Games for the attention of middle age. How to develop attention: exciting games for preschoolers! "Wintering and migratory birds"

In this article we will talk about the development in children of such a vital quality as attention. There is probably no need to explain that we need attention not only to gain new knowledge at school and college, but also to perform ordinary everyday actions. Agree, a person who does not have sufficient concentration and attention switching simply will not be able, for example, to cross the road.

It is possible and necessary to develop attention in children from a very early age. It is recommended to do this through games and exercises that are interesting and exciting for the child. Children learn quickly while playing, so if you and your child devote a little time every day to games that develop attention, progress will not be long in coming.

Attention games for children should be varied and aimed at developing different properties of attention: concentration, stability, selectivity, distribution, switchability and arbitrariness. We bring to your attention several examples of games and exercises to improve some properties of attention.

Outdoor games for attention

"Zoo"(promotes the development of switchability and distribution of attention). The presenter turns on the music. While the music is playing, the children walk in a circle, as if walking through a zoo. Then the music fades out, and the presenter shouts out the name of an animal. Children must “stop at the cage” and imitate this animal. For example, with the word “hare” - start jumping, with the word “zebra” - “beat with your hoof”, etc. The game is more fun in a group of children, but it can also be played with one child.
"Edible-inedible"(a well-known game for almost any age that develops concentration and attention span). One participant says the word he has in mind and throws the ball to the other. If the word means an edible object, the ball must be caught; if it is inedible, the ball cannot be caught. You can play this game together and keep score, or you can play as a group, in a knockout game (this is a more complicated option, since no one knows in advance to whom the ball will be thrown).
"Vegetables fruits"(develops selectivity and switchability of attention). The presenter shouts out the names of vegetables and fruits; the participating children must sit down when they hear a word that means a vegetable, and jump when they hear a word that means a fruit. The themes of the named objects can be different (animals, birds, trees, bushes), conditional movements can also be (clap your hands, raise your hands up, etc.).

Games to develop auditory attention

"Broken phone"- a simple and well-known game for developing auditory attention. The guessed word is whispered into the ear in a circle until it returns to the player who guessed it, or along the line (then the last player loudly pronounces the received word).
"Cow with a bell". Children stand in a circle, and the blindfolded driver stands in the center. Children pass the bell to each other by ringing it. Then, at the command of an adult: “I can’t hear the bell!” the child who has the bell in his hands stops ringing. To an adult’s question: “Where is the cow?” The driver must indicate with his hand the direction from which he last heard the ringing.
"Listening to the words". It is necessary to agree in advance with the child (children) that the driver (adult) will pronounce a variety of words, among which there will be, for example, the names of animals. The child should have time to clap his hands when he hears these words. During the game, you can change the theme of the given words and the movement that the child must make, and also complicate the game by combining 2 or more themes and, accordingly, movements.
"Nose-floor-ceiling". The presenter names the words in different orders: nose, floor, ceiling and makes the corresponding movements: touches his nose with his finger, points to the ceiling and to the floor. Children repeat the movements. Then the presenter begins to confuse the children: he continues to pronounce words and make movements either correctly or incorrectly (for example, when he says “nose” he points to the ceiling, etc.). Children must not get lost and show correctly.

Exercises for concentration and attention span

"Palms". The players sit in a row or in a circle and place their palms on the knees of their neighbors (the right hand on the left knee of the neighbor on the right, the left on the right knee of the neighbor on the left). You need to quickly raise and lower your palms in order (so that the wave “runs through”). Raised palms at the wrong time are eliminated from the game.
"Snowball". The first participant will say a word on a given topic or without it. The second participant must first say the first player’s word, then his own. Third - the words of the first and second players and then yours, etc. A series of words grows like a snowball. The exercise is more interesting to do in a group of children, but you can do it together, adding words one at a time.

Card index of games and exercises for preschool children

"Development of attention in preschoolers"

The game “Which toy is missing?”

goal: development of visual memory, attention span.

age: from 3 years

Place 4-5 toys in front of the child for 1 minute, then ask the child to turn away and remove one of the toys. Question to the child: “What toy is missing?” The game can be complicated: do not remove anything, but only swap toys; increase the number of toys. You can play 2-3 times a week.

Game “What do you hear?”

goal: development of voluntary attention, stability.

age: from 3 years.

Option 1: the presenter invites the children to listen and remember what is happening outside the door. He then asks to tell what they heard.

Option 2: at the leader’s signal, the children’s attention is drawn from the door to the window, from the window to the door. Then each child must tell what happened behind them.

Game "Find the same one."

age: from 3 years

Invite your child to choose from cubes or balls exactly the same (in color, size, design) as the one you have in your hands. To make it more interesting for your child to play, you can wish for objects with him in turn and, of course, make mistakes that the child should notice. You can make the game more difficult by increasing the number of items whose differences are not so noticeable.

Game “What has changed?”

age: from 3 years.

Game “What has changed?”

age: from 3 years.

To begin, place 3-4 toys on the table and let the child look at them for 1-2 minutes. Then ask him to turn away and remove one of the toys. When the baby turns around, ask him what has changed. The game can be complicated by increasing the number of toys to 5-7. You can turn this game into a competition by asking each other problems in turns.

Game "Numbers"

goal: development of auditory memory, attention span.

age: from 4 years.

Now I will show you a series of numbers. They must be remembered in the same order:

2, 3, 5, 7, 3, 5, 7

Repeat the numbers. Tell me how you remembered it. See how these numbers can be grouped.

Game "Something's wrong here"

goal: development of voluntary attention, critical thinking.

age: from 4 years

The text is read to children, their task is to find “absurdities” in it.

Yesterday I was walking along the road, the sun was shining, it was dark, the blue leaves were rustling under my feet. And suddenly a dog jumps out from around the corner, growls at me: “Ku-ka-re-ku,” and has already pointed its horns. I got scared and ran away.

I'm walking through the forest. Cars are driving around, traffic lights are blinking. Suddenly I see a mushroom! It grows on a branch. Hid among the green leaves. I jumped up and tore it off.

I came to the river. I see a fish sitting on the shore, its legs crossed and chewing a sausage. I approached, and she jumped into the water and swam away.

Game "Attention Gymnastics"

goal: development of voluntary attention

age: 4-6 years

One, two, three, four, five

we start playing

you guys don't yawn

listen to what I tell you

and at the same time I will show you.

