How to develop thinking? Part 1. How to develop thinking in a child

The article presents general recommendations and time-tested practical advice on how to develop thinking in a child.

Thinking reflects a person’s ability to understand the world around him, think, accumulate knowledge, discover new laws, solve emerging problems and tasks, create and transform.

The foundation of thinking is laid in early childhood, when the child first masters visual-actional thinking (it is basic until about 5 years old), then visual-figurative thinking (it prevails until about 6-6.5 years old) and verbal-logical thinking (it is formed around the age of 6-6.5 years). 6 years old, predominates from 7-8 years old and remains dominant in most adults). Visual and effective thinking allows a child to explore the world through interaction with objects.

Visual-figurative thinking makes it possible to imagine objects, even if they are not available, and operates with these images and ideas (remember how Malvina asked Pinocchio to imagine that he had an apple in his pocket?). You can read more about the development of visual thinking on our blog, in the article “Development of Visual Thinking”.

Verbal-logical thinking allows the child to handle words that denote phenomena or objects. It grows out of the figurative and helps to analyze and synthesize, reason, draw conclusions, classify, infer, compare, highlight the main and secondary.

Logical thinking in preschool children goes through some stages of development:

1. Mastering the ability to compare, generalize, divide into groups, and classify.
2. Modeling.
3. Ability to work with algorithms and create algorithms.
4. Combinatorics.
5. Solving problems on intelligence and the rudiments of using scientific information.
6. Clarification of the meaning inherent in fairy tales, proverbs, riddles.
7. Solving puzzles, watercress crosses.

Peculiarities of thinking in preschoolers

A child’s thinking in the preschool period develops in conditions of rapid maturation and is determined by a number of accompanying factors, the main of which are:

1. Expanding your social circle. If during early childhood the child had contact only with his parents, then in preschool age he begins to communicate with his peers and teachers.
2. Speech development. The child learns not only to understand, but also to pronounce words correctly and construct phrases correctly.
3. Formation of an analytical worldview. During the preschool period of growth, the perception of shapes, colors, sizes, space and time improves.
4. Acquiring new skills and abilities. The child learns to read syllables, recite poetry, sing, and draw.
5. Formation of personal qualities. During educational activities and communication with other children, strong-willed character traits are developed, such as organization, perseverance, and initiative.
6. Formation of self-esteem. The preschooler develops awareness of his “I” and develops a critical assessment of himself.
7. Exhibiting self-control. The child learns to manage his actions, behavior, and activities.

The thinking of a preschooler begins to form on the basis of practical experience, when the child strives to touch, disassemble, and break the objects around him.

As children grow older, a figurative perception of reality appears, which becomes the main form of children's thinking in the preschool period. Tactile cognition remains, but takes on more advanced forms.

At the end of the preschool period, the child’s cognitive activity is enriched with elements of logic. This indicates the preschooler’s readiness to develop logical knowledge.

How does a child think?

As everyone knows, the brain consists of two hemispheres: left and right. The left hemisphere of the brain is responsible for logic and analytical thinking, and the right hemisphere is responsible for creative processes. People with a more developed left hemisphere are distinguished by consistency and abstract thinking, and in the case of a more developed right hemisphere, a tendency to fantasies and daydreams. Among people with a developed right hemisphere there are quite a lot of poets, artists, musicians, writers and other creative personalities.

There are also cases where a person has almost evenly developed both hemispheres of the brain, although this does not occur often. Most often, such people become either geniuses or very gifted individuals.

Psychologists strongly recommend putting effort into the diverse development of a child, since predisposition cannot be determined immediately; it manifests itself during classes after some time. Parents should take a closer look at what comes easier to the child and evokes a greater response in him; this will help determine further methods of his development.

Important

Don’t think that choosing a couple of educational clubs for your child will be enough. Many experts advise loading the child with a variety of activities to the maximum, so that in the future he can choose the ones most interesting to him.

Stages of thinking development

As a child grows up, 3 types of thinking are alternately formed:

• objective-effective;
• visual-figurative;
• verbal-logical.

