, earth, seeds;
Nuts, paper clips, screws, nails, wire;
Medical materials: pipettes, flasks, syringes, measuring spoons, cotton wool, bandage;
Waste material: plastic, pieces of fabric, leather, fur;
Flour, salt, soda, candles, lanterns;
Children's robes, aprons;
Schemes-algorithms for conducting experiments;
Journal for recording results, etc.

In the process of cognitive research activities, the teacher encourages children to independently accept and set cognitive tasks, put forward proposals about the causes and results of observed natural phenomena, notice contradictions in judgments, and use different ways to verify proposals; trial and error method, experiments, comparative observations. Teachers take into account children’s preferences for learning about various natural objects, are interested in who or what they would like to learn about, and are attentive to children’s questions. They support preschoolers' interest in nature, observation, experimentation, and studying materials from encyclopedias and magazines. They stimulate the manifestation of children's curiosity, the desire to study natural phenomena more deeply, using the basic methods of cognition.

Thus:

Experimental activities help make communication with children more trusting and friendly; it encourages them to engage in independent research and active learning.
Children's experimentation, as a method in pedagogical work, is highly effective and indispensable for the development of preschoolers' research activities, cognitive activity, and increasing the amount of knowledge, skills and abilities.

List of used literature:

Dybina O. V. “Classes on familiarization with the outside world in the second junior group of kindergarten” M.: Mozaika - Synthesis, 2007 (methodological manual).
Nikolaeva S. N. “Methods of environmental education in kindergarten . – M. 1999.
Odintsova L. Experimental activities in preschool educational institutions. Toolkit. – M.: Sfera, 2012.

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Development of research skills in preschool children

The development of a child’s research abilities largely depends on the position of adults. After all, children themselves are not able to fully organize their activities and evaluate the results obtained.

Therefore, adults should motivate children to complete interesting tasks, stimulate non-standard and interesting solutions, and help the child evaluate the level of the proposed solutions.

At the same time, it is necessary to provide maximum opportunities for independent action and support the initiative of the preschooler.

Activation of cognitive interest

Despite the fact that children have a natural need for knowledge, their interest and search activity must be stimulated. To do this, you can use tasks to develop the skills of thinking originally, seeing problems, and reasoning from different points of view.

Exercises and tasks for this purpose are varied. Here are just a few of them:

Write a story on behalf of Kolobok (the hero can be anyone);
Come up with several answers to heuristic questions (Why do birds sing?);
Exercises to develop the ability to ask questions (“Ask questions to the funny bunny in the picture to find out about him”);
Conduct a thought experiment (“What would happen if all people became giants?”);
Experiments with real objects in order to identify new properties (with water, paints, a ray of light, plastic, fabric);
Games for the development of thinking (“Sequential pictures”, “Fairy tales” and others).

Encouraging child independence

Research and search activities will bring little benefit to a preschooler if he is only an observer. It is not enough that the child just performs the actions. It is important that he sets goals on his own, what he wants to check, learn, understand. And having identified a goal, he acted in accordance with it.

In order to consistently develop the child’s independence, parents need to adhere to the following rules:

Create an environment in your home that encourages your child's independence.
Give us the opportunity to solve small problem situations.
Maintain interest in the activity.
Measure your level of activity in joint activities with your child.
Don't blame yourself for failures. Explore their reasons together.
Praise your child for success. It is very important!

The influence of cognitive research activities on the formation of readiness for school

Involving a preschooler in cognitive and research activities gives him a good foundation for his upcoming schooling. This type of activity ensures a strong assimilation of knowledge and develops the desire to learn new things.

The child learns to formulate goals, reason logically, adhere to an algorithm in actions, control steps, and evaluate the results obtained. All of the above permeates educational activities at school.

In addition, search efforts form voluntary attention and influence the development of volitional qualities of a preschooler. The child has to repeat experiments, return to observations in order to find answers to problematic questions.

Thus, a cognitive-exploratory attitude towards the world around us comprehensively develops a preschooler and increases his readiness for learning at school.

Search and research activities in kindergarten. Forms and methods of working with children.

People who have learned...observations and experiments,

acquire the ability to ask questions themselves

and receive factual answers to them, finding yourself

at the highest mental and moral level

in comparison with those who did not go through such school.