Naming parts of your body, show them on yourself (puts your hand on them). Children repeat the movements. Then they begin to confuse the children, naming one part of the body and showing another.

Game "The most attentive"

goal: development of attention span, ability to concentrate.

age: from 4 years

Children stand in a semicircle. Then the leader is determined. The presenter must remember the order of the participants in the game. Then the leader turns away. At this time, the players change places. The presenter must say how his comrades stood. All players must take the place of the leader. Everyone who makes no mistakes is considered a winner.

Game "Who called?"

age: from 4 years

Children sit or stand in a semicircle. A driver is selected who stands with his back to the children. The teacher silently points the children to the child who wants to call the leader by name. The driver guesses who said the word.

Game "Flies - doesn't fly"

goal: development of voluntary attention

age: from 4 years

The leader, standing in a semicircle of children, throws the ball to each child in turn, naming any object. The child determines whether this object can fly. If “can” the ball is thrown back, if not, in the same way with the word “flies”, if it does not fly, the ball is returned by hitting the floor with the word “does not fly”.

Game "Broken Phone"

goal: development of attention, auditory perception.

age: from 4 years

Option 1.

Children sit in a row or in a circle. The presenter quietly, in his ear, calls out a word or phrase to his neighbor, who passes it on

The last of the children names what they heard, after which the new leader gives the word.

Option 2.

Some of the children leave the office. The presenter reads a short story to the remaining children. The first of the players behind the door enters the office and one of those present tells him what he heard. Then the second child comes in, and the previous one tells him everything he remembers from the story. The whole game continues like this.

Game "Gawkers"

goal: development of active attention.

age: from 4 years

The players walk in a circle, holding hands. At the leader’s signal, they stop and clap 4 times, then turn around and continue moving. The direction changes after each signal. Anyone who completes the task incorrectly leaves the game.

Game "What's new?"

goal: development of voluntary attention

age: from 4 years

An adult draws any geometric figure with chalk on a blackboard. Children take turns coming up to the board and drawing some details, creating a picture. At this time, when one child is at the board, the rest close their eyes and, opening them at the command of an adult, say what has changed. The longer the game lasts, the more difficult it is to find new parts.

Game "Search non-stop."

Age: from 4 years.

Within 10-15 seconds, see as many objects of the same color around you as possible; on a signal, one begins to list and complement the others.

Game "Look how much you need."

Goal: development of active attention

Age: from 4 years

Take those participating in the game into the room and give them the opportunity to look around. When everyone leaves the room, ask what 20 different objects they saw in it, what dishes, clothes, etc.

Exercise “Happy Piggies”.

Goal: development of concentration and observation.

Age: from 4 years

Task 1: look at the pictures. Name as quickly as possible what distinguishes one pig from another.

It is necessary to record the time required to complete the task, the number of differences named, the number of errors (repetitions, incorrectly named and missed differences.)

Game "Ear - Nose".

Goal: development of attention, speed of reaction, ability to obey rules

Age: from 4 years.

On the command “ear” children are asked to grab the ear, and on the command “nose” - on the nose.

Game "Different Animals".

Goal: development of active attention, reaction speed

Age: from 4 years.

The presenter explains that when he claps his hands, the child will have to take the appropriate pose:

One clap - stork pose (standing on one leg, tucking the other)

Two claps - frog pose (squat heels together, toes apart, knees apart, hands between legs on the floor)

Three claps – cow pose (get on all fours and say “moo-moo”).

Game "Dwarfs and Giants".

Goal: development of attention, reaction speed.

Age:

Children are invited to sit down at the command “dwarfs”, and to stand up at the command “giants”.

Exercises

Goal: development of voluntary attention, observation

Age: from 5 years.

close your eyes and describe what the guys you are playing with are wearing
close your eyes and tell me what color the other guys have eyes and hair.
without turning around, name all the objects that are behind you, describe their shape, size, color.

Sitting with your eyes closed for 2 minutes, list all the sounds that you will hear.

Game "Path".

Goal: development of attention, ability to obey rules.

Age: from 4 years

Children walk along an imaginary path. Each one carefully looks at where the previous one stepped and tries to follow exactly in the footsteps of this textbook. You need to move slowly and quietly. This exercise is good to use at the end of classes or when going for a walk.

Game "Flag Game"

Goal: development of attention, reaction speed.

Age: from 4 years

When the leader raises the red flag, the children must jump, the green flag must clap their hands, and the blue flag must walk in place.

Game "Four Elements"

Goal: development of attention associated with the coordination of the auditory and visual analyzer

Age: from 4 years.

The players sit in a circle. If the leader says the word “earth”, everyone should lower their hands down, if the word “water” - stretch their arms forward, the word “air” - raise their hands up, the word “fire” - rotate their hands at the wrist and elbow joints. Whoever makes a mistake is considered a loser.

Game "Add a word".

Goal: develop attention and memory

Age: 4-6 years

The first one names a toy. The second one repeats this word and adds his own. The third child repeats the first two in order and names his own, etc.

If this game is played repeatedly, then the number of words we remember increases from time to time, i.e. Memory. And the attitude that an adult gives to memorizing as many words as possible develops voluntary attention.

Game "Fish, Bird, Beast".

Goal: development of voluntary attention, speed of reaction.

Age: from 4 years.

It is better if several people participate in this game. The presenter points to each player in turn and says: “Fish, bird, beast.” The one on whom the counting stops must quickly name, in this case, the beast. Moreover, the names should not be repeated. If the answer is correct, the presenter continues the game.

If the answer is incorrect or the name is repeated (delayed response), then the child leaves the pair, leaving his own to the leader. The game continues until one player remains.

Game "Prohibited Movements".

Age: from 4 years.

The participants of the game are located in a circle. The presenter says that they must repeat all movements except one. As soon as the leader’s hands go down, everyone should raise their hands up, i.e. do the opposite.

The one who makes a mistake becomes the leader.

Game "Glass".

Goal: development of stability of attention.

Age: from 4 years.

The guys are sitting in a circle. The teacher hands over a plate containing a glass. The plate with the glass must be passed around in a circle so that no one hears the knocking or clinking of the glass. At the end of the exercise, a summary is made of who conveyed the quietest voice. Various permutations are possible.

Age: from 5 years

Chairs are placed in two rows with a small distance. Children sit in one row, they receive pictures with images of a house, car, dog, flower. The teacher reads or tells a story. If the text contains a word that denotes a picture, the child should stand up and quickly move to the chair opposite. The children who never miss their word win..

