Open lesson with elements of fairy tale therapy in the middle group “Visiting fairy-tale characters”

DEFINITION

Fairytale therapy is a method of psychological correction that helps develop a harmonious personality and solve individual problems. The instrument of this therapy is a fairy tale, which allows, using the example of heroes, to trace the characteristics of behavior and actions, and to analyze a specific life situation.

Fairytale therapy began to be used in isolation relatively recently, but quickly found a large number of fans among professional psychotherapists and parents. It was identified as a separate branch of psychotherapy thanks to Tatyana Zinkevich-Evstigneeva, and was later successfully used in working with both children and adults.

The essence of the method is this: the experience of conflict occurs with the help of a system of substitutes - fairy-tale characters, in whose place the child (or adult) begins to imagine himself. The plot is also important. Due to its metaphorical nature, a fairy tale becomes a powerful developmental and psychotherapeutic tool. By living certain events with the characters, the baby learns to understand their meaning and significance.

The goal of therapy is to help the child overcome anxiety and fears, correct negative character traits, and reveal abilities and inner world.

The following tasks can be distinguished:

• formation of emotional experience;
• overcoming internal contradictions;
• obtaining a sample of behavior in various situations.

Often a fairy tale becomes a means of developing personality, imagination, memory

BEST AGE

Experts advise starting to use fairy tales from the age of 2, since younger children are not yet able to carry out the simplest analysis and understand cause-and-effect relationships, that is, the work will be ineffective. And from the age of 2, it is quite possible to use simple therapeutic fairy tales to help calm the child, prevent hysteria, and provide an example of positive behavior.

At the age of 3, fairy tale therapy can be used more actively, including in combination with other art therapy methods.

DIRECTIONS

It is customary to distinguish several areas of fairy tale therapy:

• Help in difficult life situations. Using the characters as an example, you can consider alternative behavior options and reflect on what consequences each of them leads to.
• Identifying the problem the child is facing in a simple and accessible form.
• Transfer of experience. The parent does not teach the child, but shares with him his life experience and knowledge through a fairy tale.
• Development of thinking, imagination, memory. The form of work is used with children from 3 years old; parents offer not just to listen to the text, but to answer a series of questions, speculate on something, and explain the actions and characters of the characters.
• Behavior correction. With the help of heroes, the child looks at himself from the outside, sees his own negative qualities, as well as an example of how to correct them.
• Psychoprophylaxis. It is always better to avoid a problem than to fix it, and a fairy tale is a very convenient way to do this.

The advantage of fairy tale therapy is that it helps solve a wide range of problems in both children and adults.

FUNCTIONS

It is customary to distinguish the following functions of fairy tale therapy:

• The ability to quickly establish contact between the therapist and the client, regardless of the latter’s age.
• Many mental problems are hidden deep in the subconscious. A short text from a fairy tale helps to bring them to the surface and analyze them.
• Heroes will help you find a way out of difficult situations and consider alternatives.
• Fairy tales allow you to better understand yourself and get rid of internal contradictions.
• This text allows the therapist to receive all the information, even if the client (usually an adult) is trying to hide something.

Fairy tales are an excellent way to overcome phobias; they will also help to instill the skills necessary for a full life, provide an opportunity to understand what is good and what is evil, to reveal the individuality of one’s own personality, and to overcome life’s difficulties. And, what’s most convenient, parents can use this method even without professional education.

Fairy tale therapy: theory and practical application

How does fairy tale therapy work?

Fairytale therapy is designed to help a child concentrate on a certain problem, show ways to solve it, without giving strict recommendations. In each story, a certain situation that arose in the life of a child is played out, the characters in the story have the characteristics of real people, and the conflict that arises always has a logical resolution. Fairytale therapy establishes connections between fairy-tale events and behavior in real life, transfers bookish, magical meanings into reality. The main principle of the method is the spiritual, holistic development of the child’s personality, caring for his soul.

A fairy tale not only teaches, but also heals.

Fairytale therapy helps children who have lost their parents. The child meets himself in a fairy tale, with a good, best expression of himself. Learns from himself fabulous good deeds, learns to be happy.

Fairytale therapy in kindergarten and at home

Collective writing of fairy tales is very useful. For young children, this is an exercise in interaction; for teenagers, it is a way to understand themselves and their peers. Using the example of a jointly created fairy tale, you can understand who plays what roles in the team.

