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Background. Currently, key aspects of children’s mental development remain insufficiently studied in psychological science and educational practice, among which the problem of the relationship between speech and thinking stands out. Despite considerable attention to this area, an in-depth study of a number of classical works makes it possible to identify works that were previously underestimated and are now gaining special importance due to their important conclusions and prospects for further research. Such works include a monograph that presents a study of the relationship between words and images in solving various tasks for preschoolers, carried out by psychologists under the guidance of L.A. Venger.

Objective. Analysis of the results of an experimental study conducted by a research team led by L.A. Venger in the late 1990s and devoted to the study of the genesis and mechanisms of interaction between verbal and figurative components of thinking in preschool age.

Methods. Analysis of scientific literature, review and presentation of the initial data and results of the study of the relationship between words and images in the process of solving mental tasks by preschool children.

Results. The study showed that in preschool age, thinking is mediated primarily by images and visual models, and speech performs auxiliary, guiding and expressive functions, but is not the main means of solving cognitive problems. It was established that the word can become a mediating means only when solving logical problems that require conceptual analysis and planning, which is typical for senior preschool age. Figurative and verbal thinking develop in parallel and independently of each other, but with specially organized training, close relationships are formed between them.

Conclusions. The data of the presented study strongly suggests that speech performs mainly an auxiliary role when using visual models in solving mental tasks (generating an image, drawing on past experience, designating visual means of solving problems, etc.). The word can perform a mediating function by the older preschool age when solving tasks by children where it is necessary to establish hierarchical relationships between generalizations and generalized speech planning. The study of the problem of the relationship between image and word in solving cognitive tasks by preschool children not only provided answers to some important psychological questions on the complex topic of the relationship between speech and thinking, but also outlined further lines of study of this problem.

Relevance of the article. Preschoolers are active users of modern digital devices, and therefore their media activity is increasingly becoming the subject of close attention. Scientists disagree on whether gadgets positively or negatively effect on the development of a child’s psyche, and what types of media activity have a positive effect on the success of preschoolers.

The aim of the study: to identify differences in the level of development of mental abilities of senior preschoolers in two groups: those using digital devices mainly for watching cartoons and videos, and those using digital devices mainly for video games and applications.

Description of the research progress. The study involved 267 senior preschool children and their parents. Parents filled out a questionnaire (Bortsova, Nekrasov, 2020) aimed at studying the child’s predominant way of using digital devices and screen time indicators. Children aged 5–7 years were divided into two groups: those who predominantly watch videos and cartoons (passive screen time), and those who prefer video games and applications (active screen time). The level of development of children’s mental abilities was studied using a battery of techniques created under the guidance of L.A. Venger. According to the level of imagination development, the children were divided into three groups based on the results of the “Complete the Drawing” technique (Dyachenko, 2007). The results of the development of intellectual and creative abilities of two groups of children were compared using the Student’s t-test and one-factor analysis of variance.

Research results. Children using digital devices primarily for video games and applications had a higher level of mental development compared to the group of children using digital devices primarily for watching cartoons and videos. Children with low levels of nonverbal imagination spent more time in front of digital device screens than children with medium and high levels.

Conclusions. Modern computer games and applications have the potential to develop the intellectual abilities of older preschoolers. At the same time, interaction with digital devices negatively affects the development of imagination.

The relevance of research. The changes taking place in society and culture affect the transformation of such a socio-cultural phenomenon as childhood. Obtaining current knowledge about childhood makes it possible to predict the features of the future society, the adult population of which will consist of modern children. Obtaining data on the similarities and differences of ideas about childhood in children and adults can allow us to build effective educational work with parents. This will help adults better understand children, change the educational and the pedagogical process in accordance with the needs, values, and problems of modern preschoolers. The article presents the results of a study of the peculiarities of ideas about childhood as a phenomenon in older preschool children and parents of older preschoolers and designing on this basis of an educational program for parents.

