Development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers: stages, methods and features

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Emotions are an area that is usually not given enough attention in the process of raising and developing children. Meanwhile, the development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers is an extremely important activity, which should never be forgotten. In order to understand how significant this area is, it is enough to imagine a world inhabited by people who are completely deprived of the ability or ability to experience and express emotions. Or try to live at least a few hours without any emotions. It's not just very difficult, but rather almost impossible.

However, the ability to experience emotions and express them correctly is not given to people automatically, at birth. Children learn this as well as many other things. The emotional pattern is established in early childhood as babies observe their own parents.

Why is it important to pay attention to developing the ability to express emotions?

As a rule, no one has any questions about the reasons why attention should be paid to speech development, literacy, perseverance,discipline and hygiene skills. But when it comes to developing the emotional sphere of the personality of a preschooler, most parents simply do not understand what this is for.

An adult must be able to correctly and clearly express his own feelings, otherwise it will be very difficult for him to interact with other people, to build personal relationships. The ability to correctly express joy, sadness, resentment, anger, to show another person what upsets and delights - this is something without which it is impossible to fully live.

For example, a man is frustrated by the manner in which colleagues play pranks on him. He does not mind showing his emotions, but he does not know how to do this, he does not know how to convey his feelings to others. This leads to the fact that a man daily faces stressful circumstances for him and experiences negative emotions. The negative accumulates inside and at some point comes down, like an avalanche that buries absolutely everything under it. As a rule, in such situations they talk about a nervous breakdown. Another outcome of events is also possible - the development of severe depression or a surge of negativity in the family circle. Of course, skirmishes with the offender or a job change are also possible. But whatever the course of events, a man could well have avoided it if he knew how to show his own emotions.

Another, quite common in life example of the lack of the ability to correctly express one's feelings is making acquaintances and building personal relationships. Many girls sincerely do not understand why young people who like them begin to be interested in them,they get to know each other, make contact, but the relationship does not last longer than a couple of dates. It's about misrepresenting emotions. That is, girls do not display what they really feel. They simply do not know how to correctly, simply and intelligibly express their own emotions. Young people perceive the emotional message that indicates the desire for light short-term flirting, and behave accordingly, not even imagining that a girl may want not a one-night stand, but marriage.

There are many such examples. Every day, almost every person is faced with the consequences of the fact that at his early age or in the childhood of his loved ones there were no classes for the development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers.

In other words, the ability to correctly and intelligibly express one's own emotions makes life much easier. People who can do this are unlikely to complain that others do not understand them, because they will not find themselves in such circumstances. Also, the lack of skills to correctly display one's own feelings is a very serious communication obstacle, a barrier between a particular person and other people.

Why is it important to pay attention to the development of emotions themselves?

It is not enough to teach children to intelligibly and correctly express the emotions that fill them. In order for children to master these skills, they must experience feelings. It is impossible to instill the ability to express joy or grief if the baby does not know what it is. Therefore, the process of development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers includes not only teaching the correct expression of feelings, butalso the ability to test them.

The importance of the very fact of having emotions cannot be overestimated. Of course, every person at least once in his life has come across people who can be characterized by such epithets:

• stale;
• cold;
• insensitive;
• empty.

Of course, the list of epithets that can characterize emotional coldness can be continued. Often people believe that if their child does not show his feelings, then this is a sign of restraint or even some kind of aristocracy, and not at all evidence of their absence. Parents of boys especially think this way.

Meanwhile, restraint and lack of emotion are completely different concepts. Small children are not able to restrain their feelings. If a child is offended, angry, angry, upset, or, on the contrary, delighted, this will in any case be reflected on his face or manifest in his behavior. To what extent this manifestation will correctly reflect feelings is another question, but the very fact of expressing emotions will certainly appear.

When it comes to the development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers, parents often wonder what is wrong with not having a full range of experiences. Indeed, is it bad that the child will not be very worried, will not be able to recklessly fall in love, will not harbor resentment? After all, the baby will not become a robot because of this, nothing is absolute, and the basic emotional palette will still be present.

The harm of the lack of one's own emotions is that a person will not be able to show sympathy, empathy. Hewill never understand why some action is important for someone else. Being in a managerial position, such a person will not understand the desire of the employee to leave early or take a day off on the birthday of the child or when the parents are ill. If such a person becomes a doctor or teacher, then the motives of actions, as well as the experiences of children or patients, will be beyond his perception.

Moreover, someone else's sentimentality will become annoying over time. As a rule, such people are respected, but not loved, even in their own families. And in old age they become grumpy and cause dislike in others.