It is useful for parents to compose together with their child, because at such moments you begin to speak in a common language and can find out the child’s hidden thoughts and desires. By hiding them behind symbols and metaphors, the young storyteller frees himself internally, and a caring and attentive parent can unravel the desires and subconscious aspirations of the child.

The fairy tale stimulates creative thinking and develops a sense of humor in parents and children. And by depicting magical characters on paper or plasticine, the child practices modeling, writing and drawing skills, develops perseverance and attentiveness.

What kind of fairy tales are there?

All fairy tales can be divided into four groups according to the problems they raise:

1. Difficulties in communication.

   The fairy tale plays out conflicts, grievances, and disagreements that arise in a child in the yard, at school, in kindergarten, and within the family circle.

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2. Inner experiences.

   The effect of a magic mirror arises, which allows you to carefully examine your as yet unknown inner world, level out emerging contradictions and complexes, and answer the question “what’s wrong with me?”

3. Fears.

   It is important for parents to know what their child is afraid of and, most importantly,
   how he is afraid of it
   . If fear slows down development, takes away emotional strength, and becomes an insurmountable obstacle to personal growth, then the child needs help.

4. Age-related difficulties.

   Each age has its own critical moments associated with the child’s awareness of his new role. For example, accepting oneself as an independent person in preschool age, or problems related to learning in primary school age. All this can be said through a fairy tale.

Types of fairy tales in fairytale therapy:

1. Artistic tales.

   The plots that are closest to ordinary folklore are universal and are rarely adapted to a specific child. They are mainly used as maintenance therapy and are not used to correct more serious problems. The main principle of artistic fairy tales is “do no harm.”

2. Psychocorrectional tales.

   They imply a gentle correction of certain character traits and behavior. Often used for children with hyperactivity and aggressive manifestations. These tales must be studied individually by a psychologist.

3. Psychotherapeutic tales.

   They are used when working with children from 3 to 8 years old after a superficial study of the child’s problems. It is psychotherapeutic fairy tales that are the main tool for correcting fears and phobias.

   There are also universal psychotherapeutic fairy tales that can be used without adaptation by a psychologist to a specific child. In this case, the factor that increases the effectiveness of the fairy tale is personalization: the main character of the fairy tale is the child himself. Usually, ready-made collections of therapeutic tales are used on the most common problems (fear of the dark, greed, etc.).

4. Meditative tales.

   They are distinguished by the absence of conflicts and evil heroes. They are designed for relaxation after psychological stress. They are the most difficult type in fairy tale therapy because they are not aimed at solving a specific problem. Meditative fairy tales are often told in the format of a dialogue with a child, which helps the psychologist-storyteller change the plot based on the child’s obvious or hidden needs.

5. Didactic fairy tales.

   Often used for preschoolers and children of primary school age. Their purpose is to teach the child something new in an interactive way. Used in primary schools as part of the curriculum. With the help of such a fairy tale, you can work with your child on this or that situation, behavior pattern, and system for finding a solution.

For children and adults

Fairytale therapy is used in kindergartens, schools and rehabilitation centers. Based on fairy tale therapy, collections of therapeutic personalized fairy tales are created. Fairy tales are used to treat various fears in children, excessive aggressiveness, laziness, hyperactivity, reluctance to go to kindergarten, nervous tics, fears, enuresis and anorexia.

Fairytale therapy resolves conflicts with parents, eliminates communication difficulties, learning difficulties, aggressiveness in relationships, feelings of inferiority, loneliness, and self-doubt.

But fairy tale therapy is useful not only for children. Remember your favorite magical story from childhood, tell it to yourself, smile, close your eyes, relax... Do you feel it? This is how fairytale therapy works. It’s not for nothing that fairytale therapists advise carrying a pocket book with your favorite fairy tale. After all, how good it is to read a good, time-tested fairy tale after a hard day at work. Even if it’s “Kolobok”.

“What is this fairy tale about?” you ask. It teaches that everyone has a purpose in this world and shows what can happen when we give up our path.

In all fairy tales, the dialectic of the world is visible: without evil there cannot be good, and vice versa. This teaches a very important thing - to perceive the world as it is.