Organization of the study. The aim of the study was to develop methods and conduct a comparative analysis of children’s and parents’ ideas about childhood and to develop a program of educational activities taking into account the identified features. Diagnostic research tools included modifications of "soft" methods (S.N. Mayorova-Shcheglova): the sociographic method (drawing on a given topic "Children and their childhood", analysis of the depicted event) the collision method (analysis of the verbally presented situation) and the comic book method (inventing the child's replicas of the hero in the presented situations). In addition, an auxiliary method was used – a conversation – for the interpretation of children's drawings and a modified projective technique "Ladder".

Research results. As a result of the study, comparative data were obtained on the specifics of ideas of different generations about the phenomenon of childhood, the peculiarities of the understanding of childhood by modern children and modern parents were identified, on this basis a program of educational activities for parents was developed and tested. The program of educational activities: is focused on the development of parental competence as an integrative ability to solve the problems of development and upbringing of children, which involves the implementation of comprehensive educational work, including stimulating motivation, position formation, enrichment of ideas and the formation of practical skills; involves the organization of a system of individual support of parents, a variety of forms of work, the development of parental reflection, stimulating independence and awareness through keeping a personal diary; practice-oriented, illustrated with a large number of examples and cases from real practice; involves updating the existing experience of parents, helps everyone see points of their own growth.

Conclusions. The program of educational activities was designed on the basis of the data obtained on the specific ideas about the phenomenon of childhood of older preschoolers and parents and is focused on the problems of raising a child in a family that are relevant for modern parents and children.

The relevance of the article. Relevance. In today’s rapidly developing world, where sustainability and environmental awareness have become major global issues, special attention should be paid to early childhood education and the promotion of sustainable values. One of the key tools in this process is high-quality children’s media content.

Research objectives. The article examines the importance of high-quality content in children’s media to promote sustainable values and improve early childhood development. The necessity of creating high-quality content in the media for young children is discussed, high-quality content is determined and evaluated, and how it can raise awareness and cause changes in social behavior is investigated.

Research progress. The article takes a case study approach and analyzes Kozalak Preschool, an animated series created by the author of the article that models sustainable practices and encourages children to connect with nature. The series, created as part of the Increasing Quality of and Access to Early Childhood Education Services Project (ECE) in Turkey and serves as an example of how quality content can promote sustainable behavior and support early childhood development.

Conclusions. High-quality content serves as a powerful tool for promoting sustainable development and shaping a more optimistic future. Through the integration of educational elements, positive role modeling, socio-emotional learning and an emphasis on environmental awareness, children’s media can help young minds become catalysts for change. By cultivating an understanding of sustainable development and strengthening commitment to environmental protection, high-quality content in children’s media can have a long-term impact on their development and inspire them to become active defenders of our planet.

The relevance of research. The topic of education transformation is extremely relevant today, since in the last 10-20 years the approach to the role of preschool education (upbringing and education) of young children around the world has changed globally. As a result, many countries have revised approaches to preschool education, it has taken the place that this level of education deserves for the development of competitiveness of countries (Komarova, 2018). This forced the world community to reconsider its approaches to education and hold a series of congresses, conferences and symposiums dedicated to the transformation of national education systems. All the changes were the result of long-term (some were conducted since the 1960s) experiments and studies of educators and psychologists from different countries. Thus, today's transformation of the pedagogy of young children (from 0 to 8 years old) has become the result of largest scientific research (Komarova, Tishchenko, 2023). The article is devoted to the study of how the program documents changed in Russia and what studies preceded it. This is especially important today, when the program documents of the preschool education system have been radically changed three times over the past 10 years.

The purpose of the study: to present and analyze the logic of the emergence of various documents of the system of preschool education in Russia, in the creation of which great scientists were involved, what problems of preschool education and how they solved, how justified these decisions were for creating conditions for survival, upbringing and human development.

