Means of physical education for preschool children
Physical education of preschool children is carried out by means aimed at protecting the health of children (creating hygienic conditions for life and activity, organizing a balanced diet, sleep, being in the fresh air), as well as by means designed to provide an active influence on the child's body for the purpose of its physical development (hardening procedures, special physical exercises, hygienic gymnastics, daily routine). Hygienic conditions. They cover a complex of external factors that determine the optimal functioning and development of the child's body. First of all, this concerns compliance with the norms of the area of the room, its proper use. Group rooms are designed in accordance with the following norms: for 20 children of nursery age, for 25 children aged 3-7 years at the rate of 2.5 m2 per child with a light coefficient of 1:4. The walls should be painted in light warm colors. The air temperature in rooms for children 2-3 years old should be +19°-20° С; for children 3-7 years old - +18°-20° C. Furniture must also comply with sanitary and hygienic standards and the age of children. They should walk in the fresh air for at least 4-5 hours (in the summer - more).
To maintain the child's vital activity, it is important to properly organize nutrition, since food is also a plastic material for the growth and development of the child's body. It must contain all the necessary components: proteins, fats, carbohydrates, mineral salts and various vitamins, children should eat 4-5 times a day. The daily diet must be distributed so that they consume: at breakfast - 20-25 percent of it, at lunch - 35-40, at an afternoon snack - 10-15, at dinner - 20.
The quality of preparation, the timeliness of food presentation, table setting should stimulate appetite, contribute to its better assimilation. A child's poor appetite is a reason to find out its causes (illness, illness). If a child is reluctant to eat unusual but healthy food, you should gradually accustom him to it, giving it in small portions, combining it with familiar food. You should not focus children's attention on their poor appetite, persuade them to eat, spoil them, appease them in order to feed them. It is better to influence their emotions with apt words, encourage them, using the example of their peers.
The duration of daily sleep depends on the child's age, health status, and individual characteristics of the child's nervous system. On average, the total duration of sleep per day is: for children of the first 5 months of life 20-22 hours, from 5 to 9 months - 16-18, from 9-12 months - 15-16, from one to 2 years - 12-14, from 3 to 4 years - 11-12, from 8 to 12 years - 10-11, from 12 to 16 years - 9-10, after 16 years - 8-9 hours.
During this time, the child's body compensates for energy expenditure. The smaller the child, the more time is needed to restore the working capacity of the cerebral cortex.
The fullness of sleep depends on the correct organization of the time of falling asleep and waking up. Excitable children should be put to bed first, since they experience outbursts of excitement when falling asleep. To ensure deep sleep, it is necessary to eliminate stimuli (bright light, loud conversations, etc.). Waking up should also be differentiated depending on the type of children's nervous system. The most effective way to ensure deep sleep is the correct regime of active activity and rest. A universal remedy for deep sleep is fresh air: children should sleep in a well-ventilated room, and if possible, on verandas.
Children's communication with adults and peers before bedtime should be emotionally positive. The child should be woken up in such a way as not to interrupt his sleep before the nervous system restores its working capacity.
At any time of the year, walks are an effective means of improving health and physical education of children. They should be organized on playgrounds equipped for each age group. Often, children take toys for a walk, and educators - didactic material. In favorable weather conditions, children should be outdoors for at least 3-4 hours a day. Active activity on a walk (games, complexes of game general developmental exercises, sports entertainment, observation, labor activity) hardens them, develops movements, other physical qualities, and increases vitality. Walks expand the possibilities of the educator's individual work with children.
Tempering the child's body. This is the improvement of conditioned reactions to the body's adaptation to the environment by means of training using natural factors (water, air, sun).
