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PSYCHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF PRESCHOOL AGE CHILDREN
Dadakhanova Mohlaroyim Muratvayevna
Andijan state institute of foreign languages
13.00.08 faculty of theory and methodology of preschool education
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15654049
Annotation
: This topic explores the multifaceted psychological characteristics of
preschool-aged children, typically defined as those between the ages of 3 to 5 years. During this
critical developmental stage, children undergo significant cognitive, emotional, social, and
physical growth, which lays the foundation for their future development. The work begins with
an examination of cognitive development, referencing Piaget’s preoperational stage,
highlighting aspects such as egocentrism, symbolic play, and the rapid expansion of language
skills. It emphasizes the importance of play as a vital component of learning and problem-
solving.
Key words
: psychological characteristics, critical developmental stage, foundation for
development, egocentrism, symbolic play, problem-solving.
Аннотация
: В этой теме изучаются многогранные психологические
характеристики детей дошкольного возраста, обычно определяемые как дети в
возрасте от 3 до 5 лет. На этом критическом этапе развития дети претерпевают
значительный когнитивный, эмоциональный, социальный и физический рост, который
закладывает основу для их будущего развития. Работа начинается с изучения
когнитивного развития, ссылаясь на дооперациональную стадию Пиаже, выделяя такие
аспекты, как эгоцентризм, символическая игра и быстрое расширение языковых
навыков. Она подчеркивает важность игры как жизненно важного компонента обучения
и решения проблем.
Ключевые слова
: психологические характеристики, критическая стадия
развития, основа для развития, эгоцентризм, символическая игра, решение проблем
Izoh
: Ushbu mavzu odatda 3 yoshdan 5 yoshgacha bo'lgan maktabgacha yoshdagi
bolalarning ko'p qirrali psixologik xususiyatlarini o'rganadi. Rivojlanishning ushbu muhim
bosqichida bolalarda sezilarli kognitiv, hissiy, ijtimoiy va jismoniy o'sish kuzatiladi, bu ularning
kelajakdagi rivojlanishi uchun asos yaratadi. Ish kognitiv rivojlanishni tekshirishdan
boshlanadi, Piagetning operatsiyadan oldingi bosqichiga ishora qiladi, egosentrizm, ramziy
o'yin va til ko'nikmalarining tez kengayishi kabi jihatlarni ta'kidlaydi. Bu o'yinning o'rganish va
muammolarni hal qilishning muhim tarkibiy qismi sifatida muhimligini ta'kidlaydi.
Kalit so'zlar
: psixologik xususiyatlar, rivojlanishning tanqidiy bosqichi, rivojlanish
poydevori, egosentrizm, ramziy o'yin, muammoni hal qilish.
Use language to describe or explain what a young child is doing or to expand what a child
has just said to engage the child for language learning. •Use language during social interactions,
such as reading books and playing. Reading is associated with more language input than meals,
baths, or play. (11)•Limit screen time (12) in favor of active social interactions. •Support public
policy initiatives that provide education to parents about language learning, such as nurse
home visiting programs, or that support effective language environments for children, such as
publicly funded universal preschools. Early detection of language and speech delays is
predicated on knowledge of the pattern of development. Table 1 documents milestones in the
development of language and speech from infancy to age 8 years. Children produce their first
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words at approximately age 1 year. Initial lexical growth is slow, approx-imately 1 to 2 words
per week. Once the vocabulary reaches approximately 50 words, the pace of development
accelerates. Lexical growth increases to 1 to 2 new words per day, and children begin
combining words into 2-word phrases. The “vocabulary spurt” has been attributed to biological
factors, such as myeli-nation of white matter language pathways. (13) An increase in the pace
of learning also conforms to self-organization of a neural network. (5) Between ages 2 and 4
years, children build their lexicon and grammatical skills. Patterns of development vary across
children, most likely as a function of their experiences in the environment. By school age, all of
the fundamentals of language are typically mastered. Children may still show immaturities in
motor speech skills to age 8 years, but intelligibility at school age should be approximately
100%.Developmental surveillance may detect children at high risk for disorders in language
and speech. Surveillance uses all clinical approaches (history, physical and neurologic
examinations, observations) at all health supervision visits. “Red flags”(Table 2) are delays or
differences that indicate a high prevalence for persistent disorders, and they should prompt an
evaluation. This phenomenon is known as "overimitation" and refers to the tendency to copy
even seemingly irrelevant or unnecessary steps in an action sequence.