Game "Be careful with words"

Goal: development of stability of attention

Age: from 5 years

Game "The Word Got Lost"

Goal: development of voluntary attention, auditory perception.

Age: from 5 years

the adult pronounces rhymed and non-rhymed phrases. Children listen and suggest the right word.

Drinks milk from a bowl on the floor spoon.

In a clearing near an oak tree I collected pieces daughter.

Delicious cooked Masha. Where is our big baby?

There's a lot of frost outside, you might get frostbitten tail .

Bake me an iron ! - asks grandma hook .

Game "Artist".

Goal: development of observation skills, memory capacity.

Age: from 5 years.

The child plays the role of an artist. He carefully examines who he will draw, then turns away and gives a verbal portrait.

Goal: development of attention

Age: from 5 years

The guys are sitting in a circle. The presenter shows some movements, and the guys should do the opposite. If the leader clasps his palms into a fist, the children must unclench their palms. The one who makes a mistake becomes the leader.

Game "Sparrows and Giants".

Goal: development of attention, overcoming motor automatism.

Age: from 5 years

Children are selected who will portray “cars” and others “sparrows”. The presenter gives the “car” signal - horn, “sparrows” - fly. At their signal, sparrows and cars leave their houses and run around. The presenter makes sure that the “sparrows” hide from the “cars” in the houses so that their paws are not crushed.

Game "Detective"

Goal: development of attention and observation.

Age: from 5 years.

Children are divided into pairs, face each other and carefully study each other’s appearance for 10 seconds. After this, they turn their backs to each other and take turns loudly describing each other’s appearance.

Game "Find the mistakes."

Goal: development of sustainable attention, criticality of cognitive activity.

Age: from 5 years.

Draw a picture in advance in which 5-6 mistakes were made. For example, in a picture of children playing in the yard in winter, you can draw a tree with leaves, etc. content picture and mistakes made d.b. understandable to the baby, to complicate the game make mistakes more noticeable.

Game "Find the toy".

Goal: development of attention, ability to recognize an object by description.

Age: from 5 years.

The adult describes to the child some toy in the room. The child can ask questions. The child is then asked to find the object in question.

Game-exercise “Compare objects”.

Goal: development of concentration.

Age: from 5 years

2 toys are placed in front of the child. He must first say how they are similar, and then how they differ from each other. For example: a bear and a bunny. You can name the signs one by one with your child. We also recommend comparing any pairs of toys. And if you want to make the game more challenging, place more similar toys in front of your child.

Game "Handkerchief"

Goal: development of attention, reaction speed

Age: from 5 years

Children stand in a circle. The driver walks behind the circle with a handkerchief in his hand and quietly places the handkerchief behind someone’s back. Then he makes another circle. If during this time the new owner of the handkerchief does not show up, he is considered to have lost. If he notices a handkerchief, he must catch up with the driver and stop him. If this succeeds, the driver remains the same. If not, someone else drives.

The game “Don’t say yes and no, don’t wear black and white.”

Goal: development of voluntary attention and self-control.

Age: from 5 years.

An adult invites the child to play questions and answers. A child can answer questions in different ways, but must follow one rule: you cannot say the forbidden words “yes - no”, “black - white”. Adults ask questions that involve the use of a forbidden word. For example: “What color is the doctor’s coat?” In case of an error, the players change places.

Game "Brownian motion".

Goal: development of attention and self-control

Age: from 5 years.

All children stand in a circle. The leader rolls tennis balls into the center of the circle one after another. Children will be told the rules: the balls should not stop and roll out of the circle; they can be pushed with their hands and feet. If participants successfully complete

Game "Changers".

Goal: development of active attention

Age: from 5 years.

The game is played in a circle, the participants choose a driver who gets up and brings out his chair, so it turns out that there is one less chair than there are players. Then the presenter says: “Those who have (blond hair, dark eyes) change.” After this, those who have the named sign must quickly get up and change places, at the same time the driver must take a (vacant) seat. Whoever is left without a chair becomes the leader.

“Toy Changer” option.

The driver stands with his back and counts to 10. At this time, some players exchange objects silently. It is not allowed to exchange the same toy twice. The driver's task is to guess who swapped toys with whom.

Game “My triangular cap.”

Goal: development of active attention

Age: from 5 years

The players sit in a circle. Everyone takes turns, starting with the leader, pronouncing one word from the phrase.

“My cap is triangular

Triangular my cap

And if not triangular

This is not my cap.

The phrase is repeated again in a circle, but children who happen to say the word “cap” replace it with gestures

(for example: 2 claps on your head with your palm)

Next time, 2 words are already replaced: the word “cap” and the word “mine” (point to yourself). In each subsequent circle, the players say one less word and show one more. In the final circle, children depict only with gestures.

An exercise to develop attention span and observation skills.

Age: 6-7 years

Option 1. task 1

Try to name as quickly as possible how many cars are shown.

How many wheels are there in this picture?

Option 2. task 1.

Look at this picture and try to determine what is on

it is depicted. The picture is shown for a short time (no more than 30 seconds)

task 2. how many flying saucers are there in the picture.

Game "Typewriter".

Goal: development of attention

Age: from 6 years

Each player is assigned the name of a letter of the alphabet. Then a word or phrase of two or three words is invented. At the signal, the children begin to type on a typewriter. The first letter claps, then the second. When the word is printed, all the children clap their hands.

In this article:

Before we talk about what features of the development of attention in preschool children are identified by experts today, it is worth saying a little about attention itself and its types.

What is attention and what properties does it have?

Attention is usually understood as one of the main elements of human cognitive activity. It is attention that allows us to correctly direct cognitive processes, concentrate on a particular event or object, pursuing the goal of reflecting reality as accurately as possible.

With the help of attention, you can filter information that enters the human brain through his senses. Naturally, absorbing all the information is too difficult and completely useless. We need to take note only of information that has some value. Human attention has several basic properties:

volume - the amount of information that fits in the mind;
concentration - the ability to focus on something specific;
stamina - the ability to maintain concentration for a long time;
switchability - intentional switching of attention from object to object if necessary;
distribution - distribution of attention between several objects or activities.

It is important that a person develops all the properties of attention listed above. Violation of any of them will cause problems with attention.

