Scientists - teachers about pedagogical value of children's game.

K.M.Mendajahova, Ph.D., acting professor

Kazakh State Women’s Pedagogical University

In child’s development the huge role belongs to a principal view of children's activity of preschool period - game. As difficult and interesting phenomenon, during the various periods, game has attracted different scientists, including philosophers, historians, ethnographers, teachers and psychologists who have been studying from ancient times the origin of game, its role and place in child’s life, possibility of effective use for the decision of educational problems.

N.K.Krupskaja made an appreciable contribution in the game theory. She first of all saw in game an extender of impressions and representations about environment, which have exclusive value: game for them - study, game for them - work, game for them is form of education. Game for preschool children is the way of knowledge surrounding.

The big role of a toy in life of children was emphasized by N.K.Krupskaja. In «About toys for preschool children» she wrote: «We can't approach to the question of children's toy from what toy is pleasant to an adult. We should approach to the question of a toy from child’s point of view, what is pleasant to the child and what is necessary for him». She specified that concrete phenomena of life, images of people, animals should be truthfully reflected in a toy. She urged to study age features of a child and according to them create and select toys. «An adult should study features of children's age carefully. Should do it and the manufacturer of a toy, for without it the toy won't make a child happy, won't help his growth and development».

Game of children can sometimes render undesirable influence out of pedagogical management. N.K.Krupskaja wrote: «There are games developing cruelty, roughness, exciting national hatred, badly operating on the nervous system, causing the value, strengthening the will, bringing up sense of justice, ability to help in trouble, etc.». In order to use positive influence of game and not to admit occurrence of undesirable games, it is necessary to teach children to distinguish what is good and what is bad, to bring up active aspiration to good and hostility to worse. With this aim the tutor through game and in game reveals children the sense of this or that positive facts, states their estimation, causes in children desire to imitate them and in this way forms their relation to what is displayed in the game.

Game is widely used as means of physical education. The majority of games demand active movements which strengthen blood circulation, promote fuller and deep metabolism.

Motor performance promotes formation of correct bearing, development of coordination of movements, their beauty. However it would be wrong to think that game is means of physical education in itself. Without pedagogical management game can harm physical development of children. Sometimes they overtire, being for a long time in the same pose (squatting down) or, on the contrary, moving much excessive. Using accurate, gradually developing system of games, the teacher raises efficiency of physical development of preschool children. He makes with them joyful, vigorous mood in game, and positive emotional condition is a pledge of high-grade physical and nervous - mental development of a child and at the same time the condition of training cheerful, benevolent character.

A.M.Gorky, speaking about necessity of giving children knowledge of the world, about the country, wrote: «It is quite achievable in the presence of amusing, cleverly and simply written book, and it can be even easier reached by an interesting toy».

Social character of games maintenance and game activity is caused by the fact that a child lives in society. Already from the first days of his life he aspires to dialogue with his associates, gradually masters the language - a mighty means of dialogue and mastering public experience. A child wants to be an active participant of adults’ life, but this requirement doesn't correspond to his possibilities yet. In games imitating actions of adults, empathizing their pleasures and afflictions accessible to them, he joins the surrounding life in such way.

Russian scientists teachers - K.D.Ushinsky, P.F.Lesgaft made contribution in development of theory of children's game. K.D.Ushinsky appreciated games of children and in this connection he wrote: «In order the game was the perfect game, a child should never be satiated and never get used to it, little – by little, without effort and compulsions must give it upfor work».

Huge influence on development of the theory of preschool education in Russia was rendered by great teacher K.D.Ushinsky. The nationality principle was put on the basis of his pedagogical system according to which bringing up and education should start from conditions of historical development. Creating theory of children's game on the basis of having scientifical and psychological data, K.D.Ushinsky showed its educational value. He considered that in psychological life of a child the big role is played by imagination, which is most fully realized in game.« In game a child, - K.D.Ushinsky wrote – is already mature person, who tries his forces and independently disposes his creations ». He showed, how the social surroundings and age of children influence character and maintenance of games, how bases of public relations are perceived in games. Special value was given to national games, he saw excellent and powerful educational means in them. The ideas offered by K.D.Ushinsky on children's game were the important contribution in Russian and world preschool pedagogics.

A lot of place in work with children of preschool age K.D.Ushinsky gave to the acquaintance of a child with the nature, aesthetic and moral education, in this way he becomes a person. In mental education Ushinsky confirmed necessity of support on presentation in connection with concreteness, figurativeness of children's thinking. In his opinion, works for children should differ by simplicity of a statement, clearness and high artistry. His own works corresponded these demands. Many stories and the book written by him «Native word» are used for reading and telling for children of preschool age nowadays.

P.F.Lesgafta's views on important role of game draw attention in the aspect of the given problem. Game is surveyed by him as «an exercise, by means of which a child is prepared for life». Conditions for acquisition of skills, habits, customs are created in game, «children learn to control themselves, to subordinate actions to consciousness»

Highly appreciating educational role of games of children, A.S.Makarenko wrote: «Game has great value in child’s life, it has the same value as adult’s activity, work, service. What kind of child is he in game, so he will be in many respects in work when he grows up. Therefore bringing up of the future figure occurs first of all in game».