The language of fairy tales opens the way for a visual, figurative and visually effective comprehension of the world of human relationships, which is quite adequate for any age-related mental characteristics.

Fairytale therapy in speech therapy and defectology

Elements of fairy tale therapy can be used in games and exercises aimed at:

• formation of sensory representations based on various models of perception (visual, tactile);
• development of general speech skills; development of auditory attention; development of word formation;
• training in the use of the genitive case;
• formation of simple phrases (for example, games with a set goal for children; with increasing/decreasing voice strength).

It is very difficult for sounds to be automated even in children with a strong nervous system, little sensitivity, and who do not show much interest in what surrounds them. They don't seem to care what their pronunciation is. And lack of desire means lack of conscious control. Such children may not have any difficulties with producing sounds or their initial automation, but introducing sounds into spontaneous speech is sometimes a difficult task for both the speech therapist and the child himself.

You can solve the problem with the help of “fairy tales for automating sounds,” which belong to the category of speech therapy. In speech therapy work, all new technologies can be successfully combined with fairy tale therapy techniques, where correctional tasks for the development of all components of speech are solved.

A fairy tale is an effective developmental, correctional and psychotherapeutic tool in working with children.

In these and many other cases, a fairy tale is introduced as an unobtrusive means of identifying the listener’s “sore spot”, demonstrating to him new ways of interacting with reality, ways out of the current difficult situation, and showing the other side of what is happening.

Fairytale therapy in psychology

Psychologists use therapeutic fairy tales to work in three areas:

1. Diagnostics

   , that is, determining the main life scenarios of a person, characteristics of behavior and perception of the world, abilities, talents.

2. Actually therapy

   — solving psychological problems, consolidating new patterns of behavior and reactions.

3. Prognostics

   - assistance in understanding the influence of behavior in the present on future life events.

The fairy tale therapy method can provoke powerful and effective work of the subconscious.

The choice of genre focus is based on the age, interests of the listener, and the nature of his difficulties. It is important that the metaphor is correctly selected in the work - the effectiveness of therapeutic techniques depends on it.

We are accustomed to viewing a fairy tale as a kind of entertaining activity, a way to broaden our horizons and convey a moral. But psychology identifies a much larger number of functions that a fictional story, told in a certain way, performs:

1. Solving problems facing people.

   The story told shows a problem identical to the real one and ways to overcome it. The listener subconsciously associates the fictitious situation with his own and analyzes the possibility of using the proposed options.

2. Development of thought processes.

   For children 3-12 years old - listening, analysis, subsequent discussion of the work, identifying positive and negative characters - these are tools for improving memory, attention, and logical thinking. In addition, a fairy tale introduces a child to concepts, phenomena, and words previously unknown to him, also acting as a method of speech development.

3. Transfer of true values.

   Through fairy tales, generations of people pass on to their descendants the concepts of good and evil, honesty, responsibility, love and justice. Invented heroes teach decency, caring for loved ones, and achieving goals.

4. Revealing forgotten, distant childhood traumas

   deals with fairy tale therapy for adults - through the analysis of a person’s favorite work or a story invented by him.

5. Emotional saturation.

   Sincere empathy for the characters in the story allows you to remove the existing block on certain emotions (“boys don’t cry”, “you can’t be so angry” and other stereotyped attitudes imposed by society), fully experience them, name and accept positive and negative feelings.

6. Behavior change

   — therapeutic fairy tales of a correctional direction gently turn children’s behavioral reactions towards more effective, safe, and acceptable ones.

Working using fictional stories is an effective tool for influencing the inner world of adults and children. Each age period requires an individual approach, as does each individual case.

We can highlight the basic principles of constructing therapeutic activities

with children of any age:

• Emotional transfer of the content of the story to adults.

  When listening, the child should see the narrator’s face, gestures, and eye expression.

• No too long pauses.

  The situation in the allegory should be “open”, that is, it should suggest the possibility of several solutions.

• A problem that is relevant to a child is encrypted with images and metaphors.

  Correct psychological fairy tales for children contain situational questions that encourage the listener to independently trace the causes and consequences of the described actions.

• A clear distinction between positive and negative characters.

Typically, fairy tale therapy for preschoolers works in several directions:

• Reading

  (narration)
  of the work.

