The brain of a small child has an amazing ability to memorize large amounts of information. Between the first and third years of life the child learns 2500 words, ie 3-4 new words a day. A child of 3-5 years can read a small book: he simply involuntarily remembered what is on every page. In preschool children, memory reaches its peak and, in the future, some researchers believe, it degrades. Parents need to know about the characteristics of children's memory and skillfully use this knowledge.
The thing is that at the preschool age the memory of the children is involuntary and direct, ie they remember the material involuntarily (by itself) and without proper interpretation.By the age of 7, this ability begins to weaken, but the processes of formation of arbitrary and meaningful memorization begin. Which are accelerated as they are regularly used in practice in school and are completed only after a few years. That's why it is not recommended to begin consecutive training before 6 years. Pre-school children remembering specific information on the instructions of the teacher is given too hard. Kids quickly forget the learned, get confused, get tired and distracted.
Proceeding from the fact that schooling requires a high level of arbitrary memorization, parents can help their child develop memory before the school.
What is needed for this?
First, actively fill the "voids" in the child's memory, using the possibility of involuntary memorization, because this accumulated baggage will help the child to easily remember other information in the future, associating it with the already known data.
Talk to the child! Children involuntarily learn a large number of words when they learn to speak.
Communicate with the child, tell him the names of objects. Keep in mind that children quickly remember the names of the subject they are looking at, and not the one that the parent chooses.
Will help to expand the vocabulary and regular reading of books aloud, especially in specially designated time ("fairy tales at night"). An additional plus is the satisfaction of the child's need for support and protection.
Listening to audiobooks also contributes to the development of involuntary memory. Researchers note that active empathy with the hero in the perception of literary works allows the child to understand and remember the content of the work.
At preschool age, it is advisable to teach a child to foreign languages, because It is 70% of the usual "cramming" without comprehension.
Secondly, it is necessary to begin the development of arbitrary mediated memory. Russian psychologist L.S. Vygotsky, who studied memory problems in children, insisted that in order to help learn and memorize specific information for a small child, one only needs to suggest techniques (strategies) that he can use.
Repeating aloud information is the simplest and most common strategy that children of older age use with success. It is important to teach the child not just a repetition, but a delayed repetition (after a period of time). Not only aloud, but also to myself.
The next strategy is to memorize some objects with the help of others (using associations). What does the figure "8", the letter "G", etc. look like? This method also stimulates the development of mental activity.
Classification or grouping is a more complex but more useful technique. It teaches children to compare objects, to distinguish in them similarities and differences, to unite on some basis (edible - inedible, animals - insects, etc.). And here thinking is a way of remembering information.
If training will occur during the game, using vivid pictures, images - the assimilation of information will be better.