Involuntary attention

Involuntary (also known as unintentional or passive) attention involves the ability to focus on something without special intention. This usually occurs as a result of the identification of some bright features in an object, object or phenomenon that make an impression on a person, affect his feelings, and evoke certain emotions and thoughts.

Call
involuntary attention can:

bright light;
sharp sound;
unexpected action;
a new interesting object or movement;
unusual combinations of features of objects.

When it comes to preschool children, this type of attention dominates, which largely depends on the ability to assimilate and differentiate new information.

Children will learn about everything that is interesting in the world: about animals, plants, different nationalities of people who differ from each other in skin color, culture, speech. Initially, children receive this information from adults, but over time they independently remember what made a special impression on them.

Features of voluntary memorization

Voluntary, or active, intentional, attention in preschool children is formed outside of their personality. That is, it does not depend on the process of development of involuntary attention. His level of activity will be influenced solely by communication with elders. If you deprive a child of this communication, then his voluntary attention will remain at the initial stage.
Minimal development of voluntary attention can be expected as a result of the child’s active pastime associated with hobbies, emotions and personal experience.

You can stimulate the development of voluntary attention by programming situations when the child is required to show will, to make an effort to concentrate on an object in order to perform some actions with it. In this process, the general mental state of the child will play a huge role. If he is in a bad mood, tired, sick, or, for example, oversaturated with emotions, he is unlikely to be able to concentrate, which means he will not be able to remember anything voluntarily.

Post-voluntary memorization

This type of attention develops in preschool children in the process of their enthusiastic activities. At such moments, children do not experience volitional tension, do not try to force themselves to do what is necessary, but uninteresting.
The activity absorbs them, brings pleasure and does not cause any difficulties.

This type of attention is considered the most effective and long-lasting. When a child is in a good mood, rested and engaged, he can easily focus on activities of interest and achieve his goals.

At each age, attention has its own characteristics. Let's start with the earliest childhood - from birth to three years, after which we will consider the features of the attention of preschoolers.

What do newborns remember?

Many are sure that newborns do not have the ability to remember and do not know how to concentrate due to practically complete lack of attention in the first months of life. This is actually not true.

As soon as the baby is able to respond to strong stimuli (for example, bright light or loud sound), we can say that the process of developing attention has begun. Naturally, at first we are talking exclusively about involuntary attention. Most of the stimuli that can influence the baby’s indicative reactions are related to the most important task for him at this stage of life - nutrition.

The first half of a child’s life: how does attention develop?

Along with the appearance of the first signs of the ability to concentrate, children develop visual and auditory types of attention, which are especially pronounced just a few weeks after birth. Children flinch when they hear a loud sound, or, conversely, fall silent and try not to move, trying to distinguish the source of the sound coming to them from another room or from the street. As soon as the stimulus
hearing or vision will disappear, the baby will again do what he did before.

In the middle of the first month, the baby already shows the ability to be attentive, for example, when he hears speech addressed to him. The baby doesn’t just listen - he tries to understand, determine the emotional coloring of the speech and even stops crying or moving at such moments, being completely absorbed in listening.

Around the same time, in the first weeks of life, babies learn to demonstrate the ability to visually concentrate. They try to hold their gaze on an object, follow the movements of an object or object.

At the 8th week of life, the duration of the baby's auditory and visual concentration increases. He pays attention to toys of bright and contrasting colors, and is happy if they can make a sound or melody.

By about three months, children’s attention moves to a new stage of development, which is manifested by a revitalization complex. At the sight of a favorite toy or parents, the baby begins to move actively,
tries to pronounce individual sounds, smiles.

At six months, children are already quite good at concentrating on sounds - not only those they hear, but also those they produce themselves. This is why children love to knock toys and throw them on the floor, listening to the sound when they fall. Children especially enjoy manipulating objects at this age. In the process of such actions, children learn to be attentive and develop coordination of movements.

Each new toy at this stage of life is already capable of attracting the baby’s attention for a certain period of time. The more action a toy promises a child, the more attention it will receive. That is why it is so important that adults, wanting to stimulate the development of attention in children, surround them with objects with which they could carry out a number of manipulations that are fascinating to them without losing interest.

Development of attention in the second half of the year

In the second half of the year, the baby begins to develop more actively, his coordination improves, and his motor activity increases. By 9-12 months, the baby is able to manipulate several objects at once, distributing attention between them. He can build a tower from cubes, play with a pyramid or construction set, put containers or nesting dolls into each other and much more. These actions once again indicate that the baby’s involuntary attention predominates, which, however, already tends to be distributed.

At this stage of the baby’s life, parents should try to devote time to improving the child’s coordination,
teaching him to play and interact with several objects at once. The best way to do this is to lead by example. Let two objects be used in the process at first, and over time this number can be increased, which will entail for the child the need to move in order to get to the toy he needs.

Regular activities with your baby will help him improve coordination skills; in addition, quiet games will help develop willpower even in such little ones. For example, you can assemble a pyramid, matryoshka, or cubes with your child, showing by personal example how to do this, without irritation or haste, showing patience and attention.

To avoid overtiring or stressing your child, do not insist that he does a particular activity for more than 10 minutes. This is exactly how much time babies at the age of one can devote to an activity, even one that requires minimal concentration.

How do children learn to be attentive after one year?

Speech also influences the process of attention formation. By the end of the first half of the year, the baby begins to need active communication with others. Children's horizons expand, they become interested in what is happening around them, try to delve into people's conversations and
understand what we're talking about.

If we compare the attention of children under one year old with the attention of older children, we can note only one difference: in the former, its attraction occurs due to the initiative of adults, while in children aged two or three years, attention arises when they are interested in something.

The older children get, the better their attention will develop. They will be interested not only in objects and their external signs, but also in the speech of adults addressed to them, and even more so - their thoughts at that moment. By the age of three, children are keenly interested in the world around them, and the ability to concentrate actively develops as they need to complete new tasks, which make up the life of children.

Peculiarities of attention in preschoolers

Preschool age is characterized by changes, in all properties of attention and its types. During this period, a passive type of attention still predominates in children. The baby does an excellent job of manipulating several objects at once, but this only distracts him, since most often he, instead of concentrating and distributing
attention, performs actions automatically and is dispersed.