Thus, the lack of a full range of emotions is also a communication barrier that prevents you from building normal relationships with other people. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to such an issue as the development of the socio-emotional sphere of preschoolers.

When and how do children begin to experience their first emotions?

It is often said that a person begins to experience the first emotions from the moment of birth. This is not entirely true. In the first seconds, minutes, hours and days of his life, a person does not experience emotions, sensations are mistaken for them.

The baby begins to breathe, his eyes perceive light, the skin feels air, cold, heat, touch, hunger wakes up in the stomach. All this and much more - a set of sensations that cause a reaction from the nervous system - crying, screaming, grumbling, moving arms and legs, and more.

The sensations that a newborn is experiencing are completely new to him, completelyfamiliar. Being in the womb, the baby did not experience anything like what he encountered in the very first second after birth.

Of course, all these sensations cause vivid reactions. These reactions - screaming, contented grumbling, crying, and so on - are the emotional foundation laid in the human nervous system even in the period of intrauterine development. In other words, these are not emotions, but their prototype. The newborn perceives the simplest stimulus from the environment and reacts to it. For example, light or cold can cause you to cry or move your legs and arms.

The child begins to experience real simple emotions much later, because this requires mental activity, comprehension. That is, the baby should already have some kind of life experience. As a rule, the appearance of the first emotions coincides with the moment of curiosity, interest in what surrounds the baby. It can be argued that if a child picks up a toy and begins to examine it, he is already quite capable of rejoicing, upset and experiencing other simple emotions.

Evidence of the presence of emotions in a baby under a year old is the appearance of laughter. If a child is able to laugh, it means that he has already formed an emotional sphere.

What happens at an early age? Stages of the formation of emotions

Until the age of one, children begin to experience the simplest emotions - joy, grief, approval, discontent and others. Express these feelings in appropriate, simple and understandable ways:

• smile;
• laughter;
• sad grimace;
• cry.

You should not worry about the lack of complex facial expressions in a baby up to a year old or the ability to be offended. At an early age, the baby does not yet know what resentment is, he feels chagrin. A child can feel good or bad, happy or upset. To get angry, offended, to experience other complex emotions that require the experience of comparison and a concept of one's own personality, the baby is not yet able to.

In the age period from one to three years, the child significantly expands the range of feelings available to him. It is during this period that the main development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers takes place. Up to three years, the foundations of all the feelings and emotions that a person will use in life are laid. This age period is characterized by intuitive learning, the adoption of stereotypes of behavior, reactions, character traits from adults who surround the baby.

After overcoming the three-year milestone, children begin to actively master speech and learn something not only through intuitive perception and adoption, copying, but also in other ways. This age is characterized by curiosity and the desire for knowledge. It is after three years that babies begin to break toys, trying to find out how they are arranged.

After three years, the foundation of the emotional sphere that was laid earlier is actively developing, and it becomes obvious what feelings the baby lacks. It is the lack of something that determines how the development of the cognitive and emotional sphere of a preschooler will become. This period lasts on average up to six to seven years,that is, until the start of schooling.

What are the characteristics of children's emotions?

The development of the emotional-volitional sphere of a preschooler occurs gradually, respectively, and you need to deal with this area constantly. Emotions are not a mathematical problem that can be solved once and for all. Emotional development is a complex and long process. And the development of the ability to express or, conversely, control one's feelings does not have any age restrictions at all.

Kids are characterized by certain features of the development of the emotional sphere. A preschooler, going through the stages of the formation of the skill to experience and express his feelings, masters and shows emotions differently in each age period. But regardless of the age at which the baby is and how developed the gamut of feelings is, their manifestation and expression always differ from how adults demonstrate emotions.

Features of children's emotions are considered to be:

• the simplest manifestations associated with the assimilation of the first life social cause-and-effect chains, for example, home - parents - garden - friends - educator;
• a vivid experience and expression of a state of anticipation, this applies both to the expectation of the holidays, and to the awareness of the consequences of one’s words and deeds, for example: a toy is broken - mom is upset;
• gradual progression from elementary to advanced, obvious to others as it takes the form of conjecture and reasoning.

First emotions are a direct consequence of sensations. That is, theyarise under the influence of natural physiological needs. This stage lasts on average up to three years. In this age interval, physiology and the action of the environment dictate the features of the development of the emotional sphere. A preschooler older than three years is already beginning to experience more complex emotions and understand the need to control them. That is, if it is impossible to explain the inadmissibility of crying in a public place to a child at the age of two, then it is already quite possible to explain this to a child who has celebrated the fifth birthday. Thus, a feature of the development of the emotional sphere of children aged three to six years is not only their formation and development, but also the formation of the ability to control the manifestations of feelings.

