The problem of spatial orientation is quite a multifaceted topic today. It includes both ideas about the shape, size of objects, and the ability to separate their different locations in space, understanding all kinds of spatial relationships. Our article will focus on the development of orientation in space in children of different ages.
General provisions
Space representations, despite their early occurrence, are considered a more complex process than, for example, the ability to distinguish between the properties of an object. Various analyzers take part in the formation of representations of a spatial type and methods of orientation in space. Among them are kinesthetic, visual, auditory, tactile, and also olfactory. Orientation in space in the preparatory group, that is, in children 6-7 years old, differs in that a special role is played by the kinesthetic andvisual analyzers.
The concept of spatial orientation
Orientation in space and time is carried out on the basis of their direct perception, further designation of spatial and temporal categories through words. Among them, it is necessary to note remoteness, location, time, as well as spatial relationships between objects. The concept of orientation in space includes an assessment of the size, distance, relative position, shape of objects, as well as their location in relation to the orienting person. In a narrower definition, the concept of spatial orientation implies orientation to the terrain.
What is included in spatial orientation?
Under spatial orientation it is necessary to consider:
- Identification of the "station point", in other words, the location of the subject relative to the surrounding objects, for example: "I am to the right of the kindergarten." It is worth noting that this definition is applicable to orientation in space for the younger group, as well as for preparatory.
- Determining the location of objects relative to a person who is oriented in space, for example: "The closet is located on the right, and the nightstand is on my left."
- Determining the location of objects in space in relation to each other, in other words, the spatial relationship between them, for example: “A doll is sitting to the right of the bear, and a rabbit is sitting to the left of it.”
Spatial orientation in practice
When a child or an adult moves, orientation in space is constantly carried out. This includes solving a number of tasks: setting a goal and determining the route of movement (in other words, choosing a direction); fixing the direction of movement and, finally, achieving the goal. Only if the previous task is successfully completed, you can successfully move on to the next one, from one point to another.
Space orientation for preschoolers
It is worth noting that the perception of space appears already when the child is 4-5 weeks old. So, he begins to fix an object with the help of his eyes at a distance of approximately 1-1.5 m. Movement of the gaze associated with moving objects can be observed in children 2-4 months old.
It must be borne in mind that the orientation of children in space has its own characteristics. So, at the initial stages of eye movement, dotted. However, the second phase soon sets in, characterized by continuous sliding movements behind objects moving in space. This phenomenon can be seen in children whose age ranges from 3 to 5 months.
What happens as you get older?
Orientation in space for the preparatory and younger groups - different categories. The fact is that any baby grows at a rapid pace. So, as the mechanism that allows you to fix your gaze develops, differentiated movements of the body body, head appear, and thethe very position of the baby in space.
D. B. Elkonin, a well-known Soviet psychologist, author of pedagogical and children's literary works, noted that at an early age, the movement of objects in one way or another implies the movement of the eyes.
Why is this happening?
Apparently, at first the space is perceived by the baby as an undivided continuity. Thus, movement distinguishes an object from the surrounding space. First, the gaze is fixed, then the movement of the hands, the turn of the head, and so on. This is an indicator that the moving thing has become an object of attention for the preschooler, stimulating his movements as well.
Development of motion tracking
Tracking the movement of an object in space is developing at a gradual pace. So, orientation in space for the middle group is a more complex and meaningful concept. Initially, a person perceives an object that moves in a horizontal direction, after which, as a result of long-term performance of appropriate exercises, he learns to specifically follow the movement of an object in a vertical direction, as well as in a circle. Gradually, the movement of the object and the preschooler himself, at the same time, begins to develop the mechanisms of the sensory plan, which underlie spatial perception. It should be noted that with the accumulation of sensorimotor experience, the ability to distinguish objects in space, as well as to differentiate distances, significantly increases.
From an early age
A child begins to master the depth of space already in the first year of life. It should be noted that long-term fixation of the vertical position of the body during independent walking greatly expands the development of space in practice. Moving by himself, the child masters the distance from one object to another, makes attempts that even resemble measuring the distance.