Hardening significantly affects the child's body. Children develop a rapid reaction to changes in air and water temperature, and vital indicators such as hemoglobin content and immune system resistance to various diseases increase. The use of hardening agents increases the body's overall adaptation to any adverse stimuli. A child who is treated with one type of hardening will better tolerate another, and a break in the implementation of hardening measures (10-12 days) causes a rapid loss of the hardening effect. During a forced break, procedures should be resumed using the same stimulus with which they were started. Hardening is based on the use of a conditioned reflex mechanism. Thermoregulation is the body's ability to maintain body temperature at a certain level regardless of its changes in the environment. The thermoregulation apparatus is formed during the first three years, however, even in preschool age, there are cases of unstable body temperature. Hardening procedures cause reactions that ensure heat retention during cooling of the body. Systematic cooling contributes to the formation of appropriate reflexes that change the intensity of heat production, since in the hardening process a higher adaptation to cooling and heat preservation in the body under adverse environmental conditions is produced. Hardening procedures are planned and carried out with the participation of medical professionals. Hardening is best started in early childhood, carried out systematically, taking into account the individual characteristics of children. The strength of stimuli should be increased gradually, but steadily, since their insignificant difference does not cause functional changes in the body's activity. Contrasting short-term effects are also effective, which contribute to the improvement of physiological reactions and produce an increasingly high level of resistance of the body to adverse environmental factors. A prerequisite for successful hardening is a positive emotional state of the child during preparation, during and after the procedure.
The complex of hardening procedures includes:
— air baths. Children take them during morning and hygienic gymnastics, after a daytime nap. To do this, the temperature is lowered from +22°—23° C by one degree every week to +16—17° in the younger and middle groups, to +14—15° C in the older and preparatory groups. They perform general developmental exercises barefoot, only in panties;
— water procedures. At first, children are limited to washing, washing their hands, upper body, washing their feet, rinsing their mouth and nose with herbal decoctions or salted water. The water is cooled every three days, bringing it to a temperature of +14° C. In autumn and early spring, when the air temperature is not lower than 0° C, before going to bed, it is recommended to walk on a damp rug and pour water on your feet, using a contrasting water temperature from +35°—40° C to +16°—18° C. The body is wiped with a massage with a dry glove, later with a wet one. This procedure lasts 1.5—2 minutes. It is better to start pouring water on your body under the shower before going to bed in late April — early May, with an initial water temperature in the younger and middle groups of +35° C and a final temperature of +24° C, and in the older groups from +32° C to +22° C for a duration of 15 seconds to 1.5 minutes, increasing the interval every 2—3 days by 5 seconds. Swimming in the pool can last 3—12 minutes. Children from 4 to 7 years old are recommended to rinse their noses, gargle with decoctions of medicinal herbs for 1 minute;
— sun baths. They are taken in the summer from 9 to 11 and from 16 to 18 hours. lasting from 4-5 to 20 minutes. in the younger and up to 30 minutes. in the preparatory groups.
The original system of hardening procedures is offered by the author of the program “Creating conditions for the natural development of children in the preschool education system” L. Bludova, head of kindergarten No. 28 in Lugansk. She considers natural education as the development of a child with the help of natural forces, a careful attitude to nature, and hardening as a way of life. In this case, useful, in her opinion, are the recommendations of doctor M. Amosov, innovative teachers, parents B. and O. Nikitin, folk healer P. Ivanov. For air hardening, it is recommended to stay indoors in shorts and barefoot, with open windows or windows. In any weather, it is advisable to stand barefoot on the ground and perform breathing exercises with breath holding (in winter - rubbing with snow and running on snow, in summer - walking on the ground, grass, fine gravel, sand). Daily, even at sub-zero temperatures, it is necessary to pour cold water from a bucket in the fresh air. From the age of two, it is advisable for children to steam weekly in a sauna or bathhouse with subsequent cooling in the snow or in a pool. Hardening procedures should be combined with movements, performing physical exercises. Children should be aware of their benefits. The main thing is to form the child's desire for such activities: first, the braver children will run outside, and later, imitating them, others. The duration of the child's stay outside depends on his desire, and the time is determined by the teacher.