Description of the research progress. The study was based on the analysis of materials from four groups of sources. The first group consists of archival materials covering the period from 1900 to 1975, related to the activities of N.P. Sakulina and from 1908 to 2020, related to the activities of T.S. Komarova. Archival sources also include Reports of the Research Institute of Preschool Education of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences on scientific activities prepared by T.S. Komarova as Deputy Director for Science of the Research Institute of Preschool Education for the USSR Academy of Sciences; records of T.S. Komarova about the stay of American psychologists, including Uri Bronfenbrenner at the International Psychological Congress in Moscow. The first group includes materials from meetings on the preparation of the Concept for the Development of the Preschool Education System (2022–2023) by I.I. Komarova. The second group consists of books and articles devoted to research on the history of the formation of the preschool education system in the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation. These materials were used earlier in the development of a course and a methodological manual for the State Academy of Education. The third group includes studies carried out by international research groups and international institutes on the formation of educational policy for young children (Komarova, Chabrova, 2022). This group also includes foreign dissertations devoted to the study of the Soviet experience after the publication of Bronfenbrenner's book on the Preschool Education Program in the USSR (Bronfenbrenner, 1976). The fourth group of sources is the program documents themselves, which regulate the state policy regarding preschool education and preschool education in Russia, from the middle of the 19th century to the present.

Research results. As a result of the study, material on the state of ECCE in Russia, its relationship with trends in various countries of the world was systematized. The analysis of sources allowed us to establish the continuity of different stages in the development of Russian preschool pedagogy and psychology, its orientation towards the scientific base and practical logic.

Conclusion. The world education system is changing before our eyes, and it is changing radically. The needs of these changes have been felt by most countries of the world. These changes lead to changes in educational policy, access to education, the emergence of new objects and subjects of education, the formation of a new structure of the sciences of education, pedagogy and psychology as scientific disciplines with their own assessment system, etc.

Relevance (context) of the subject of the article. The role of the play in preschool age is a priority. At the same time, the predominance of the cognitive dominant in educational standards has an adverse effect on the full living of a child of preschool childhood. When discussing the problem of standardization of education, special attention is paid to the forecasts of D.B. Elkonin, that did not loose their importance today regarding the reform of education in general and preschool education in particular. It is noted that the idea of “high standards of education”, implemented through the introduction of programs for the early development of intellectual skills in children and their preparation for the use of high technologies in the future, simplifies the development of a preschooler.

Organization of the research. The purpose of the study was to determine the presence of ontogenetically successive types of play in the system of additional education of preschoolers. The research method was a content analysis of the content of advertising products for services offered by institutions of additional education for children of early and preschool age. More than 500 advertisements have been analyzed. The analysis showed that the list of proposals is dominated by areas focused on the knowledge component, many of which prevent the formation of age-related neoplasms.

Research results. The results of an analytical study of the services offered by institutions of additional education for young and preschool children indicate the dominance of the school preparation service, the implementation of which begins from 2–3 years of age. The ratio of “developing” services for children offered by extracurricular institutions is shown, in which there is completely no orientation to the leading type of activity of a preschooler – the play. It is indicated that the implementation of both basic and additional education for preschool children in modern conditions is carried out with the predominant use of school forms and teaching aids.

Conclusions. The analysis showed that the use of school forms, methods and techniques when teaching preschoolers in preschool and additional education institutions outside the reliance on the leading type of activity deprives children of a full-fledged childhood. Limited by the framework of educational and other standards, preschool childhood today is deprived of the means to construct the image of adulthood, the image of the social future and the prospects of one’s own individual formation.

The relevance of the subject of the article. The topic of the transformation of education today is extremely relevant, since in the last 10–20 years the approach to the role of preschool education / Early Childhood Care and Education of young children around the world has changed globally. This forced the world community to reconsider its approaches to education and hold a series of congresses, conferences and symposiums dedicated to the transformation of national education systems (Komarova, 2018).

The article is devoted to the systematization of the data presented and discussed at the UNESCO World Conference in Uzbekistan, presented by 150 heads of state, ministers or representatives of ministries, heads of NGOs and international organizations in the field of early childhood education and upbringing.