K.E.Timiryazev

Goal: expanding the knowledge of teachers about the forms and methods of working on search and research activities with preschool children.

Tasks:

Enrichment, clarification and expansion of teachers’ knowledge about the importance of experimentation in the development of preschool children.

Forming an idea of the correct organization of experimentation with a preschool child.

Expanding and clarifying teachers’ knowledge about the forms and methods of working with children.

Currently, the latest developments, technologies, and methods are being formed and successfully applied in the preschool education system, which make it possible to raise the level of preschool education to a higher and higher quality level. One of such effective methods of understanding the patterns and phenomena of the surrounding world is experimental research activities.

The baby is a natural explorer of the world around him. The world opens up to the child through the experience of his personal feelings, actions, and experiences.

A preschooler is characterized by an increased interest in everything that happens around him. Every day, children learn more and more new objects, strive to learn not only their names, but also their similarities, and think about the simplest reasons for the observed phenomena.

All areas of children's activity are permeated with experimentation, be it a walk or an activity, eating or sleeping, playing or drawing. This is easily explained by the fact that children have visually effective and visually imaginative thinking, and it is experimentation that, like no other method, corresponds to the age characteristics of preschoolers.

In addition, it should be noted the positive impact of activity on the emotional sphere of the child, on the development of creative abilities, the formation of work skills, and the ability to finish what is started.

In my work on organizing experimental activities for preschoolers, I use a variety of forms and methods. Forms of work: group, subgroup and individual. Their choice is determined by age capabilities, as well as the nature of educational tasks. It must be remembered that the child must have the opportunity to express his impressions. Then the impressions are consolidated, and children gradually begin to feel the need to explore the world around them, and subsequently the connection between the world around them and themselves.

Methods and techniques of search and research activities:

heuristic conversations;

raising and solving problematic issues;

observations;

modeling (creating models about changes in inanimate nature);

experiments;

recording the results: observations, experiences, experiments, work activities;

“immersion” in the colors, sounds, smells and images of nature;

imitation of voices and sounds of nature;

use of artistic words;

didactic games, game-based educational and creative development situations;

work assignments, actions.

One of the conditions for solving problems in experimental activities in kindergarten is the organization of a developmental environment. The object environment surrounds and influences the child from the first minutes of his life.

The group has created an experimentation corner. It is important to create conditions for organizing children’s independent research activities.

Structure of the experiment game:

setting, formulating a problem (cognitive task);

making assumptions, selecting verification methods put forward by children;

hypothesis testing;

summing up, conclusion;

recording results;

children's questions.

The main equipment in the corner are:

Helpful instruments: microscope, magnifying glasses, cup scales, hourglasses, compasses and magnets.

Transparent and non-transparent vessels of different configurations and different volumes: plastic bottles, glasses, buckets, funnels.

Natural materials: pebbles of different colors and shapes, minerals, clay, earth, coarse and fine sand (different colors), bird feathers, shells, cones, nut shells, pieces of tree bark, dry leaves, twigs, fluff, moss, fruit seeds and vegetables, wool.

Waste material: pieces of leather, fur, scraps of fabric, corks, wire, wood, plastic, metal objects and wooden spools.

Technical materials: nuts, screws, nails.

Different types of papers: plain, landscape, notebook, tracing paper, sandpaper.

Dyes: watercolor paints.

Medical materials: pipettes, flasks, test tubes, beakers, wooden sticks, cotton wool, funnels, measuring spoons.

Other materials: mirrors, balloons, wooden toothpicks, pallets, cocktail straws.

Play equipment: water mill, container for playing with sand and water.

Containers for bulk items, chart tables, “We are scientists” workbook for recording the results of experiments.

A reasonable combination of materials and equipment in the experimentation corner contributes to children’s mastery of the means of cognitive activity, methods of action, examination of objects, and expansion of cognitive experience.

When setting up an experimentation corner, the following requirements must be taken into account: - safety for the life and health of children;

— sufficiency;

— accessibility of location.

In the process of experimentation, children form not only intellectual impressions, but also develop the ability to work in a team and independently, defend their own point of view, prove its correctness, determine the reasons for the failure of experimental activities, and draw basic conclusions. Specially organized research activities allow our students to obtain information about the objects or phenomena being studied, and the teacher to make the learning process as effective as possible and more fully satisfy the natural curiosity of preschoolers, developing their cognitive activity.