The experience of the couple B. and O. Nikitin shows that children withstood a temperature difference of 15°—20° C and felt good when they were taken undressed from a warm room (+25° C) to frost (down to -10° C). However, it is difficult to use such hardening methods in preschool institutions, since they require the mandatory participation of parents and medical workers.
With any method, the following principles must be observed in all types of hardening:
1. Systematicity - regular hardening procedures.
2. Graduality - a smooth increase in the strength of the stimulus, the correctness of which should be confirmed by a short-term deepening and acceleration of the pulse, breathing, appearance of the skin, and a general positive reaction of the child.
3. An individual approach - taking into account the state of health, well-being, and hardening experience of each child.
The prerequisite for the rational use of natural factors in the physical education of preschoolers is knowledge of the laws of physical and mental development of children, changes in their organisms. The positive influence of natural factors will be reliable and sustainable with the unity of hygienic, hardening requirements in the preschool institution and the family.
The child's daily routine. The child's needs for sleep, nutrition, cleanliness, changing activities, walks in the fresh air determine the appropriate daily routine, which is important for preserving and strengthening his health, full development.
The daily routine is the correct distribution in time of the main processes of the child's vital activity.
The developmental and educational effect of the regimen is based on the principle of rhythm, according to which all activities should correspond to the rhythm of the body's vital activity. The regimen changes depending on age, health status, and the characteristics of raising children in the family and preschool institution. Thanks to it, children get used to sleeping, eating, playing, and studying at a certain time, which leads to the formation and consolidation in the cerebral cortex of a system of conditional “time reflexes” (I. Pavlov). This means that at a certain time, depending on the daily regimen, the body exhibits appropriate reflex activity, therefore it is necessary to correctly distribute all the processes of the child's vital activity in time.
The habit of doing a certain activity at a certain time prepares the nervous and other body systems for it, prevents the occurrence of negative emotional states, overwork. Daily adherence to the daily regimen has a positive effect on the course of all physiological processes in the body, the state of the nervous system. The daily routine, which meets the needs of the child's age and health, contributes to his cheerful, cheerful mood, and has great educational value, as it teaches him to be orderly, organized, and responsible.
Active activity should alternate with rest to restore the body's strength. After all, every job requires certain efforts, the rational distribution of which determines the optimal level of fatigue. Insufficient rest causes overfatigue, which can lead to a disorder of the nervous system. Therefore, in any type of activity, it is important not to exceed the optimal level of fatigue, which allows for active rest to quickly restore working capacity.
Preschool children are extremely sensitive to changes in the daily routine. This is due to the active formation of the cerebral cortex at this age, the nerve cells of which cannot be in an active state for a long time. Therefore, violations of the regimen reduce the body's working capacity, cause disorders of the activity and behavior of children, who become irritable and capricious. The smaller the child, the weaker his nervous system, the more important it is to observe the established order of changing types of activity. According to K. Ushinsky, “the main law of children's nature can be expressed as follows: the child requires activity incessantly and gets tired not of activity, but of its monotony and one-sidedness. Force the child to sit - he will get tired very quickly, lie down - the same, he cannot walk for a long time, he cannot talk for a long time, sing or read, and least of all think for a long time; but he plays and moves all day long, changes and mixes all these activities and does not get tired for a minute, and a sound child's sleep is enough to restore strength for the coming day”.
Nothing organizes children like a correct daily routine. If you accustom them to a regime from an early age, they will quickly get used to it and adhere to it.
The daily routine of a preschool child should meet the following pedagogical requirements:
1. Compliance with the natural rhythm of the main physiological processes of the child's body, alternating active activity with rest.
2. Constancy, stability and certainty of the main elements. According to A. Makarenko, careful adherence to the established regimen reduces the number of violations in the behavior of children and, accordingly, reduces or eliminates the need to resort to punishment. The organization of the daily regimen should be appropriate, rational, which children should also be aware of. The educator must demand its observance in a friendly, calm, but persistent, decisive manner. A one and a half year old child is able to perceive these requirements. It is especially important to monitor compliance with the regimen, especially in the initial stages. It is desirable to do this imperceptibly for the child.
