In the conditions of modern society, such human qualities as independence, the ability to improve one's skills, constantly learn, and expanding the knowledge base become especially significant. And the sphere of education, including preschool, cannot remain on the sidelines, because it is it that forms the makings for the further development of children. A new area of work with kindergarten pupils is experimentation in preschool education, aimed at understanding the properties of objects and natural phenomena through their direct perception. Such training is the most effective.
Preparatory Experimentation
The most suitable age for starting this kind of cognitive activity is a period of 5-6 years. Therefore, experimenting in the kindergarten preparatory group is most effective. At this age, research is a natural process for the child. He studies everything that happens around, but most often it happens haphazardly. Specially prepared classes for experimenting in a preschool educational institution will be able to expand the child's ideas about the world around him, to interest him in something that he might not encounter in everyday life.
In this case, the teacher does not act as the subject of influence on the object (the student), but becomes on a par with him, exploring and learning together. The purpose of this lesson in the preparatory group is to help the child:
- select an object;
- find a method;
- collect the most complete information.
These tasks for the baby lie in the zone of proximal development, that is, they cannot yet be carried out by him independently.
Experimenting in the preschool educational institution on GEF is an actively developing area of preschool pedagogy, specific methods of which are created and tested in modern kindergartens. Educators build their own training programs based on common goals and objectives.
Goals and objectives of technology
Experimentation in a preparatory group is an important part of cognitive work. Its value is very great. The preparatory group is the children of preschool age who are in the preschool for the last year. Thus, the skills and knowledge acquired here become the basis for further training. Children's experimentation in preschool educational institutions has the following goals:
- creation of conditions for the formation of a child's holistic picture of the world, objects and phenomena surrounding it;
- development of the emotional and value sphere of the personality;
- enrichment of vocabulary and general knowledge base;
- improvement of communication skills, ability to collaborate with peers and a teacher.
The implementation of these points will be the more successful the more systematically the process of cognition is built and the interaction of the baby and the adult is effective.
Expected results
Each activity has a specific goal, including children's experimentation in a preschool educational institution. The results should be tangible. What exactly do educators achieve by conducting such unusual and interesting classes in the preparatory group? The result of the pedagogical process should be as follows:
- Children improve their speech, they use more words in their active vocabulary.
- The value of the surrounding world, nature becomes higher, because in close interaction with objects of wildlife, the child learns to understand the needs of plants and animals and empathize with them.
- Working as a team, delimiting areas of activity, performing each of its tasks and bringing together all the data for a common result, the kids begin to communicate more effectively.
- The world, in the view of young experimenters, no longer consists of separate things and phenomena, it turns into an integral structure.
In other words, the preschooler begins to more objectively evaluate everything that surrounds him, from objects to people, and this will help him a lot in his future adult life.
All you need is in sight
What is the corner of experimentation in DOW? A kindergarten practicing innovative education is necessarily equipped with appropriate materials. The experimentation corner in the preschool educational institution should consist of objects and materials that are used in the classroom. The illustrations are also relevant: experimental design, description and image of the properties and qualities of the studied objects. The exposition should not be static: children quickly lose interest in what is constantly in sight. The most acceptable option would be a thematic exhibition for each lesson. On the day when the properties of magnets are studied, in the corner of the experiment will be not only the objects under study, but also samples of various metals and other materials: wood, plastic, rubber, minerals, etc.
In general, the corner of experimentation in the preparatory group must necessarily contain everything that is required in order to study weight, attraction, time, simple chemical reactions and physical phenomena. For the most part, these are household things that we use in everyday life.
What specifically fill the corner of experimentation in the preparatory group? In it should be present:
- Tara. Everything that stores materials, reagents and samples. Most jars, boxes and bottles should consist of plastic. It is possible to use wooden and metal containers. Glass should be avoided due to increased risk of injury. Children can break fragile jars and cut into pieces. In those days when it is glass that will be the object of research, all objects from this material should be shown to preschoolers only in the presence of a teacher.
- A collection of natural materials. Here you can use everything that surrounds us. Cereals, soil samples: sand, clay, forest or garden soil, gravel, shells, etc. Suitable stones of interesting shapes and colors, cones, herbaria or dried flowers, as well as living indoor flowers. In addition to plants, it is worth showing children and animals: a hamster in a cage, fish in an aquarium - it is interesting to watch them, you can feed them and learn a lot.
- A collection of paper, fabrics, foil and other interesting textures.
- Magnets of various sizes and strength, as well as metal objects.
- Flashlights, bulbs, candles and other light sources.
- Magnifiers for the number of children and at least one microscope and binoculars.
- Safe dyes (you can take food).
- Thermometers (not mercury), pipettes, syringes without needles.
- Balloons, paper or thin fabric ribbons (determine the direction of the wind).
- Towels, napkins, aprons and scarves, oilcloths or fabric tablecloths to cover the tables during the experiments.
- Thematic literature, illustrations, sketches of ongoing experiments.
- Time meters: clock with an arrow, hourglass, solar, calendars.
- Scales: electronic and classic, with weights.