The purpose of the study is to present and analyze the diversity of approaches of different countries to solving the problems of preschool education in order to create conditions for human survival and development that ensure sustainable development.

Description of the research progress. The authors analyzed the educational statistics of several groups of countries: post-Soviet countries; developing countries; developed countries; countries that have long used innovative approaches in the upbringing and education of young children, etc. The authors have published several reports on this topic (Karakchieva et al., 2022; Komarova, Chabrova, 2022). The data obtained earlier were compared with studies of certain aspects of preschool education and upbringing, developed by groups of scientists and aimed at concepts that are recognized as important in the current situation, for example, research on the neurophysiology of early childhood or the ecologization of childhood, etc. These data were also compared with those characteristics of the state of ECCE, which were given by the heads of state, ministers responsible for ECCE.

Research results. As a result of the study, material on the state of ECCE in various countries of the world, on further development directions was systematized.

Conclusion. The global education system is changing. The need for these changes has been felt by most countries in the world. These changes lead to changes in educational policy, access to education, the emergence of new objects and subjects of education, the formation of a new structure of the sciences of education, the formation of pedagogy and psychology as scientific disciplines with their own assessment system, etc.

Background. We are living in challenging times, with an urgent need for transformation that requires new and sustainable ways of living. Young children are exposed to these global challenges. This study responds to the need for further understanding of how education for sustainability (EfS) is being handled in early childhood education (ECE).

Objective. This study investigated ECE teachers in the process of implementing early childhood education for sustainability (ECEfS). This was initiated by the 2019 revised Swedish National Curriculum for the preschool, where education for sustainable development is included as an overall value and objective.

Design of study. The data presented in this article was obtained in May 2021. An initial questionnaire was emailed to all Ifous participants. One hundred fifty-three teachers (76.5%) responded. The intention of the questionnaire was twofold: first, to investigate what the teachers considered to be education for sustainability in ECE; and second, to scrutinize the teachers’ knowledge base, for the further planning of the research and development program. Content analysis was used to analyze the data.

Results. The findings of the study showed a tendency to describe education for sustainability as “business-as-usual” rather than treating EfS as a new field, and to contend that the teachers addressed EfS before it became a compulsory task in 2019. There were few connections made to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (2015) and to the ongoing pandemic. A common trend when describing the content and activities was to divide the content into three areas, following the three dimensions of sustainability. The teachers described the physical changes and pedagogical changes made after the revision of the national curriculum.

Conclusion. The teachers in the study were interested in EfS, and some articulated a longing for more knowledge about ECEfS and for transformative change. The teachers also showed the need for courage and professionalism to lead the way in finding the relevant content and activities for EfS. The teachers were struggling to find new ways to meet the demands from the governing documents especially during a planetary crisis.

The relevance of the topic of the article. An analysis of the indicators of irregularity in a child’s speech, speech disorders, and the existing methods of their measurement shows that disturbances in the fluency of speech in preschool children are mainly associated with evolutionary stuttering. There are no methods of objective assessment of fluency of speech and its disorders in stuttering in the Russian literature and speech therapy practice, while abroad there are different models of categorization of indicators of speech irregularity and various objective methods of measuring fluency of speech in children with normal conditions and with stuttering are used.

The aim of the research. The study of physiological and pathological indicators of speech irregularity of preschool children with stuttering and without speech disorders for the differential diagnosis of normal and deviating speech development is the aim of the study.

Description of the research progress. The study involved 35 children aged 4,5–6,5 years: 16 children without speech disorders and 19 children with stuttering of varying severity. The fluency / irregularity of speech was assessed using technology for assessing the indicators of speech irregularity (Vanderbilt technology) based on the analysis of two representative speech samples of 100 words each (a conversation and a story based on a series of plot pictures): the total percentage of speech irregularity, the percentage of physiological and pathological indicators of speech irregularity were calculated, the dominant types of speech irregularity in both groups were identified.