3. Flexibility. The regimen should take into account the natural biorhythms of the child's body. For the development of self-regulation of the body, it is important that all aspects of the regimen take into account the desires and individual characteristics of the child. For example, a child with an excitable, weak nervous system needs to rest more often and sleep more, and depending on his well-being, health status, previous or subsequent activity, meal times can be adjusted, etc.
The common components of the children's regimen in all age groups of kindergarten are: arrival at kindergarten, morning exercises, independent games, preparation for breakfast, breakfast, help in cleaning the dishes, classes, walk, lunch, sleep, hygienic gymnastics, independent activity, afternoon snack, walk, games, dinner. At the same time, the daily regimen of each age group has its own characteristics.
In younger groups, whose children have not yet sufficiently mastered self-service skills, more time is allocated for preparing for a walk, dressing, eating, trying to do this not at the expense of the time allocated for games and independent activities of children. In older and preparatory groups, whose children have to solve much more complex educational and educational tasks, it is not necessary to increase the time of classes at the expense of other components of the regime.
The educator should accustom children to the new regime in interaction with parents, who must follow his recommendations on organizing the life of children at home. At the same time, parents should realize that the regime of the day is a means not only of physical education, but also the basis of successful mental, moral and aesthetic development.
Timely and high-quality cultural and hygienic procedures are a prerequisite for sensory education. Due to the clear repeatability of regime processes, children are formed orientation in time, ideas about parts of the day, days of the week; they learn to value time, not to be late, not to rush, to do everything on time; they acquire skills of behavior culture, knowledge of hygiene; they get used to organization, neatness, order.
Children easily get used to the regime in kindergarten and family, if all the conditions for performing regime processes arouse positive emotions in them and are associated with them: clean warm water, fragrant soap, snow-white tablecloths, starched napkins.
Physical exercises. The body of a preschooler needs active motor activity. This ability of his is characterized as the “natural element” of the child (Yu. Arkin). Physical education is carried out using specially selected, methodically correctly organized, teacher-controlled movements and complex types of motor activity - physical exercises. They have a tangible effect on the child, developing his motor ideas, attention, thinking, will, emotions, causing positive changes in the work of the cardiovascular, respiratory and other systems of the body, causing a feeling of cheerfulness, joy. Physical exercises as a specific means of physical education are effective only when used in combination with the health-improving forces of nature and hygienic factors.
Physical exercises used in the education of preschool children include gymnastics, outdoor games and games with sports elements, sports exercises, elementary tourism. In kindergarten, the main physical exercises are gymnastics.
Gymnastics is a system of physical exercises that contributes to the general development of the body and strengthening health.
With its help, vital motor skills and physical qualities are formed. Its components are basic movements, general developmental exercises, lineups and re-arrays, dance exercises. The main movements include walking, running, jumping, crawling and climbing, throwing and catching, exercises to maintain balance, which enrich children's motor experience, allow them to act freely in the environment, develop self-confidence, agility, speed, and courage. General developmental exercises are used for the uniform development of the muscular system and a comprehensive effect on the child's body. Each exercise, as a rule, affects the development and strengthening of specific muscle groups (arms and shoulder girdle, legs, torso, etc.), therefore their selection should ensure the development of all muscle groups of the child's body. Line-ups, turns, and re-line-ups are used for rational and organized placement of children during classes. They contribute to the education of discipline, the formation of correct posture, and an easy gait. Dance exercises develop ease, rhythmicity of movements, and correct posture.
Recently, many preschool institutions have been using Wushu gymnastics, which combines basic body movements, breathing exercises, and self-massage. They are included in the preparatory part of physical education classes, and some elements are included in the final part (relaxation exercises).