• Artistic depiction

  - drawing, modeling, appliqué making.

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• Diagnostics.
• Making up your own story.
• Creation of puppet characters.
• Theatrical performance.

Read other materials on preschool education:

Methodological assistance to preschool teachers

How to read aloud to a child? Improving reading skills

Methodology for diagnostics, development and correction of visual perception in preschool children

10 games for kindergarten: learning to be friends and help

Both mind and heart

All methods are used separately or in combination, in accordance with the age characteristics of the listeners. Thanks to a fairy tale, a child learns about the world not only with his mind, but also with his heart. And he not only learns, but responds to events and phenomena of the surrounding world, expresses his attitude towards good and evil - this is how the personality is corrected, the emotional and behavioral reactions expand.

The first ideas about justice and injustice are drawn from fairy-tale images. Fairy tales allow a child to experience courage and resilience for the first time. The process of fairy tale therapy gives the child an alternative concept that he can either accept or reject. One child is more inclined to compose and tell stories, another cannot sit still and needs to be constantly moving. The third one likes to make something with his own hands, the fourth one loves to draw...

By combining various techniques of fairy tale therapy, you can help each child live through many situations, the analogues of which he will encounter in adult life. And significantly expand his worldview and ways of interacting with the surrounding reality and other people.

TYPES OF FAIRY TALES

Let's get acquainted with the classification of fairy tales proposed by Zinkevich-Evstigneeva. The information is presented in table form.

The genres used in such therapy are diverse; they are not always fairy tales. Here are the main ones:

• epics, myths, legends, sagas - these 4 genres are best suited for working with teenagers;
• fables (the moral is formulated quite clearly; you can use texts not only by Krylov, but also by Aesop and La Fontaine);
• parables (often contain important life lessons, are dedicated to a specific problem and can be used to work through it).

Sometimes it is acceptable to use modern genres, for example detective stories, science fiction - the main thing is that the genre matches the child’s taste.

Fairytale therapy in the practice of a psychologist

The effectiveness of fairy tale therapy depends on the correctly chosen genre (and the metaphor included in the story). When making a choice, the therapist relies on the age of the listeners, their interests and beliefs, and the nature of the existing difficulties.

Fairy tales are used in psychotherapy:

• in diagnostics, the task of which will be to determine the main life scenarios of the patient, his behavioral characteristics, abilities and attitude;
• in psychotherapy, the task of which will be to solve existing psychological problems and consolidate a new model of behavior;
• in prognostication, the task of which will be to help the patient understand the influence of his current behavior on future events.

The following actions are used during therapy:

• reading or retelling a fairy tale;
• discussion of an existing fairy tale;
• inventing your own story/fairy tale;
• drawing, modeling, appliqué of fairy-tale events or characters;
• a dramatization or theatrical production based on a fairy tale.

VARIOUS FAIRY TALE THERAPY METHODS

Working with fairy tales can be combined with other forms and methods of art therapy, which will help not only correct the child’s behavior, but also arouse his keen interest and improve his mood.

So, first of all, sand therapy is harmoniously combined with a fairy tale. Sand can become a kind of environment for recreating a magical world. While playing with sand, the child creates his own reality, in which he feels comfortable and happy; during the game, thanks to the so-called “fairy-tale intuition”, the child manages to find a way out of a difficult situation.

Drawing a fairy tale is one of the methods of fairy tale therapy. Using pencils, paints, even plasticine or clay, the child expresses his own emotions about the text he heard. Another form of work is independent writing (composing) of a fairy tale, in which the child can completely come up with the text, propose an alternative scenario for the development of events in a ready-made fairy tale, and figure out what happened after the conclusion - for example, how the fates of the heroes of “Teremka” turned out or what they began to do the old man and the old woman from “The Tale of the Goldfish”, once again finding themselves “at the bottom.” This will be interesting for preschoolers aged 5-6 years and older children.

The next option is dramatization, staging of fairy tales, their staging, which helps children more deeply get used to the character’s image and enrich their emotional and behavioral experience. At the same time, you should avoid tedious memorization of the role and strict adherence to the text - in such classes, improvisation is much more important. It is this form of work that will help you realize your own shortcomings using the example of the character being portrayed, find out how you can overcome them, and do it.