- Mirrors, preferably in plastic frames and on substrates, are harder to break.
Construction in the preparatory group
Designing as one of the types of experimentation is great for children from 5 to 6 years. The preparatory group for this work is fertile ground: preschoolers love to interact with materials and forms, they know what these and others are like, they already do a lot on their own and at the same time develop their skills. And what they cannot yet do is learn to do with the help of educators.
The design in the preparatory group is aimed at expanding the child's ideas about the physical properties of objects. Creativity also develops (the ability to think creatively, in a non-standard way).
In addition, in these classes, the emotional-value sphere is necessarily brought up. Students recall where, in what real conditions, the actions that they model in the lesson take place, and learn to respect people working. For example, building a house of cubes, a preschooler correlates his own work with the activities of a real bricklayer. And launching a construction on wheels from a hill, he considers himself an engineer at an automobile plant. Synthetic-analytical thinking is also developing . The kid must compare the scheme of the future design with the material for its formation, correlate its actions with the proposed instruction and get the necessary result.
Sample lesson topics
Children are interested in everything that surrounds them, they are ready to learn anything, conducting experiments and experiments with objects and substances. The task of the teacher is to systematize their knowledge, which means that classes should be systematic and thematic. Experimentation in the preparatory group covers all areas of life - from the human senses to space travel.
We study stones
As part of this lesson, children will learn what stones are, where they come from, what they are, how they are used by people. It is important to talk about precious and semiprecious gems, building materials, etc. Different rocks and rocks are used in the work, which vary in color, texture, weight, etc. Some of the stones can be prepared in advance, and some can be collected for a walk, supporting the interest of children to experimental work.
In the development of the topic, it will be appropriate to conduct classes on ancient fossils (limestone, chalk, coal, corals), types of soil and the impact of climatic conditions on it (wind, heat, frost).
Water and its properties
Water is an excellent material for conducting experiments with children. It can easily be frozen, evaporated, painted or aerated. In the cycle of classes on water, the preparatory group gives information about its location in nature, its role in the ecological balance, physical and chemical properties. In the future, the topic can be continued by considering the inhabitants of the seas, lakes and rivers, discussing the problem of water pollution on the planet. Children should come to the conclusion about the need to preserve clean water and suggest ways to save it in everyday life.
Man
The topic is revealed gradually, in the following sequence:
- the human hand (as an organ of touch, a means of cognition and action);
- skin (its sensitivity, reaction to the sun or water, vulnerability to heating or cooling);
- ears and nose (functions, meaning, recommendations for keeping them healthy).
Magnet
Acquaintance with the magnet, its characteristics and the interaction of the object with other materials.
These classes are very exciting, they do not even remind experiments, but real tricks. Magnets run towards each other or, conversely, in different directions, are attracted in flight, through a table, paper or fabric. Particular attention of the guys can be drawn to the fact that the metals that were exposed to this object of the experiment also partially acquire its properties.
Priming. Sand and clay
The similarities and differences of different types of soil, their textures, properties, composition, methods of human use are discussed. The subdivision into different types of sand (river, sea, large, small, silicate, building) and clay (yellow, red, black, blue, white, pottery, curative, etc.). Prototypes can be dissolved in water, sieved, sculpted from them, and evaluate the result.
Air
The teacher acquaints children with the properties of air, its role for man and all living things. The most obvious way to study this object will be balloons. Also illustrate the air movements of ribbons, fluffs, feathers and other light objects. No need for anything exotic - even cotton balls or lumps of tissue paper can serve this purpose.
As part of a series of classes on this topic, we consider the ratio of the weight of air of different temperatures: warm rises, and cold rises down.
Sun and space
The educator gives children an initial idea of the solar system, its structure, that the planets become colder the farther they are from the center. Here you can talk about the constellations, including their symbolic designation. Children can imagine themselves as space travelers in zero gravity.
Electricity
Electricity as a special type of energy and devices working on it - this is the topic of this lesson. Children remember and list household appliances and toys that they have, and reflect on what sets them in motion. Separately mentioned is the danger of electricity, which "runs along the wires", and the correct handling of everything connected with it.
Color and light
During the lesson, children will learn what color is, how it is obtained when certain light rays are reflected. The concept of spectrum is introduced, which can be illustrated on the basis of the rainbow.
Conclusion
Before you start or even plan any lesson, you need to clearly understand what the result of the lesson is. Experimentation in the preparatory group of the preschool educational institution is no exception. The most important thing for a teacher is to teach children to think independently, draw conclusions, and understand causation. It is necessary for any training, and each of us studies all his life.
One cannot ignore the moral part of the educational process. It is important to instill in children a love of nature, that which surrounds them, the ability and desire to preserve its purity and respect their integrity.
Today's kids-pupils of the preparatory group - this is the generation that will have to live, build, invent and love the next fifty years. And it is very important that they will learn from childhood memories what their conclusions will be in relation to the surrounding reality.
The work of educators can be compared with the activity of tuners of musical instruments: as they do it, the melody of childish souls and our common future will sound.