Elaboration:
Overimitation:
Children will replicate the exact actions they observe, including elements that don't
contribute to achieving the goal, or even those that are causally irrelevant. For example, they
might mimic tapping a box and turning a knob, even if those actions are not necessary to open
the box.
Developmental Milestones:
The ability to imitate, and particularly overimitation, develops in early childhood, with
some evidence suggesting it appears as early as 18 months to 3 years.
Social and Cognitive Factors:
Researchers suggest that overimitation is driven by both social motivations, such as the
desire to conform to norms and affiliate with the model, and cognitive factors, like potential
biases in understanding causal relationships.
Significance:
This tendency to imitate, including unnecessary steps, is thought to play a role in cultural
transmission and social learning, as children are more likely to reproduce the actions they see,
even if those actions are not essential.
Examples:
Children might mimic a parent's mannerisms, such as how they walk or talk, even when
the parent is not present. They may also copy specific behaviors from videos or interactions
with peers, incorporating irrelevant elements into their own actions.
Preoperational stage (2
to 7 years)
During this stage, children build on object permanence and continue to develop abstract
mental processes. This means they can think about things beyond the physical world, such as
things that happened in the past.
They also imagine and think symbolically, and they begin to display this ability through
their language and behavior.
The
five key behaviors
children display during this period are:
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Imitation:
Children can mimic another person’s actions, even if the individual they are
modeling is no longer in front of them.
Symbolic play:
Children begin assigning characteristics or symbols to objects. They can
project the properties of one object onto another. For example, they may pretend a stick
is a sword.
Drawing:
Imitation and symbolic play are both essential elements of drawing. It begins
as meaningless scribbles and progresses to more accurate representations of objects
and people.
Mental imagery:
Children start to visualize a wide range of things in their mind. They
may ask the names of objects frequently to establish associations between words and
objects.
Verbal evocation of events:
This means children can use words to describe and
represent past events, people, or items.
The primary function of speech at this age is to externalize thinking, rather than for
communication. Children may talk in a stream of consciousness and develop more
sophisticated language skills as they move through this stage.
Piaget believed that children remain egocentric throughout the preoperational stage. This
means they cannot understand that other people think in different ways to them or that events
that take place are not always related to them.
Examples
Some examples a child is at the preoperational stage include:
imitating the way someone talks or moves even when they are not in the room
drawing people and objects from their own life but understanding they are only
representations
pretending a stick is a sword or that a broom is a horse during play
imagining that they are a superhero or someone they admire
inventing an imaginary friend
Egocentrism:
Children have difficulty understanding perspectives different from their own, believing
that others see the world the same way they do.
Centration:
They tend to focus on one aspect of a situation and ignore other relevant details.
Conservation:
Children struggle to understand that quantities can remain the same even when
appearance changes (e.g., pouring water into different-shaped glasses).
Animism:
Children may attribute life-like qualities to inanimate objects.
Examples of behaviors in the preoperational stage:
A child pretends to be a doctor with a toy stethoscope and a teddy bear patient.
A child uses blocks to build a house or a car, representing the objects they are building.
A child uses language to describe past events or imagine future scenarios.
A child struggles with a conservation task, believing that a taller glass of water has more
than a shorter, wider glass even though they both contain the same amount.
A child believes that their toy car is sad because it's not being played with.
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Understanding the characteristics of the preoperational stage is crucial for
educators. Children in this stage benefit from hands-on learning experiences, concrete
materials, and activities that encourage pretend play, language development, and symbolic
representation. It's also important to address egocentrism and centration by providing
opportunities for children to explore different perspectives and focus on multiple aspects of a
situation.
References:
Используемая литература:
Foydalanilgan adabiyotlar:
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Kramsch, C. (1998). Language and Culture.
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UNESCO (2006). Global Education First Initiative.
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Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological
Processes.
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Chen, Y., Starosta, W.J. (2016). Intercultural Communication Competence: A Synthesis.
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Dervin, F., Hahl, K. (2016). The Role of Digital Technologies in Language Learning: A
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Perspective.