Stages of development of thinking in a preschooler

Formation of a child's thinking

The following patterns can be traced in the development of thinking:

• Until the age of three, a child uses only the visual-effective type of thinking - others are inaccessible to him.
• From the age of three, the visual-figurative type becomes dominant. The ability to imagine objects and reason based on the experience of perception appears.
• From the age of five to seven, thinking gradually becomes abstract. The preschooler uses indirect knowledge and performs simple logical operations.

Now a little person does not have to touch, see or remember objects in order to think about them. As he grows up, his conclusions become more complex, abstract concepts arise, and judgments become more justified.

Possible violations

Sometimes parents and teachers are faced with learning problems among preschoolers. Main violations:

• attention deficit;
• difficulties in mastering the material;
• bad memory.

These negative features are associated with deviations of a neuropsychic nature and are observed against the background of an unstable emotional state, behavioral disorders, and neurological disorders.

Thinking disorders in children are associated with problems with speech development. Deviations in this area are reflected in all types of mental activity, including thought processes. The following signs are characteristic of general speech underdevelopment:

• late pronunciation of the first words (by 3-4 years);
• limited vocabulary;
• disturbances in the pronunciation of sounds;
• difficulties in constructing phrases;
• lack of speech activity.

The cause of the pathology is unfavorable factors that occurred at the stage of intrauterine development, during the birth process, and in the postpartum period.

Why is it important to develop the ability to think logically?

Logic helps you process and analyze information faster, formulate questions correctly, and draw conclusions. This is the basis for success in studying and building a professional career.

A person with developed logical and abstract thinking thinks more broadly. He is able to solve complex problems out of the box and offer options that others do not see. Logic implies flexibility and plasticity of the mind. In the age of rapidly changing technologies, mental skills help you always stay on trend and quickly master new competencies.

Every person needs logical thinking skills, regardless of their occupation. We are bombarded with huge flows of contradictory information from all sides; only those who know how to operate with logical constructs can understand the truth and falsity of judgments and opinions.

The need to develop thinking

Thinking is one of the highest forms of human activity, a tool for obtaining and assimilating information. The development of thinking in children is a process of transferring knowledge, learning techniques and methods of mental activity.

Goals of work in this direction:

1. Development of a child's mental abilities.
2. Preparation for mastering the school curriculum.
3. Comprehensive personality formation.

Preschool age is a favorable period for developmental activities because:

1. At this time, the body and nervous system are at the stage of formation. The perception of new information occurs naturally, children are easy to learn.
2. The thinking of a preschooler operates with ideas and images, which expands the scope of cognition.
3. The child gains the ability to control thought processes and develops creative imagination.
4. Preschool children are characterized by curiosity. They love to ask questions and try to reason.
5. A holistic perception of the world is intensively formed in the mind of a preschooler.
6. Speech develops. The child masters his native language.

Games

Logical thinking games for preschoolers

If you've ever tried to reason with a three-year-old, you know that a child at that age doesn't think logically. Young children are very concrete and literal in their thinking, and only as they approach school age do they begin to demonstrate a readiness for tasks that require more abstract thinking. However, preschoolers often make surprising connections as they explore and make sense of the world, and there are several fun logic games that will answer your child's question: What is logic?

How to develop children's thinking

The leading activity of a preschool child is play. According to research, classes with preschoolers are most effective if conducted using a playful method. It is recommended to work on developing mental abilities in several directions.

The table shows how to develop logical thinking in a child, what exercises can be used:

In the process of complex classes, various types of thinking develop:

• objective-effective;
• visual-figurative;
• verbal-logical;
• abstract-logical;
• spatial;
• non-standard.

Skills of mental operations are formed, the main of which are:

• analysis;
• comparison;
• classification;
• synthesis.

To achieve the desired result, game lessons on developing thinking should be conducted regularly.

What kinds of exercises are there to develop logic?

Logic is a multifaceted concept, so one set of exercises is not enough. Tasks can be linguistic, mathematical, artistic. You can find them in the books of famous teachers and psychologists. Specialists from the Research Center for Neuropsychology named after A.R. Luria are the authors of many manuals for preschoolers, designed to develop thinking, memory, attention and other mental functions, so they will advise parents on suitable materials for teaching their child.

You can start with something simple:

• language games in the form of “question-answer”;
• classes with cubes, sticks, colored cards;
• drawing according to instructions, completing missing elements;
• riddles for calculating an object from a description;
• solving puzzles, including corresponding online games on the Internet, etc.