Nevertheless, it is fair to note that in preschool age children are excellent at concentrating when the process is controlled by adults, even if the activity does not give them much pleasure. At 4-5 years old, a child is already able to understand that he needs to complete a task, even if he is not interested. He tries to finish it as quickly as possible, so he deliberately concentrates and does not get distracted.
The ability to concentrate is also influenced by the active development of cognitive processes and the curiosity of a preschooler, who can watch a pet or aquarium fish in a zoo for a long time.

Development of voluntary attention in preschool children

The emergence of new types of activities in the life of a preschool child will stimulate the development of his attention.
In everyday life, a child increasingly hears phrases from adults that he needs to be attentive, he remembers them and tries to meet the expectations of his elders.

As the child masters the means of control and self-control, he develops the ability to voluntarily memorize. At an earlier age, these means were external in nature, for example, they were presented in the form of gestures or words of adults. At 4-5 years old, such a means is the child’s speech, which by this time acquires a planning function.

So, when getting ready for a walk, the child can already draw up a plan of his own actions, noting that first he will go to the playground with a slide, and then to the park for the rides. That is, the child has a goal, he marks for himself in advance an object on which, after a while, according to the plan, he will focus his attention. As a result, the baby begins to understand the meaning and purpose of each activity, which ultimately allows him to stimulate the development of active attention.

The development of voluntary attention in preschool children also depends on how actively the
their familiarity with the basic rules and norms of behavior that require the manifestation of a certain will.

Preschoolers are already able to understand that you can’t always do what you want. Sometimes you need to show your will and do what your parents ask and what they expect from them. Over time, children get used to the manifestation of will and even receive moral satisfaction from it. It becomes increasingly easier for them to remember something without making any effort, so the next stage begins - the formation of post-voluntary attention.

Main principles of attention development in preschool children

There are special techniques for developing attention in children of preschool age:

“The path from simple to complex” implies a gradual complication of tasks for a preschooler. There is no need to ask your child to complete a difficult task right away, realizing that he most likely will not cope with it. It is necessary to select tasks taking into account the attention characteristics of children of a particular age group, divide it into several simple stages with detailed instructions for implementation, which will certainly help the child cope with the task.

As the child progresses successfully, it will be possible to complicate the task for him and increase its volume.
Storing the rules of execution in memory will be possible by repeating them many times, both by an adult and by the child himself. Having such an algorithm in memory, the baby will be able to complete the task according to it. If any failure occurs, you can read additional instructions.

To help your child remember better, repeated verbal repetition can be reinforced with visual actions.

Improving self-control means the child’s control over the actions being performed, explaining them out loud and pronouncing the algorithm of actions. For example, while working on a drawing, a child can compare it with a sample, look for inaccuracies and make adjustments.

An additional motivation for children can be the competition typical of preschool children.

How to develop attention in children in a playful way?

The favorite activity of preschoolers is playing. Therefore, it is also best to develop stability of attention in children in a playful way. You can use ordinary puzzles, mosaics or construction sets, which will also contribute to the development of motor skills, or you can play more interesting and unusual games, the descriptions of which are given below.

"Buttons."
During this game, in addition to the baby’s attention, it will be possible to train memory, thinking and spatial perception. You will need two plaid sheets and two completely identical sets of buttons. One of the participants will have to place three buttons on their sheet (playing field) in a certain order. The second player's task is to remember the location of the buttons, their shape and colors and repeat this on his sheet (field) after the first player's playing field is closed from view. The more the child plays this game, the more buttons can be used at a time.

“Look for a familiar letter.” This game is suitable for children who already know at least a few letters from the alphabet. They will be asked to find a certain letter in some text (an old magazine or newspaper will do) and cross it out from all the words. Over time, the task can be complicated by training the child to switch and distribute attention. For example, you can suggest that he cross out the letter “a” in all words, and underline the letter “c”.

“Where is whose house?” An interesting game, known to many from childhood from magazines and comics for kids. For it you will need a regular piece of paper, on which you will need to draw several animals and their houses with tangled lines leading to them. The baby will need to run his finger along the lines and find out whose house is whose.

"We create words."
This game is suitable for a small group of children of older preschool age. It is designed to strengthen reading skills and, of course, develop attention. The essence of the game is as follows. Each child is assigned a letter. An adult comes up with a word consisting of letters assigned to each of the players, after which he writes it on paper, shows it and says it out loud to the children. All children will have to clap in the order that the letter of each of them appears in the word.

Game "In the Forest". During this game, the child develops auditory attention. The child is asked to imagine himself as a hunter or forester, sit in the room as quietly as possible and listen to the sounds that will be made from other rooms or from the street, then talk about them and recognize them.

Closer to older preschool age, children's attention is actively developing. It is very important to take into account its characteristics in order to pay attention in time to the child’s difficulties with memory and concentration and choose the right exercises for him.

Causes of absent-mindedness in children

Special training and activities with preschool children make it possible to improve the properties of their attention. Particularly important in this process is the internal motivation of the child, who should be interested in doing this or that activity.

Teachers working with preschoolers know very well how
Children often become distracted if the activity is not of interest to them. The reasons for the appearance of absent-mindedness include:

emotional problems;
anemia;
adenoids or sinusitis, complicating the supply of oxygen to the lungs, etc.

In such cases, it is worth taking the child to see a doctor, whose recommendations will help to return the child to normal functioning over time.

Another common cause of absent-minded attention is the fatigue of children who get tired of an uninteresting task that requires them to have a high degree of concentration.

One of the reasons for distracted attention is an excess of impressions or an insufficiently developed ability to switch attention. For example, too busy weekends do not allow the child to switch to educational activities on a weekday. One should not exclude such a reason as dispersion of interests arising due to the fault of adults, incorrect
a family education program without observing a daily routine, rest and entertainment, with constant indulgence of the child’s whims.

The fault of the child’s absent-mindedness may also be the teacher himself, who is not able to conduct classes in an interesting way. A monotonous voice, lack of visual aids and play activities will ultimately lead to preschoolers becoming bored and their attention scattered. In order to interest children and make them want to concentrate on what is happening, the teacher simply must be able to speak expressively, brightly, with humor, inspiring confidence in the kids.

Peculiarities of attention in preschool children with visual impairments

Visual information can only be perceived through the active functioning of the eyes. Failure of oculomotor functions in children diagnosed with strabismus leads to a complication of this process and, as a consequence, to an increase in the time required for the child to perceive information. It is this factor that is associated with the slowness of their actions and impaired concentration.
attention, inability to quickly switch from one task to another, correctly distributing attention to their individual parts, lack of concentration and randomness of actions.