The results of the study. A significant difference was revealed in physiological and pathological indicators of speech irregularity in preschoolers with normal conditions and with stuttering. The article provides evidence of the connection of mainly pathological indicators of speech irregularity with stuttering, and physiological indicators - with normal speech development. In preschoolers with stuttering, a direct relationship was found between the overall percentage of speech irregularity and the severity of stuttering. In the group of children without speech disorders, preschoolers with a risk factor for stuttering were identified, for whose parent’s recommendations on a protective general and speech regime were developed.

Conclusion. The results of the experimental study demonstrate the advisability of including Vanderbilt’s technology in a comprehensive examination of the speech of a preschool child. The specific nature and frequency of manifestation of indicators of speech irregularity in preschool children make important diagnostic information about the typical / atypical development of speech irregularity.

Parents, teachers and researchers are wondering how the digital and technological world affects young children between 0 and 6 years of age at home. This study aims to show the use they make of it, the characteristics of this use, and the relationship that children establish with technologies, as well as to find out whether there are rules for this use and who sets them. A mixed quantitative-qualitative methodology, using the “questionnaire on the use of technology at home”, semi-structured interviews, and analyses of Early Childhood Education Assemblies (ECEA), generated very significant results. For instance, despite the quick incorporation of tablets or video game consoles, TV is still the favorite device of the youngest population, followed closely by mobile phones. The results indicate that these children spend an average of 92 minutes per day watching TV. In addition, 92% of them have a tablet and spend an average of 60 minutes per day using a computer or a tablet. It can be concluded that children start accessing and using ICT at the age of two.

The article presents the results of a study on the integration of children’s reading and playing practices implemented within the framework of the Federal innovation platform – kindergarten No. 8 of the Central District of St. Petersburg on the topic “Designing Practices for the Education of Preschool Children in a Changing Sociocultural Situation”.

The aim of the study was to study the possibilities of enriching the practice of subject-role play of children in various age groups (3-7,5 years) as a result of testing the technology of productive reading when children get acquainted with the modern world bestseller of children’s literature, J. Donaldson “Snail and Whale”. It was found that the technology of productive reading has a high developing potential both for organizing children’s perception of the book and understanding its meaning, and for the natural display read in the conditions of play activity. The monitoring and quality analysis of playing activity of children 3-7,5 years revealed that the implementation of the technology of productive reading with preschool children allows, on the one hand, to consider the game as a way of interpreting literary works and on the other hand, to support the game based on the read.

The obtained results show that the implementation of the research plan contributed to the fact that the development indicators of the children’s game begin to approach the normative in the situation of the “zone of proximal development” and the further accumulation of play practice will contribute to the achievement of the normative indicators of the role-playing game in the “zone of the actual development of children”. It is also important that the reliance on the content and structure of the literary text allows the teacher to feel more confident in situations of play interaction with children, as an adult and a child interact in a single story context.

This paper provides an empirical account of the complex nature of early childhood teachers’ work with growing accountability demands for collecting, reporting, and using child assessment data in the U.S. context. Particularly, this paper focuses on preschool teachers’ experience of changes in their roles and pedagogical work in implementing a criterion-referenced, commercial online child assessment system. In doing so, this paper draws on data from a qualitative research study conducted at four Head Start sites that included semi-structured, individual interviews with six teachers and five child development specialists during three different assessment checkpoint periods; multiple observations of four Head Start classrooms for five months; and an analysis of related documents. The findings from this paper highlight that the use of commercial online childhood assessment system increased and expanded teacher work with additional responsibilities and concomitant change in assessment, curriculum, and pedagogy, as well as their views of themselves as professionals.

This paper presents the results of the national research dedicated to the comprehensive study of the developing environment in early childhood educational organizations of the Republic of Uzbekistan. It also reveals the main directions of its study in the context of the conceptual ideas of the Public Curriculum of the Republic of Uzbekistan, identifies factors that can improve the quality of design of developing environment in early childhood educational organizations.