The main thing is to organize classes in a playful way. This way the child will be able to take the initiative without perceiving what is happening as learning and developing skills on a subconscious level.

Activities Options

In order to comprehensively develop thinking abilities, it is advisable to alternate different types of games.

Oral games

Playing with words develops logical thinking, increases vocabulary, and broadens horizons. It is recommended to choose games that require:

• draw analogies;
• generalize;
• group objects and phenomena;
• establish cause-and-effect relationships.

This category of exercises includes:

1. Association games. The child is named an object and asked to name a similar one. They ask why he chose it and ask him to list similar characteristics.
2. Coming up with new endings for familiar fairy tales.
3. Writing stories and poems together. One child comes up with the first line, the other composes a continuation according to its meaning.
4. Games in "Yes - No". An adult thinks of an object, character or phenomenon and invites the preschooler to guess it. To do this, the child is allowed to ask leading questions, to which he receives “Yes” or “No” answers.
5. The “believe it or not believe it” game. An adult says a phrase, for example: “All hares are gray”, “An apple is a fruit”, etc. The child is asked to answer whether the statement is true or false. In this case, it is important that the preschooler logically substantiate the answer.

Interaction with objects

1. A game that teaches you to classify objects. Toys made from different materials (for example, wood and plastic) are laid out in front of the child. The preschooler is asked to put them in 2 boxes, grouping them according to a common characteristic.
2. A game to develop speech and creative thinking. Objects familiar to children are placed on the table. One of the preschoolers (the leader) is asked, without pointing to the object, to formulate its description in the form of a riddle. The one who first guesses what is being said becomes the leader.
3. A game to develop attention, logical thinking and speech. Children stand in a circle, the teacher with the ball stands in the center of the circle. When throwing the ball to one of the participants, he pronounces the general name of the object, for example “Toy”. The child needs to catch the ball and name an object from the proposed category, for example, “Doll.”

Board games

Games of this type effectively develop:

• memory;
• attention;
• check;
• spatial imagination;
• strategic thinking;
• cognitive abilities.

In addition, they train fine motor skills, thereby promoting the development of thinking and speech.

At the initial stage, board games such as “Blue Elephant” (from 3 years) are suitable. With their help, children will learn to play according to the rules: throw dice one at a time, move chips, and make independent decisions.

Older children will benefit from games that develop one or another mental ability.

Suitable for memory training:

• “Chicken race” - from 4 years;
• “Surprises” - from 6 years;
• "Alles Tomate" - from 6 years.

To develop attention:

• “Chicken Run: Hide and Seek” - from 4 years old;
• “Wild Jungle” - from 7 years;
• “Load and carry” - from 7 years old.

To develop imagination and speech:

• "Activity" for little ones - from 4 years old;
• "Alias" for children from 5 years old;
• "Scrabble Junior" - for preschoolers from 5 years old.

To teach mental counting:

• “Halli Galli” - from 5 years;
• “10 pigs” - from 6 years old.

Designing for Spatial Thinking

While working with a construction set, the child assembles objects according to diagrams or reproduces planned designs. This helps develop:

• fine motor skills;
• structural-logical thinking;
• spatial perception;
• creative imagination.

Younger preschoolers create buildings from cubes. Older children assemble models of varying degrees of complexity using different types of construction sets.

Riddles and puzzles

This type of game exercise develops:

• logical thinking;
• Creative skills;
• non-standard approach to solving problems.

Used for classes:

• oral folk riddles and puzzles;
• logical tasks from author's collections (for example, from Lewis Carroll);
• geometric puzzle figures: Rubik's cube, pentomino, tangram (develop structural, logical and spatial thinking).

Developed logical thinking will help a child not only get an education, but also prepare to solve the problems of upcoming adult life.

What is logical thinking

The ancient Greek word “logic” can be translated as “the ability to reason,” which perfectly reflects the essence of the concept. A person with developed logic thinks demonstrably, judiciously and consistently; for this he uses logical concepts and constructions.

Developed logical thinking allows you to:

• quickly highlight the main points in a huge flow of information;
• find cause-and-effect relationships;
• make reasonable inferences and generalizations.

In other words, logic is a tool for clearly formulating thoughts and making informed decisions.