It is extremely difficult for children with strabismus to master the objective world in areas of visual control. That is why they experience certain difficulties during the learning process, not being able to absorb the material the way healthy children do, paying attention to all incoming information.

The main reason for deviations in the development of attention in children with visual impairments is limited sensory input to the brain or lack of perception. The process is also influenced by the limited activity of the preschooler. Such children get tired faster than others during classes, switch worse to another type of activity, are not able to quickly get involved in work, and are quickly distracted when they need to involve their vision in the process.

Another reason for the difficulties in the development of attention in children with visual impairments is the insufficient organization of the perceptual field with a selection of stimuli that are justified from a physiological point of view. It is important to properly set up correctional work with such preschoolers, dosing the time of classes.

Correct
organizing correctional work with such children, aimed at developing attention, with the participation of parents, teachers and the use of suitable means will ultimately help to achieve positive dynamics.

The work may include exercises based on breathing exercises, as well as stretching and development of fine motor skills of the hands, visualizations, sensory-developing games, and relaxation exercises. Below we will consider several options for games and exercises based on breathing exercises and stretching.

Breathing exercise options

The main purpose of such exercises is to establish the rhythm of the child’s body and develop self-control. Such exercises go well with exercises for developing the tongue and eye function.

Option one."Balloon". Children are asked to relax their stomachs,
take a breath and “inflate” a “ball” in your stomach, imagining what color it will be. You will need to do this several times, “inflating” balloons of different colors in this way.

Option two. You will need to inhale first only through the right and then the left nostrils, deeply and slowly, thus strengthening the work of each of the brain hemispheres in turn.

Option three. Inhale through the left nostril, exhale through the right. As you inhale, you need to imagine how a golden flow of energy enters the body along with the air, and as you exhale, how it leaves.

Option four. Inhale with your eyes closed, exhale with your eyes open. The child will need to focus on what he sees: first the darkness, and then the light.

Exercises for stretching the body and arms

The purpose of this type of exercise is to bring muscle tone to a normal state, which is extremely important for attention disorders in preschool children. In addition, such exercises will help improve observation, memory, and teach the baby to control emotions and manifestations of feelings.

Game "Mirrors".
The adult, and after him the child, show movements that the rest of the participants repeat after them. The child should imagine that he is in a store with many mirrors, where each of the reflections repeats his actions. At first, it is better for an adult to play the role of a monkey, after which children can also perform it. It is very important to end the game at the moment of emotional peak in children, avoiding oversaturation of emotions and self-indulgence. To maintain interest among participants, you can exclude from the game those who make more mistakes than others.

Game "Make beads". To play you will need beads, as well as thin wire and large beads. The child will need to be asked to string beads onto the wire - first in a chaotic order, and then according to the pattern. It is very important that the child learns to string the beads in the order in which they are located in the sample picture. Actions with large beads for children are usually associated with difficulties, so it makes sense to offer them as a working material only to complicate the game for children with well-developed fine motor skills.

Research on the characteristics of attention in preschool children with various developmental disorders

To develop an effective correctional program for working with children with various types of health problems, it is important to study their level of attention - a basic mental process and an indicator of the degree of personality development. Only those children who can direct mental activity while remaining
attentive when working on a particular task.

Research in the field of studying the characteristics of attention in children with developmental disorders has been and continues to this day. Their results are quite interesting and deserve attention.

For example, it has been proven that mental retardation in preschool children most affects the formation of voluntary attention. It is extremely difficult to attract the attention of these children, to motivate them to concentrate for a long time. Such kids are quickly distracted, their attention span is minimal, especially when compared with the attention span of healthy children.

When examining objects, such children practically do not notice differences in them, are poorly able to switch from one activity to another, and are unable to evenly distribute attention between several types of activities.

The situation can be corrected by regular classes aimed at developing attention, using different types of activities, during which children gradually learn to concentrate: not just look, but see, not just listen, but hear.

Children with cerebral palsy experience impaired auditory and visual attention against the background of uneven mental activity. Such children often become immersed in details and are unable to process the required amount of information.

But preschoolers diagnosed with schizophrenia switch to different types of activities without problems, but only if they have personal motivation.
The ease of switching attention in their case is burdened by the lack of understanding of what is happening.

Hyperactive preschoolers cannot always cope with maintaining concentration, constantly switch from one activity to another, show inconsistency in actions, inability to listen and concentrate, and are more likely than others to lose personal belongings. Their attention is selective. However, if an activity is interesting to a hyperactive child, he is able to maintain attention on it for hours.

Children with general speech underdevelopment (GSD) have a low level of development of the main properties of attention, which is extremely unstable, poorly switched and distributed.

Conclusion

Attention in preschool age is one of the most important indicators for assessing a child’s mental development. Taking into account the peculiarities of the attention of preschool children, both healthy and with developmental disabilities and health problems, it is possible to develop an effective correction plan aimed, if not at eliminating, then at reducing the main deficiencies. In this way, it will be possible to prevent the development of school maladaptation caused by these violations.

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Attention is a very important process for a child of older preschool age. Soon the child will go to school, and there, without developed attention, it will be very difficult for him to concentrate on the school curriculum.

The child's attention needs to be developed. To do this, you should use the most exciting forms so that the child finds it interesting. Then the baby will voluntarily focus on completing tasks, and the process of developing attention will be successful.
Game "First Grader"

Additional materials: The game will require two briefcases, various school supplies and other items that are not related to school.

Game process. School supplies (in equal quantities) are laid out on two tables, mixed with various toys and items not related to school. On another table there are two briefcases. Two teams take part in the game. Each team is responsible for its own portfolio. It is necessary that each team choose only those items that are relevant to school studies: notebooks, pens, erasers, textbooks, etc.

They need to be carefully but quickly folded into your briefcase. The team that completes this task first without errors wins.

The teacher carefully observes the game process: makes sure that the children put things in the briefcase neatly. He should also explain or remind what function school supplies perform and show why it is very important to always bring them with you to school.
How to pack a school bag? Look

How is the game useful? The game “First Grader” helps children learn to focus on completing the task at hand: they need to be careful not to accidentally put an extra item in their briefcase.

The game also develops the skill of working in a team, the habit of diligently preparing for school and being neat.

