How not to overdo it with early child development

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Trying to raise a child prodigy, many forget about a simple thing - the emotional state of the child. Here are some tips to help you stay on track.

The benefits of early development are greatly exaggerated

The statistics of today are unpleasantly impressive: excessive demands of parents, lack of conditions for free and easy play, lack of attention and care on the part of adults. As a result, we get daily stress, and in the elementary grades of school - hourly.

A child who is physically unable to fulfill the tasks assigned to him is constantly faced with a demonstration of discontent, censure and even punishment from an adult. All this drives him into such a nervous tension that can lead to severe neurosis and even to childhood depression.

This approach not only does not contribute to development, but, on the contrary, negatively affects health, the natural biochemical processes of the brain, the development of cognitive and morphological structures.

This is a step backward in development.

The stress of time constraints is especially scary for a child. And most of the children in the lower grades encounter him every day. Equalization of all children under one standard of development excludes an individual approach. The teacher expects each child in the class to complete the assignment in a certain period of time, which far from all children can meet. As a result, the child is confused and intimidated by the consequences.

Fear is a prevailing emotion in children of preschool and early school age - such disappointing results were obtained in the course of research Almanac "New Research" conducted by the Institute of Developmental Physiology of the Russian Academy of Education under the leadership of Maryana Bezrukikh. And all because we forget: all children are individual, the difference in development can often reach two years. So, despite the fact that the child is already eight, the development of his abilities can be at the level of six years of age. And this is normal, this fact must be accepted and constantly taken into account.

Requirements must match development

The development of neural connections in the brain affects the mental activity and readiness of the child for the cognitive process. And if earlier it was believed that after three years such development stops, today a completely different fact has been scientifically proven: the active creation of neural circuits occurs up to nine years, while some parts of the cerebral cortex can develop up to 25 years.

A person constantly feeding on new information, making new discoveries for himself, can develop this ability in himself until old age. Based on this, we can say absolutely for sure: after three it will not be too late.

The widespread myth that it's too late after three years has nothing to do with the actual pace of a child's development.

Among the features of the development of the brain, attention should be paid to the frontal zone, which is responsible for the volitional self-organization of a person. This area is fully formed only by the age of 9–10. Not knowing this, many parents complain that the child is not assembled, does not try, and is restless. In fact, the answer is on the surface: it is simply not yet ripe for self-organized activity.

Each of our requirements for a child must necessarily correspond to his stage of development. On the subject, I can recommend the book by Goldberg Elhonon "The Controlling Brain: Frontal Lobes, Leadership and Civilization", where these issues are disclosed in great detail and broadly.

Healthy childhood formula

However, all of the above does not mean at all that there is no need to deal with the child. On the contrary, it is necessary to study, but to approach this issue from a completely different side.

The only correct formula for early development that can create the conditions for a healthy and happy childhood includes physical activity, speech development and emotional work (EQ).

Physical activity

Physical activity, namely your favorite sport, outdoor games, active free play, is an important moment in knowing yourself, in defining the boundaries of your capabilities and managing them. This is how you gain confidence in your strengths and abilities.

Speech development

Speech development provides the foundation for learning to read. Up to 4-5 years old it is necessary to talk with a child, read fairy tales, tell stories from pictures. Research in this area has shown that only 10% of parents read to their child regularly. This must be corrected, it is easy and natural to teach the child to express his thoughts and correctly understand someone else's speech, and only then teach him to read.

Dealing with emotions

The third, but no less important component of the formula is emotions. This is the most important part of our life, and working on understanding and managing emotions helps us achieve our goals, solve complex problems, and adequately assess the prevailing circumstances.

Emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to recognize one's own and others' emotions, to understand the intentions and motivations of other people, the ability to soberly assess a situation and adequately respond to it. A child with developed emotional intelligence finds it easier to find a common language with both adults and peers, he has better academic performance, he is calm, confident and always positive.

5 surefire steps for early child development

Here is a very simple, straightforward, and most importantly, a working five-step plan, adapted for the development of early preschool children. Each of these steps the child goes through in an easy playful way, and each step is a solid foundation for the next.

1. Mindfulness. I feel

Mindfulness is understanding all five senses. To develop awareness, you can use the "Box of emotions". Take any box and put things in it that resemble a certain emotion. For example, experience joy with all five senses with your child:

1. Vision:we feel joy when we look at the bright warm sun.
2. Hearing:the sound of a bell sets us up for a positive, joyful feeling.
3. Taste:the taste of chocolate or your favorite ice cream can be associated with joy.
4. Smell: strawberry flavor.
5. Touch: stroking a beloved animal also brings us joy.

This practice will help your child to distinguish emotions and understand what feelings and sensations they bring.

2. Motivation. I want

Teach your child not to be afraid of everything new, but, on the contrary, to strive for unknown emotions and impressions. Make pleasant surprises, unexpected trips to new places, show this world from a positive side. So the child will be able to open up to his desires and learn to set goals for himself.

Motivation is very important for personal development, namely our desires and goals motivate us to new achievements.

3. Self-esteem. I can

To build self-esteem and self-confidence, start by setting small, achievable goals. For example, cleaning a room together or learning to ride a bike.

At the same time, be sure to note and speak out all the successes and abilities of your child. Creating such small goals and achieving them will help him gain confidence in himself, his strengths and capabilities. And this means that later he will not be afraid to solve more complex problems.

4. Intelligence. I know

There is an excellent game "Seven Kinds of Content" to expand your horizons. The bottom line is that you choose any topic that is most interesting to your child, and together with him open it from seven different sides.

Let's say your child is addicted to dinosaurs:

1. Reading: find interesting adapted literature about the dinosaur world. Have an hour of reading.
2. Painting: Draw dinosaurs or the dense jungle in which they lived with your child.
3. Modeling: blind the dinosaur.
4. Films: watch an interesting documentary or cartoon on this topic.
5. Theatre: connect your imagination and play out a scene with heroes from the prehistoric world!
6. Poster: create together a large poster with dinosaur names and pictures.
7. Paleontological Museum: go there to appreciate the scale and features of those distant times.

5. Self-realization. I do

Keep a progress diary and be sure to write down all of your baby's successes there.

Help your child to use the acquired knowledge and skills in practice. The implementation of the acquired skills in life will allow him to realize the full value and benefit of the work done.

How successful and emotionally harmonious our children will be depends largely on ourselves. It is very important to remember that the goal of parents is to teach their child to be happy first of all. The pursuit of fashion and the desire to create a child prodigy is an experience, and most often a negative one. Just love your child, take care of him and value him so that in the future he can also love, take care of and appreciate his own children.