Staging puppet shows is also useful, allowing you to develop your child’s speech, imagination, communication skills and fine motor skills. In order to “revive” the doll, the child observes certain forms of behavior from the outside, sees what they lead to, and draws his own conclusions. Also, in the process of doll therapy, he gets the opportunity to express those feelings and emotions that are inaccessible to him in real life or are suppressed. Older children (6 or 7 years old) can be encouraged to make dolls themselves, a process that helps them relax.

Another technique is the “master of fairy tales” proposed by Zinkevich-Evstigneeva. According to the author, there are 10 main archetypes (for example, a road, a state, a crossroads), using which you can create 50 fairy-tale plots, which is what the child is asked to do. “Master of Tales” is a deck of 50 cards, each of which has its own meaning. Using them, you can create your own oral works.

These methods are easy to use in homework; in this case, mothers and fathers and other relatives become spectators of “theatrical” productions or puppet theaters.

What problems can fairy tale therapy help you cope with?

Collective writing of fairy tales will help preschoolers get comfortable in a group, learn to make friends with their peers, and teenagers - understand themselves and their classmates. A jointly created fairy tale will reveal which of the children plays what roles in life, and will provide an opportunity to look at their character and behavior from the outside.

If parents compose a fairy tale together with their child, this makes it possible to speak the same language, to find out the child’s hidden thoughts, dreams and aspirations. A fairy tale will develop creativity and a sense of humor in both adults and children.

If you ask your child to draw or mold magical characters from plasticine, you can effectively practice the skills of writing, modeling, drawing, and help the young storyteller develop motor skills, perseverance and attentiveness.

Fairytale therapy copes with such children's problems as difficulties in communication and learning, as well as loneliness, low self-esteem, laziness, fears, aggression, excessive activity, psychosomatic diseases, and will help determine the reason why a child refuses to go to kindergarten or school.

Using the language of fairy tales, adults comprehend the nuances of interpersonal relationships and get to know themselves better. A magical story helps you take a fresh look at the world around you and improve your quality of life.

Fairy tales in psychotherapy are divided into 4 main groups according to the problems they address:

1. For difficulties in communication

   The fairy tale tells about the conflicts, quarrels, and grievances that a child has in kindergarten, at school, in the family, and on a walk.

2. During age crises

   the child seems to get used to his new role, to a new position (for example, to independence in kindergarten); all these moments can be played out in a fairy tale.

3. With internal experiences

   in the fairy tale, the hero is shown - the baby himself, his inner world is examined, complexes and contradictions are revealed, so that the child can answer the question: “What’s wrong with me?”

4. For worries and fears

   It is necessary, with the help of a fairy tale, to determine what the baby is afraid of, what prevents him from developing, what takes energy.

TIPS FOR PARENTS

With the right approach, using fairy tales you can solve the following problems:

• laziness;
• sloppiness;
• deception;
• aggression;
• reluctance to go to kindergarten.

In case of serious phobias or the appearance of a new family member, it is better to seek the help of a professional.

Let's look at how a mother can use elements of fairy tale therapy at home for her preschooler. Often, it is not enough for a child to simply listen to the text of a fairy tale. It is important that his parents discuss it with him and help him understand the lessons that the plot and characters provide.

By reflecting with your son or daughter on each fairy tale you read, you can form a so-called “bank of life situations” - that is, what you can and cannot do in various cases. The more often such discussions occur, the faster the child will gain the necessary life experience. In this way, the parents will prepare him for an independent future life and help him form a value system.

If a child asks his mother to tell the same fairy tale several times, the request should be fulfilled, since she speaks of the importance of this story for the baby.

WHICH TALES TO CHOOSE?

Let's look at examples of fairy tales and requirements for them. For preschoolers and children 7 years old, the following options are suitable:

• household (“Ryaba Chicken”, “Kolobok”, “Porridge from an Axe”);
• magical (“Morozko”, “Puss in Boots”);
• heroic (“Dobrynya and the Serpent”, “Ilya Muromets”);
• instructive (“The Fox and the Crane”, “Goldfish”).