Game "Colorful chains"

Additional materials. First, we'll need two sets of flags, each colored a different rainbow color. There are 7 flags in total (according to the number of colors) in one set. Secondly, you need to prepare signs with drawn multi-colored circles, each also painted in its own color of the rainbow. Each tablet differs in the sequence in which the multi-colored circles are arranged.

Game process. To participate in the game you need to invite 14 people. Two teams of 7 players are formed from them.

Each player receives a flag. One team cannot have two participants with the same flag color.

Then the teacher shows one of the cards with circles and asks the teams to line up in the same color order as the circles on this card.

The winner is the team that is the first to complete this task without errors. For variety, it is better to use several cards with different color combinations.

Benefits of the game. The game “Colorful Chains” develops the attention of older preschoolers.

It also teaches how to collectively solve assigned problems and promotes the development of friendly relations between children within each team. And since it is necessary not only to line up in a chain without mistakes, but also to do it faster than your opponents, the brain’s ability to actively work in a stressful situation and make the right decisions in a short time develops.

Game "Girls"

Additional materials. Cards with pictures of girls.

Game process. As you can see from the card image, the girls are drawn differently here. Some have black hair, others white; some have white bows, others have black ones; Some girls smile, others don’t.

This allows you to create a large number of different tasks for your child using just one card. For example, you can ask your child to highlight each girl who meets certain conditions. Or he should count these girls.

Here are examples of suitable tasks from the simplest to the most complex:

Highlight all the girls who smile.
Highlight all the girls who don't smile.
Highlight all the girls who have a white bow.
Highlight all the girls who have a black bow.
Highlight all the girls who have black hair.
Highlight all the girls who have white hair.

These were examples of the simplest tasks. You can make them more difficult if you ask your child to count the girls instead of underlining them.

Count all the girls who have black hair and bows.
Count all the girls who have white hair and bows.
Count all the girls who have black bows but white hair.
Count all the girls who have white bows but black hair.
Count all the girls who have white bows and smile...

This list can be enumerated ad infinitum, but it becomes clear that the card allows you to create tasks of varying degrees of complexity in different variations.

It is even more interesting if there is a combination of three conditions at once. But such tasks should be given only to those children who could easily complete simpler tasks.

The benefits of the game "Girls"

The game teaches the child to concentrate his attention as much as possible on completing the task at hand. Gradually increasing the complexity of tasks allows you to train this quality and make it even stronger.

The game will also help develop the child’s perseverance and develop his skills in grouping objects according to common characteristics.

Game "Arrange as it was"

Additional materials. To play you will need a table and several (5-7) toys.

Game process. The teacher places toys on the table in any order. Then he asks the participant in the game to look carefully at the table and remember the order in which all the toys are arranged. Then the player turns his back to the table, and the teacher mixes the toys and places them in a different order.

The player must turn to the table again and place them back in their places. In order to diversify and make the game more interesting, you can form two small teams of several people and arrange a competition to see who can correctly place the toys in their original position the fastest.

This will require two more participants who will act as observers and will monitor whether each toy has actually taken its original position.

Benefits of the game. The game “Place it like it was” helps develop children’s attention, as well as their memory.

Game "Place in order"

Additional material: matryoshka. If you don’t have a nesting doll, you can use toys of different sizes. Or cards with an image of something whose size is different.

Game process. The teacher takes out a matryoshka doll and shows it to all participants in the game. Then he takes it apart and puts all the nesting dolls on the table in order from largest to smallest. And he says: “You see, our nesting dolls are in a row from largest to smallest. Now I’ll mix them up, and then together we’ll try to arrange them correctly again.” The teacher mixes the nesting dolls and asks the children: “So, which nesting doll is the largest here?”

When the children find the largest nesting doll, he places it at the beginning of the row. Thus, all the nesting dolls are again placed in the right order, but under the control of the children.

Next, you need to invite one player to participate and ask him to independently arrange the toys in the right order. If he is having difficulties, let other children help him. After this, you can form two teams of 3-5 people and arrange a competition.

The winner is the team that is the first to line up the nesting dolls neatly and without mistakes in the required sequence.

The benefits of the game “Place in order.” This game not only develops the attention of children of senior preschool age, but also helps them develop the ability to visually distinguish objects by their size.

Another interesting version of the game is well demonstrated in a fascinating animated video:

Game "Complete the Draw"

Additional materials: half-drawn pictures and pencils.

Game process. The teacher gives the children different pictures with missing elements. For example, a house without a roof, a car without a wheel, or half the face of an animal.

Children must determine what is missing in the image and complete the missing element. It is important to select pictures that will be easy for a child of older preschool age to work with.

Benefits of the game. The game develops attention, hand motor skills and helps children learn to concentrate on completing the task at hand.

Game “Look at the picture”

Additional materials: colorful pictures and coloring pages.

Game process. There are two variants of this game. For example, you can show your child a colorful picture with a lot of elements, for example this:

Let him try to remember in as much detail as possible what is depicted on it. After this, you need to remove the picture and ask the child to talk about what is shown on it in the center, left or right. You can ask what color this object is, whether there are round or square objects in the picture. You can gradually make the task more difficult by asking questions about smaller, more detailed elements.

The second version of the same game involves the use of coloring. Let your child look at the blank coloring page. Then he should turn away, and the teacher will paint over several elements of the drawing with colored pencils or paints. After the player sees the picture again, you need to ask him what was colored now.

Naturally, it will not be difficult for a child to determine this the first time. However, as the coloring gradually becomes completely painted over, it will become increasingly difficult to find the necessary elements.

The benefits of the game “Look at the picture”. The game is useful in that it develops the visual attention of an older preschooler, helps him learn to see not only the big picture, but also to peer and remember details.

Game “Remember and dot”

Additional materials: a piece of checkered paper, a ruler and a pencil.

Game process. Draw a plate with 4 lines and 4 columns on a piece of paper. Place bold dots in any 5 cells. It is better that they are not located nearby so that it is not easy to remember their location. Then ask the player to look carefully at this sign and remember where the bold dots are located. Then remove this table and give him the same one but without the dots. Let him independently repeat the location of the dots on a new piece of paper.

You can gradually reduce or increase the number of dots depending on how well the child copes with the task.

The task can be varied. For example, let these be not dots, but cards with images of different animals or objects. In this case, the child can simply lay out these cards.

Game “Listen to sounds!”

Additional materials: piano.