An important role in physical education belongs to outdoor games, thanks to which children learn to use their knowledge and skills in unusual game conditions. In preschool institutions, plot and non-plot outdoor games, sports games (basketball, tennis, badminton, etc.), singing games, and round dance games are most often organized.
To prepare children for sports, develop a variety of independent motor activities and activity, and tempering, sports exercises (swimming, skiing, skating, cycling, etc.) are used.
Elements of tourism (hiking and skiing trips outside the kindergarten) are aimed at improving motor skills, mastering the skills of orientation in the terrain, and increasing the motor activity of children.
The main prerequisite for the formation of a comprehensively developed, healthy child is a sufficient level of motor activity during all forms of physical education organization (morning exercises, physical education classes, health days, outdoor games, physical education breaks and physical education minutes, sports holidays and entertainment). This actualizes the need for the comprehensive use of physical exercises in order to create conditions for the greatest motor activity of the child, an appropriate change of moments of tension and relaxation, physical activity and rest.
The complex of physical education facilities forms the motor regime of kindergarten, which involves a consistent increase in physical activity throughout the day. According to scientific research, insufficient motor activity (up to 50%), i.e. the so-called passive motor regime (T. Dmytrenko), causes a lag in the physical development of children. To increase motor activity, educational work (classes, individual work, outdoor games, morning gymnastics, etc.) and independent motor activity (entertainment, sports holidays, independent outdoor games, sports exercises), walks, etc. are used.
In accordance with the functional needs of the child's body, the optimal norms of the motor regime in various organizational forms (morning exercises, physical education classes, physical education minutes, at least three outdoor games per day, sports exercises, etc.) in all age groups during the day are: in the summer - 18-20 thousand steps, in the fall - 15-16.5 thousand, in the winter - 16.5-18 thousand, in the spring - 16-17.5 thousand steps.
During the day, certain changes and complications should be introduced into outdoor games. If nothing is changed in the conduct of games for 2-3 days in a row, the motor activity of children will be reduced by 18-32%. Thus, the rational motor regime of children is ensured by a complex of all organizational forms of physical education.
During physical education classes, morning gymnastics, outdoor games, breathing exercises, the use of acupressure elements, inhalation of phyto-aroma, exercises to relax the muscles of the body to a calm melody, exercises to develop the small muscles of the arms and legs are useful.
The norms of physical development of children are contained in the programs of their upbringing in preschool institutions. The author of the system of family education of children B. Nikitin suggests using the “fairness index” to determine the level of physical development of children, which takes into account the height, body weight, endurance of the child. It is determined in natural conditions, during games and overcoming obstacles (climbing trees, crossing a ditch, etc.).
E. Vilchkovsky’s program “Healthy Baby” offers a variety of physical exercises for children from birth to three years, as well as the necessary physical education equipment for them, which makes it suitable for use by educators and parents. The program “Be healthy, baby!” E. Vilchkovsky and N. Denysenko is focused on children with musculoskeletal disorders, provides for appropriate health, educational, and upbringing directions. “Physical Culture Program for Preschool Institutions of Physical Culture and Health” by E. Vilchkovsky aims to create a regime of increased motor activity for children aged 3-7 years in a preschool institution through the introduction of various forms of physical education, and offers a method for determining morphological indicators and the functional state of the child’s body.
Innovative teacher Mykola Efymenko believes that the basis of each lesson should be a game action with elements of learning, development, correction, health, and upbringing unobtrusively woven into it. The teacher’s task is to organize the lesson in such a way that children learn the material provided for by the program subconsciously, with pleasure moving and playing. The game approach, according to his conviction, should become the leading one in all aspects of work, primarily in the diagnostics of children's physical development: each motor task of the teacher should be a small theatrical game scene. The simulators and exercises developed by the author, the game terminology language, which the teacher should use when teaching children movements, are subordinate to this goal. The variety of means of physical education implies the need to know the characteristics of each child, constant analysis of changes in the child's body, making appropriate adjustments, which is possible with the unconditional unity of interests and efforts of educators, parents, and medical workers.