These can be both oral folk and original works. The main thing is that they meet the following requirements:

• The characters were understandable and interesting to children. An excellent option if the actor is a peer. Age specifics should also be taken into account: for 2-3 years old, animal heroes are preferable; at 4 years old, an element of magic should be introduced; at 5 years old, fairy tales already become the main ones.
• Characters should be clearly divided into positive and negative. Due to their age, it is still difficult for children to judge that an honest and kind person in certain circumstances does not always act well. Therefore, everything in the selected material should be accessible and unambiguous.
• The text itself should be chosen that is interesting to the child, close to him in subject matter and hobbies.
• The topic must be relevant. The lesson is conducted for a specific purpose, to solve some problem of the child (aggression, shyness, phobias), the material must be selected in such a way as to highlight these aspects.
• Availability of interchange. The problem must be solved, since this is the only way the child will receive a specific algorithm of action.

If she has imagination, mom can write a fairy tale herself, but you can use ready-made works by psychologists.

LESSON STRUCTURE

When conducting a fairytale therapy class, the following elements must be present:

1. An immersion ritual that helps create the necessary mood. This could be listening to a cheerful tune that your child loves.
2. Getting to know the text. It is advisable for the mother to tell a fairy tale; if this is not possible, expressive reading or listening to an audio recording with professional speakers is acceptable.
3. Discussion. A conversation about what has been heard, allowing you to understand the lesson of the text, evaluate the actions of the characters, and identify the cause-and-effect relationship “action-consequence”.
4. Art therapeutic element. Drawing heroes, creating a fairy-tale world in a sandbox. It is best to use a child's favorite activity.
5. Exit ritual. Close your eyes, count out loud to three and leave the fairy-tale world, find yourself in the real one.
6. Summarizing. A short summary of what was learned in class. At this stage, it is very important to avoid the use of moralizing by an adult, imposing the “correct position”.

The structure is not mandatory; you can modify it if desired. Such classes can be conducted both individually and in group form.

SOLVING SPECIFIC PROBLEMS

Let's consider how a mother can use fairy tale therapy to solve a number of important problems in the upbringing and development of a child.

The second option for working with fairy tales is texts dedicated to a specific child. As a rule, children are very interested in hearing about themselves. In such fairy tales, the baby is endowed with certain character traits that the parent wants to instill in him. For example, if a baby categorically refuses to go to bed in the dark, in the plot of the fairy tale he should appear as a brave hero who is not afraid of the night.

Fairytale therapy is a gentle method of psychotherapy that allows you to solve serious problems in a gentle manner. It is available for use at home. The main difficulty is the correct choice of material. This issue should be approached responsibly; if desired, you can compose a fairy tale yourself. This method is ideal for children, since the work is carried out on material accessible to preschool age, which, however, does not reduce its effectiveness.

Fairytale therapy - how does this method work?

Fairytale therapy is a method that helps a child (or adult) concentrate on their problem. When used skillfully, fairytale therapy can provide the psychologist with clear routes for correcting behavior and treating depressive conditions in patients.

Each fairy-tale story plays out a specific situation that happened in the patient’s life. The characters are endowed with the characters of real people, and a conflict situation always has a logical solution. This therapy makes a connection between the events that occur in a fairy tale and reality, and transfers magic into everyday life.

The main goal of fairy tale therapy is the development of personality and care for the soul. The kid meets the best version of himself in a fairy tale, learns from the hero to do good deeds, to be happy and fair.

Results of using fairy tale therapy

We draw our first ideas about good and evil, justice and deception from fairy tales. Good stories and beloved fairy-tale characters help young children become brave and resilient. Fairy tale treatment provides its patients with an alternative behavioral strategy that they can accept or reject.

We are all different, one child is inclined to fantasize, another loves to run and jump, another sits for hours sculpting animals or constructing a dollhouse. By combining various techniques, an experienced fairytale therapist can help each child experience and understand many situations that he has already encountered or will inevitably encounter in adulthood.

We are accustomed to viewing a fairy tale as entertainment, as a way to broaden our horizons, but in psychology a fairy tale is given a much greater role and significance, because it:

• can solve many life problems and answer internal questions;
• develops thought processes, improves memory, logic, attention;
• is able to convey from generation to generation the concepts of justice, kindness, love, fidelity;
• makes it possible to identify forgotten childhood psychological traumas;
• saturates the personality emotionally, causes sincere feelings;
• capable of changing human behavior.