Game process. Using the piano, the teacher plays low and high sounds. Children, depending on what sound is heard, take a certain position.

There is a “weeping willow” pose: legs set shoulder-width apart, arms slightly apart at the elbows and head tilted towards the left shoulder. There is a “poplar” pose: the legs are straight, the arms are raised up, the child’s eyes look at the tips of the fingers.

The teacher explains the rules: “Let's play an interesting game. It's called "Listen to the Sounds!" In general, there are two types of sounds: high (produced on the piano) and low (produced on the piano). What do we do? If you hear a high-pitched sound, then take the “poplar” pose (shows the pose). Show me how you will get into poplar pose. Fine! And if a low sound sounds, then you should stand in the “weeping willow” pose (shows). Show me the weeping willow pose. Well done!” After this the game begins. First, the teacher slowly alternates sounds. But gradually the pace is increasing.

Benefit of the game: the game “Listen to the sounds!” Forms children's auditory attention and allows them to learn to quickly identify high and low sounds.

Game "Recognize by Voice"

Additional materials: to play you will need a blindfold or scarf, as well as a large room.

Game process. Children from the entire group take part in the game. Everyone stands in a circle. One driver is selected, blindfolded and placed in the center of the circle.

The driver makes several revolutions around his axis, and at this time the guys dance in a circle. After a few seconds, everyone stops and the driver points his index finger in front of him. The player pointed to by the driver must pronounce any word loudly and clearly. The driver tries to guess who said it. If you guess correctly, they change places and the game continues.

Game "Be careful!"

Additional materials: musical composition “Children's March” by S. Prokofiev ( insert here as audio player, the file was sent along with the document)

Game process. All children from the group take part in the game. Children stand in a circle, and the teacher is in the center. The music “Children's March” by S. Prokofiev begins to play ( the file is attached to the document).

The teacher names a code word, and the children perform actions corresponding to this code word. Conditions are agreed upon in advance.

For example, in response to the word “bunny,” children should jump around their own axis. When they hear the word “kangaroo,” they must make a couple of jumps forward. When you hear the word “sparrow”, squat down and walk around the floor. On the word “wave” - sway in place.

Benefits of the game. The game helps develop auditory attention in preschool children.

Game "Hide and Seek with Toys"

Additional materials: to play you will need a table and several new toys.

Game process. The teacher places toys on the table, invites the children to look at them and choose the one they like best. Then everyone who chose a toy should face the wall and close their eyes. The teacher hides toys in different places, but puts them in plain sight among other similar objects familiar to the children.

For example, it is better to place a doll among other dolls. And a designer part among other parts. Observers should not suggest where toys are hidden. Each player must independently find where his toy is hidden. When everyone has finished searching, the teacher asks the watching children: “Who found their toy first?”

The winner is awarded some kind of prize. Next time, let the children hide the toys themselves.

The benefits of the game “Hide and Seek with Toys”. The game develops stability of visual attention in children.

Game “Answer, don’t yawn!”

Additional materials: pictures of animals, birds, children. Each picture must have an exact copy.

Game process. Children sit in two rows opposite each other. Everyone gets one picture. Moreover, the cards must be distributed so that for each picture in one row there is a copy in the row opposite. The adult explains that each character has a friend who is hiding in the row opposite. In order to find your friend, you need to call him in a voice that belongs to the one shown in the picture. For example, if a child has a picture of a pig, then he needs to grunt, and if he has a dog, he needs to bark.

If a person is depicted, then come up with a name for him and call him by name (in this case, it is enough to have only two human characters: a boy and a girl). The adult calls the player, he makes the appropriate sound, and his “friend” on the contrary must quickly respond. It is forbidden to show your picture to other players.

The benefits of the game “Answer, don’t yawn!” The game develops stable focused auditory attention in preschool children.

Game “Cross out the circle with a dot”

Games for developing attention in middle preschool children

Game "Who Lives Where".

Target: develop visual attention and memory.

: drawings with images of families of different animals and their houses, with drawn lines connecting the animals with their houses, which are given in a chaotic order.

Description: you need to determine where whose house is without drawing a pencil along the lines.

Game "Clap Your Hands".

Goals: develop stability and switching of attention, cognitive activity of the child; expand your horizons.

Description: the teacher calls the child different words; if he hears a word denoting, for example, an animal, then he must clap his hands. Another time, suggest that the child stand up every time he hears a word for a plant. Then combine the first and second task, that is, the child claps his hands when he hears words denoting animals, and stands up when pronouncing words denoting plants. It's good to play these games with several children.

Game "Cross out all the letters K."

Target: develop stability, distribution and switching of attention.

Game material and visual aids: small text (from a newspaper or magazine), pen.

Description: Invite the child to carefully look at the letters in the text and cross out all the letters “k”. Record the time and number of errors. The task can be made more difficult by asking the child to cross out all the letters “w” and underline all the letters “u”.

Game "Change appearance".

Target: develop observation skills.

Description: several people play, everyone stands in one line, the leader names one child and invites him to remember the appearance of each participant in the game. This will take 1-2 minutes. Then the child turns away, the remaining participants in the game make minor changes to their costumes or hairstyles. Turning to the players, the driver must name the changes that he was able to notice.

Game "True or False".

Target: develop attention, memory.

Description: The teacher pronounces different phrases - true and false. If the phrase is correct, the children clap, if not, then they stomp. For example:

In winter, daisies always bloom. (Children stomp.)

Ice is frozen water. (Children clap.)

Hares have red fur. (Children stomp.)

There is no need to wash your hands before eating. (Children stomp.)

It always snows in winter. (Children clap and stomp.)

Game "Little Beetle".

Target: develop attention, spatial thinking.

playing field, lined with 16 cells; buttons.

Description: the teacher invites the child to help the “beetle” (button) get to the other end of the field, while warning that the “beetle” crawls only in zigzags. The teacher marks a short segment of the “bug’s” path: “One cell forward, two to the right, one to the left.” The child must listen carefully, remember and follow this path with a “bug” across the playing field. When the child learns to remember all the moves of the beetle, you can move on to a more complex task by asking the child to make the moves mentally and place the beetle on the desired square.

Game “Follow the pattern”.

Target: develop concentration.

Game material and visual aids: checkered sheet with a pattern of squares, circles, triangles.

Description: The child continues the sample pattern (circle, square, triangle, dot, etc.) on the sheet.