What influences the formation and development of children's emotions?

As a rule, the first thing that is remembered when it comes to the factors affecting the development of the emotional-volitional sphere of a preschooler is the behavior of adults and the lifestyle adopted in the family. Without any doubt it is. However, not only what the child sees and perceives as an example affects the development of his emotions.

For the formation of social, emotional and other skills, motives, factors that encourage learning and learning new things are extremely important. These factors are often both motives and means of developing the emotional sphere of preschoolers.

The most important factor influencing the formation of emotions and encouraging their development is the child's interest in:

• games;
• objects and things;
• phenomena of the surrounding world;
• relationships between people.

Relationships between people are not only contacts between adults, the features of their reactions and behavior, which are observed by the baby. It is also the relationship between the child himself and other people, both adults and peers.

The role of communication in the development of children's emotional sphere

If in early childhood the formation of feelings largely occurs intuitively, then the development of the emotional sphere of older preschoolers almost completely depends on communication with peers and adults.

In other words, the formation of the personality of the baby and, of course, the development of his emotions, takes place in society. If a child is isolated from society, then he will not learn anything in any of the spheres of life. Children's society can be divided into two types:

• near, or internal, small;
• wide, or external, large.

The family in which the baby lives belongs to the near society. To the outside - a kindergarten, a playground in the park, any studios, circles and more. Even shopping can be attributed to a large society, since the child not only follows his parents, but also gets the opportunity to experience desires, emotions, control them, learns by trial to express requests and achieve what he likes.

Shopping is not only a kind of simulator, but also a test that clearly demonstrates the level at which the development of the emotional sphere of elders ispreschoolers.

For example, one child asks for a trinket or lollipops, chewing gum and, being refused, starts screaming, stomping, bursts into tears. This behavior is acceptable for a baby at two years old, but at five years old it indicates emotional immaturity. If a child asks for everything in a row, this indicates not only that parents usually do not fulfill his desires, but also about the inability to choose, prioritize, set goals and achieve them.

If a child asks for something specific, and after being refused does not fall into hysterics, but starts talking with his parents, explaining why he needs the specified item, then this indicates that the development of the emotional-volitional sphere the personality of the preschooler is at a high level. The kid demonstrates not only the ability to experience emotions, but also the ability to control them. Also, the child shows his skills in prioritizing and the ability to achieve goals. He demonstrates social and communicative adequacy.

In the process of communicating with peers and adults, the child:

• learns the norms of behavior, morality and ethics;
• learns to deal with negative emotions and rejection;
• takes possession of ideas about the social roles of men, women;
• understands value, loss, dream, gratitude.

Only in communication is it possible to fully develop the emotional sphere and moral qualities of preschoolers. Communicating, children learn what friendship, responsibility, active play,property. Therefore, the role of society in the formation of personal and emotional qualities, as well as in their development, is not just important - it is paramount.

How to develop children's emotions? About ways

Ways to develop the emotional sphere of a preschooler is not a set of exercises from a methodological manual on education and training. The methods are:

• games, including social role-playing games;
• work activities;
• doing sports or something else outside the home and kindergarten;
• creativity and knowledge.

In other words, a program to develop the emotional sphere of preschoolers is nothing more than a combination of games, creative, educational or sports activities, manifestations of care and attention, instilling responsibility and hard work.

What games are good for developing emotions?

A game for a child is not only a way of knowing the world, but also an opportunity to reproduce, remember, assimilate what he saw, try to change something in the stereotype. For example, a child sees how one person offends another. He reproduces this situation with his toys, re-experiencing and comprehending. At first, the game completely duplicates reality, but then a “superhero” appears in it and restores justice, or the “villain” repents himself, or the “offended” hits back.

That is, games for the development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers are not just important, they are one of the main ways of learning, assimilation and understanding. Of course, they should be useful and interesting.

At home, the first place is putpastime with toys, and in kindergarten - with peers. The role of toys in the development of the emotional sphere of a preschooler is extremely large. Therefore, they should be purchased wisely. For example, there is no need to fill the nursery with clown dolls if the child has never been to the circus. Just as you should not fill the nursery with “smart” games and workshop corners if the baby does not have the opportunity to master them, sharing the pastime with an adult. In other words, toys in the nursery should be different, with their help the baby should be able to reproduce what he saw on the street or heard in a fairy tale.