Prolonged observations over games, studying their maintenance with children of different people and at various historical stages of social development allow to draw conclusion that the basic source is social life of people, conditions where a child and his family live. Including game in pedagogical process, a tutor teaches children to play, create, according to A.S.Makarenko, «good game». For such game the following qualities are peculiar: educational - informative value of maintenance, completeness and correctness of reflected representations; expediency, activity, organization and creative character of game actions; submission to rules and ability to be guided by them in game taking into account interests of separate children and all playing children; purposeful use of toys and game materials; goodwill of relations and joyful spirit of children. A.S.Makarenko, highly appreciating a game role in the organization of life of children, wrote about the role of a tutor:« And I as the teacher should play a little bit with them. If I only accustom, demand, insist, I will be extraneous force, maybe, useful, but not close. I should play necessarily a little, and I demanded it from all colleagues ».

Supervising the game, tutor influences all parties of person of the child: on his consciousness, feelings, will, behavior, uses it with a view of mental moral, esthetic and physical education. In the course of game knowledge and representations of children are specified and go deep. To execute in game this or that role, a child should transfer the representation in game actions. Sometimes knowledge and representations about work of people, about concrete actions, mutual relations appears insufficient, and there is a necessity for their replenishment. Requirement for new knowledge is expressed in questions of children. The tutor answers them, listens to conversations during game, helps the playing to establish mutual understanding, the arrangement.

Game for a child is original life. A.P.Usova noted:« To organise life and activity of children correctly - means to bring them up correctly. Effective process of education can be carried out in forms of game and game mutual relations for this reason that the child here does not learn to live, but lives his own life ». In games children reflect certain acts, personal features and mutual relations of people. But behind there aren’t real lines and qualities of child’s personality yet. For example, carrying out in game a role demanding from him implication of goodwill and care, in life this child can sometimes be selfish and rasping. That is why pedagogical management of games is so important because it provides their maximum educational effect. Essential value has a choice of games. Daily supervising over it, the tutor studies each child, taps the associations of children developing game collectives. He has possibility to estimate utility or harm of this or that groupings, to make conclusion on necessity of certain influences on children. Younger preschool children are not able to play yet. And the tutor, organizing games, teaches them to it. When children have learnt a game, sufficient experience of game activity, it becomes for them independent, leans their self-organising. Hence, game not only fixes knowledge already available for children and representation, but is also the original form of active informative activity, during the process they master new knowledge under the direction of the tutor.

Game is some kind of school where the child activly and creatively masters rules and norms of behavior of Soviet people, their relation to work, public property, their mutual relations. It is that form of activity where public behavior of children, their relation to life, to each other is appreciably formed.

Organizing a game, supervising it, the tutor influences on collective of children and through collective on each child. Becoming the participant of game, the child faces necessity of compounding his intentions and actions with others, to submit to rules which are established in game. The basic feature of game is that it represents reflection by children the surrounding lives-actions, activity of people, their mutual relations in a situation created by child's imagination.

Pedagogical value of game is characterized by L.N.Tolstoy in the story "Childhood" (chapter of "Game"). The protagonist of it - Nikolenka says: «I don't know that from a stick it is possible to kill a bird, it is impossible to shoot in any way. It is a game. If argue in this way, it is impossible to go by chairs; and Volodja, I think, himself remembers, how during long winter evenings we covered an armchair with scarfs, made a carriage of it, one sat down the driver, another the footman, girls in the middle, three chairs were a three of horses, - and we set off. And what different adventures happened in this road! And how cheerfully and soon passed winter evenings!. If judge really games won't be any more».

An outstanding director and actor K.S.Stanislavsky in the book «Work of the actor on himself», characterizing children's game, says that game of a child differs with belief in authenticity and fiction truth. It is necessary to the child to tell to himself "as if", and fiction already lives in him. Thus one more property is noticed with the child: children know what they can trust, and what shouldn’t be noticed. Such character of game distinguishes it from all other kinds of children's activity and in a way makes related with art, with figurative reflection of validity. Reproduction of real actions in game isn't exact copying, their mirror display. Children aren't bound by all concrete conditions of a real situation, time, strict sequence of actions. Playing, they believe that, remaining in a room, float among a raging sea, endure sensation of fear and pleasure of its overcoming. As brave cosmonauts, fly on the Moon and come back. Events develop, as in a fairy tale, «not on days, and on hours».

One more feature of game activity - its amateur character. Children are creators of game, its founders. They as it was already told, reflect in it their knowledge of vital phenomena and events, express their relation to them. Psychologist D.B.Elkonin gives such definition of creative role-playing game: «Role, or the so-called creative, game of children of preschool age in the developed kind represents activity where children incur roles (function) of adults and in the generalized form in specially created game conditions reproduce activity of adults and the relation between us. For these conditions use of various game subjects replacing valid subjects of activity of adults» is characteristic.