For example, holding on to the back of the chair with one hand and feeling the desire to go to the sofa, the baby repeatedly pulls his hand to the sofa at various points of his own movement. With this, he, as it were, measures the distance, and, having determined the shortest path, breaks away from the chair, begins to move, but at the same time leans on the seat of the sofa.
It should be noted that with walking there are also new sensations of spatial overcoming. Among them, it is worth considering the feeling of balance, slowing down or speeding up movement, which must be perceived in combination with visual sensations.
Formation of spatial orientation
The above-described practical development of space by a preschooler functionally transforms the structure of his orientation in space to the middle group. So, in his life a new period of development of the perception of space, relations between objects of the external world, spatial signs begins. The accumulation of experience in practice related to the development of space, allows you to gradually master the word that generalizes this experience.
However, a key role in the cognition of spatialrelationships in preschool age, as a rule, plays a direct practical experience. It accumulates in the baby through a variety of activities (construction and outdoor games, observations during walks, fine arts, and so on). With this accumulation, the word becomes the driving force in the creation of a systemic mechanism of spatial perception.
Features of spatial orientation
Let's consider some features of orientation in space for the older group. In order to navigate, the child needs to be able to use one or another reference system. In early childhood, the baby is oriented in space on the basis of a kind of sensory reference system, in other words, along the sides of his body.
Being a preschooler, the child gets acquainted with the verbal reference system in key spatial directions: up-down, forward-backward, right-left. Thanks to the school curriculum, children master a fundamentally new reference system for them - in accordance with the sides of the horizon: east, west, south, north.
Growing up is important
The study of each subsequent frame of reference is based on a solid knowledge of the previous one. Thus, experts have found that the assimilation of horizon directions by fifth-grade students primarily depends on the ability to differentiate basic spatial directions using a geographical map. North, for example, is initially associated by schoolchildren with spatialup, south down, west to the left, and finally east to the right.
It is worth noting that the differentiation of key spatial directions is primarily due to the degree of orientation of a preschooler or schoolchild "on himself", the level of mastery of his "scheme of his body", which, by and large, serves as a "sensory reference system". Somewhat later, another mechanism is superimposed on it. This is a verbal system of reference. This happens due to the assignment of names related to them to the directions intuitively distinguished by the preschooler: down, up, back, forward, left, right. So, preschool age is nothing but the period of mastering and putting into practice the verbal frame of reference in key spatial directions.
How does a child master the system?
The preschooler correlates the distinguished directions primarily with certain parts of his body. This is how the connections of the following types are ordered: at the top - where the head is, and below - where the legs are, behind - where the back is, in front - where the face is located, to the right - where the right hand is, to the left - there, where is the left. It is important to know that orientation to one's own body is a support in the development of spatial directions by the baby.
Of the three paired groupings of key directions that correspond to the main axes of the human body (frontal, sagittal and vertical), the upper one stands out first, which is apparently due to the predominantly vertical state of the child's body.
It should be noted thatthe isolation of the lower direction as the opposite of the vertical axis, as well as the differentiation of paired groupings of directions that are characteristic of the horizontal plane (right-left, forward-backward), is carried out somewhat later. Obviously, the accuracy of orientation on a horizontal plane in accordance with the groups of directions characteristic of it is a more difficult task than the differentiation of different planes (horizontal and vertical) of three-dimensional space. Having studied mainly the groupings of pairwise opposite directions, the baby can still make mistakes in terms of the accuracy of discrimination within each of the existing groups. This is convincingly evidenced by the facts regarding the mixing of left with right, lower with upper, spatial direction back with the opposite direction - forward. Particular difficulties for the preschooler are the distinction between "left-right". It is based on the process of differentiation of the left and right sides of the body, which is quite complex.
Conclusion
So, we examined the concept of spatial orientation and its development in children of different ages, preschool groups. In conclusion, it is worth noting that any child only gradually acquires an understanding of the pairing of directions in space, their practical distinction and, of course, an adequate designation. In each of the pairs of designations in space, one is first distinguished - for example: under, above, on the right, behind - comparison, and on the basis of it, the opposite is realized: above, below, left, ahead. It's necessarytake into account in the teaching methodology, at a consistent pace, forming interconnected spatial designations.