In kindergartens, as well as on playgrounds in parks or in the yard, the baby does not play with objects and things, but with peers. That is, social role-playing games are paramount in these conditions. For example, one child is “mother”, the other is “daughter”. At the same time, children behave according to their ideas, that is, they demonstrate what they see at home every day. During the game, the kids exchange their ideas, learn that their home style and behavior are not the only possible options, there are others.

Are there exercises that develop emotions?

Although feelings do not refer to concepts with precise characteristics, there are exercises for the development of the emotional sphere of preschoolers. The easiest is to play with pictures.

It consists of the following:

• pictures of children's faces are offered, expressing different emotions;
• the child shouldidentify them and distribute them in directions;
• there should be pictures indicating the places where the baby will “take” the provided portraits.

That is, you do not need to demand from the baby only the designation of emotions. The meaning of the exercise is for the child to take a picture with an image, recognize the feeling and place the portrait in the place corresponding to the drawn experiences.

For example, a child takes a picture and claims that it depicts pain. Adults can ask leading questions, such as "How does this boy feel?" Having designated the depicted experience as pain, the child must move the portrait to the picture with the hospital. An adult in case of difficulty can help by asking: “Where will this boy go?”

Thus, two main tasks of developing the emotional-volitional sphere of a preschooler are solved - the child learns to recognize the emotions of others and understand their consequences.

What should adults not do when doing play exercises?

Parents often make the mistake of taking care of their children on their own. The most common of these is the manner of thinking for the child. In practice, when doing exercises to develop the emotional sphere, this is often expressed in the phrases: “Look, the girl is smiling. So she's having fun. Where will she go? To the park on the carousel. Or: “Oh, what a sad boy. Why do you think he is sad? Maybe he needs to go to the kindergarten with his friends?”

The list can be continued, because how many parents, so many options for pronouncing erroneous phrases. Suchapproach to classes completely devalues them. In this case, it is not a child who plays, but an adult. The kid does not think, does not build cause-and-effect relationships. That is, the methodological means of developing the emotional sphere of preschoolers, in this case, pictures depicting experiences, are not used correctly. Classes do not give results, although they are nominally present in the child's schedule.

Accordingly, the first thing parents should not do during homework is to think and decide for their child.

Another common mistake is to deny the child's suggestion. For example, a child takes a picture, which, according to the annotation for the game, depicts resentment. Claims boredom is drawn and places the image in an amusement park or kindergarten. Adults often tell the kid that he made a mistake, and shift the picture to the correct pile, according to the annotation.

You can't do that. Any drawing conveys emotions in a very abstract way, their perception always occurs through a personal prism. It can be considered a mistake only if the child recognizes the picture with laughter as an image of pain. In similar emotions, the concept of “error” does not apply. If an adult does not agree with the child's version, you should not correct the child, but ask for what reasons he came to the voiced conclusions.

The role of work and creativity in the development of emotions

The full development of the emotional-volitional sphere in older preschoolers is impossible without the presence of real duties in the kids, without labor activity.

Of course, we are talking about simple housework, feasible and understandable to the baby. Often, parents believe that the work of the child is the placement of toys in places and developing activities with them. This is not true. Labor is understood as an action demanded by other family members, the result of which can be felt “here and now”, touched, seen or even eaten.

The child fails to realize that sitting quietly and rearranging the pictures is a beneficial action. In his understanding, demanded labor is washed dishes, cooked dinner. Something simple that everyone uses. Accordingly, the baby should have the opportunity to benefit. He needs to define the occupation and not interfere with it. For example, a child was instructed to wash the plates for dinner. If he did not finish or washed it badly, it cannot be corrected. This is the area of responsibility of the baby, designated by the parents. The child must understand that no one else will do this work except him. If the kid washed three of the five plates, then someone will have to eat from the dirty ones.

This simple technique will allow the child to master emotions such as shame and responsibility, to understand the importance of getting things done. Not a single theoretical lesson can be compared with labor practice. Many teachers wrote about this, including Makarenko. Of course, the baby can be helped, especially if he asks for it.

Creativity also affects emotions, but in a slightly different way than work. For example, a child fashioned a figure from plasticine or drew something. Putting the picture in a frame and the figures on the shelf allows him to experience emotions such as pride,satisfaction, excitement or even inspiration.

Therefore, children's creativity cannot be treated with disdain. Drawings and crafts should definitely be considered, commented, discussed. This is extremely important not only for the formation and development of emotions, but also for the baby to gain self-confidence.