Amateur character of game activity of children consists that they reproduce this or that phenomena, actions, relations actively and originally. The originality is caused by features of perception of children, understanding and judgement by them this or that facts, phenomena, communications, presence or absence of experience and spontaneity of feelings.

Creative character of game activity is shown that the child as if reincarnates in the one whom he represents, and trusting in game truth, creates special game life and rejoices sincerely or afflictes on a game course. Active interest to phenomenon of lives, people, animal, requirement for socially significant activity the child satisfies through game actions.

Psychologist A.V.Zaporozhets notices: «Game, as well as a fairy tale, teaches the child to be imbued with ideas and feelings of represented people, leaving for a circle of ordinary impressions in wider world of human aspirations and heroic acts». A.V.Zaporozhets, estimating the role of didactic game, writes: «It is necessary for us to achieve didactic game was not only the form of mastering separate knowledge and abilities, but also would promote general development of the child, serve formation of his abilities ».

Another figure of education A.Divaev, author of the article «Games of Kazakh children» told very well about game of Kazakh children in psychological plan. A.Divaev considers game as one of the principal views of activity having great value for all-around development of the person and that it promotes development of basic mental processes of children, in particular their imagination, thinking and emotionally - strong-willed sphere. Vivacity of children's imagination and their belief in reality of their own representations and created images are an important component of game.

About features of Kazakh children games the famous Kazakh teacher M.Zhumabaev also revealed: «Imagination of children is shown in the game. Game for them is as serious business. In game the child displays knowledge of the world around. During games imagination especially becomes aggravated with children, activity is shown and he receives rich impressions. According to the author it is necessary to use games for development of child’s speech. Games clear up new pictures in consciousness of children, help to develop the native language. However that in games the child’s speech was developed, the teacher should be together with children. Thus he should keep with them as the senior companion, not a terrible instructor.

Ideas of Russian teachers about game have found reflection in N.Kulzhanova's works. As a kernel of pedagogics of a kindergarten the scientist-teacher considered a game. Opening its essence, she proved that game for the child is an inclination, an instinct, its basic activity, elements where he lives, is his own life. In game the child expresses the private world through the external world image. Representing life, families, taking care of mother after the baby and another, the child represents something external in relation to himself, but it is possible only thanks to internal forces. N.Kulzhanova considered that game can be used as one of the means of moral education, believing that in collective and individual games, imitating adults, the child affirms in rules and norms of moral behavior, trains his will. Games in her opinion, promote development of imagination and fantasy, necessary for children's creativity. The scientist - teacher showed the value of game for development of public interests of the child. «The playing child, - she said, - works; playing he develops physically, mentally and morally. He becomes sociable».

In aspect of the given problem in special work of N.Kulzhanova «Preschool education» we find very interesting and original judgements not only that the organizations of games, but also separate theoretical position of national games of children of the nomadic people. As N.Kulzhanova says: «Game is the way of existence of the child. What nationality or ethnos wasn't represented by the child, in game he can display either a horse, or camel,his own mother and it seems there would be no subject which he didn't imitate».

N.Kulzhanova allocating distinctive features of game of children of younger preschool age, writes that «children so plunge into game that forget about the real world. Then this game quickly bothers them ». Really, this thought of the scientist-teacher is confirmed by modern preschool pedagogics. With the years collective games start to be pleasant to children, to play by one already begins boring. Through game children learn to live in collective. The child learns to express the opinion, to listen to others, to submit the law of society.

Psyhological and pedagogical analysis testifies that now in preschool education the big role is played by game - the major specific activity of the child which should carry out wide general educational functions.

Game is widely used and as the ways of esthetic education because children reflect the world surrounding them through a role, an image. Huge value in game has imagination - creation of images on the basis of before received impressions. The maintenance of many games includes familiar songs, dances, verses, riddles. All it allows the tutor to deepen esthetic experiences of children. Quite often in games they decorate the constructions, use elements of fancy dressing that promotes education of art taste.

The analysis of pedagogical views of N.Kulzhanova for a role game testifies that brightness and beauty of the maintenance, development of a plan shows wealth of the person playing. In order the games were logically finished, children necessarily should own the certain sum of knowledge. Children show inquisitiveness, keen interest, aspiration to adjoin the phenomena which they can reflect in the games more closely.

Thus, game is the means of all-round education and development of children, of preschool age

LITERATURE

1. Krupskaya Н.К. O doshkolnom vospitanii, 204с

2. Ushinsky К.D. Chelovek kak predmet vospitaniya. М: Prosveshenie, 1977, 237с.

3. Divaev A. Igry Kazakhskih detei. Tartu. Almaty: Аnа тiлi, 1991, 190с.

4. Zhumabaev M. Pedagogika. Almaty: Раuаn, 1993, 58с.

5. K.M.Mendajahova. Razvitie doshkolnogo vospitaniya v Kazakhstane. Almaty, 2008, 7-9с