In the modern world, it is almost impossible to protect a small child from communicating with a computer. Even if at home you forbid him access to a laptop, tablet, or smartphone, he will get it at a party, at school, among friends … And what are the bans for? After all, information technology opens up many opportunities for development. And in adulthood, you can not do without them. It is important to use this resource wisely and try to form certain attitudes in the child in dealing with “smart” technology.
FOR GENERAL DEVELOPMENT
A common story: to keep a child busy and find some time for themselves, parents often put a computer mouse in their baby’s pen. A win-win method. The exciting games that manufacturers release are more tempting for many children than a soccer ball and dolls. In order for this activity to be beneficial (and not turn into a bad habit over time), you will have to follow certain rules.
1 Seriously approach the selection of computer games.
Stop at developmental programs. Now you can find many options. These can be interactive projects for mastering counting, reading, and any foreign language, determining shapes and sizes, training attention and memory. You can find such games here: www.pae-alina.narod.ru; www.igraemsa.ru Even a skeptic will agree that all this will definitely not hurt a preschooler. Such games, as a rule, are made very colorfully and from the first minutes arouse genuine interest not only among children but also among adults. After all, you can play together.
2 Praise for successes, deal with difficulties.
It is important for a child to form the idea that with the help of a computer he masters new knowledge, develops. To do this unobtrusively, emphasize the progress of the baby, be surprised at how much he learned through the game.
3Control the time spent at the computer. The maximum that a preschooler can spend in front of a monitor is 30 minutes. Clearly following the rule will help … an ordinary alarm clock. The fact is that the game time flows faster. It seems to the kid that only 15 minutes have passed, but in fact, he has been sitting at the tablet for an hour. The alarm clock that you set together before you start the game will be a clear argument. After that, switch the baby’s attention to something else, for example, to his favorite toy, car, doll. The eyes of a child need rest.
ACTIVITIES ON INTEREST
It is important to show other ways to relax and spend free time.
● Physical activity. Explain that our body does not like to be immobile for a long time. Therefore, after the game, the muscles must be stretched. It can be a free dance program or a set of exercises with squats, jumps, and bends. Do not forget to say that the head also works better after that. In this way, you will instill in your child a healthy habit of taking care of himself. You can use the same trick with an alarm clock: 15 minutes of play – 15 minutes of dancing.
● Hobbies for everyone. Along with the keyboard, the child should have brushes and pencils, plasticine, colored paper, fabric, world maps, and many other interesting items in their hands. But if he regularly sees his parents leaning over the screen, it will be difficult for him to believe in the magic of a pencil and a blank sheet of paper. From entertainment, he will only recognize computer games. It’s great if you and your family can do something interesting and useful. For example, you will start making crafts and gifts, filming and editing home movies, drawing, listening to audiobooks, or writing poetry. Children copy the behavior of adults, so show by personal example that there are a lot of interesting things and activities besides the computer.
WHY ARE YOU ANGRY?
If a child is drawn to “shooters”, this is a reason to think. Such a need can speak of two opposite situations: the baby is trying to free himself from the cruelty that is applied to him, or he is trying to taste the aggression that he is forbidden to display. Of course, you should pay attention to his surroundings, try to find out if he is offended in the yard or kindergarten. Pay attention to another point. Every little person has a natural charge of aggression associated with the need for movement, knowledge of the world through collision and confrontation. If this charge is blocked, it manifests itself in such strange forms as an attraction to violent games. What to do? Give these emotions an outlet: play knockout, kwacha with children, compete in darts, arrange a lot of things. And of course
REMEMBER FOR THE FUTURE
Let’s repeat the past and draw conclusions.
● What computer games are banned? Racing, “shooters”, alternative worlds. Yes, the child will still meet with these programs later, but then he will be older and will not confuse them with reality.
● Do not use as a reward for success the permission to play longer on the computer (at least until adolescence). Conversely, try not to punish your child by banning games. Otherwise, he will have a clear idea of the computer as a coveted prize.
● All electronic devices in the home must have a password. Often, children get up at night and play secretly, and such long gatherings at the monitor cannot but affect the health of a preschool child.
● At least until the age of 7-8, the child should play only in the presence of parents. It is desirable that the computer is in a common room.