The purpose of the study was to analyze key indicators for assessing the quality of the developing of environment in early childhood organizations in Uzbekistan in the context of modernization of the early childhood education system of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The main method of research is a comparative analysis of existing approaches to the design of the developing of environment of early childhood organizations in Uzbekistan. The subject of the analysis is a phenomenon of the environment, assessing the understanding of its significance and content for the development of early childhood and preschool children, and identifying key factors that determine its quality.

The results of the study contain a systematic analysis of the quality of the developing of environment of early childhood organizations in Uzbekistan, identify trends in changes in the understanding of the environment as a condition and means of development of children before school, and identify key parameters of the quality of the environment, consistent with cultural and historical values, national and regional traditions, features due to nature, climate, and the specifics of industrial life of the area.

The research makes it possible to identify existing practices in the design of development of the environment in early childhood educational organizations, to propose an artistic and aesthetic approach to the design and filling of the early childhood organization’s space, and to understand the characteristics of the development of the environment in regard of the national preschool education system, as well as identify its innovative trends.

The relevance of the study has been determined by necessity of actualization in modern conditions of development of non-public sector of early childhood education which will allow partially to solve problems of shortage of places in early childhood educational institution, will expand possibilities of realization by citizens of the right to accessible and qualitative education. In order to achieve the goal, the following methods have been used: content analysis of documents, the method of collecting and structuring information, the structural method of presentation of the material. The article analyzes the legal framework governing educational activities in early childhood educational institutions of the non-public sector. In this article, results of legal regulation of the relations connected with realization of educational programs of early childhood education and rendering of services on supervision and care of children of early childhood age by private educational organizations and individual businessmen are reflected.

The best Russian and international practices in the implementation of early childhood education programs, which scored the highest number of points according to the used criteria and indicators of analysis, are also presented: the legal framework for the provision of practice, the substantive justification of the availability and quality of early childhood education, methodological approaches to ensure accessibility and quality of early childhood education, description and analysis of existing practices to support the non-public sector in early childhood education, organizations.

It has been established that the development of a legal framework regulating the educational activities in a non-public sector of early childhood education institution and the usage of best Russian and international practices will make the non-public sector of early childhood education a powerful tool both in meeting parental demands for early childhood education and in eliminating the queue for enrollment into the early childhood education organizations.

Personal boundaries are a convenient descriptive metaphor reflecting the interaction of personality and environment. The purpose of our research is to study and thoroughly describe the formation of this phenomenon in a group of children aged 3-7 years with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The study was conducted between 2016 and 2019 using qualitative methods (on-line observation, case study, simulation of situations) and involved 14 children who were diagnosed with ASD. The group composition and the study procedure remained unchanged for four years.

The children were asked to participate in the staging of various problem situations (violation of privacy, daily routine, etc.), which made it possible to describe both territorial behavior and to reflect the various manifestations of the phenomenon of personal boundaries (regulation, control, essence, ways of protecting personal boundaries). Statistical analysis showed the presence of dynamics in the development of personal boundaries in children with ASD. Personal boundaries of children in this group are perceived as a physical barrier that unambiguously separates spaces of different people. Another person (adult or child) is also a barrier that divides spaces. A close adult becomes a bearer of the personal boundaries of a child with ASD. The differences in the manifestation of personal boundaries for familiar and unfamiliar children are shown: a considerable degree of freedom and social experimentation in the first case is manifested (a wider range of ways to protect the personal boundaries, regulation and control are more vividly expressed), interaction with unfamiliar children appears threatening due to unpredictable behavior. The phenomenon of the personal boundary has qualitative uniqueness and high adaptive potential, ensuring psychological safety and integrity of children with ASD.

The article discusses the results of the study of the emotional well-being of 6-7 years old children of kindergartens in Moscow. The data were obtained through a questionnaire survey of children and their parents using the supplemented Children’s Barometer methodology, consisting of 22 questions for a child and 8 questions for a parent. The study was attended by 151 parent-child couples; children from 15 groups of 5 different preschools. Emotional well-being is based on satisfying the needs of the child, both basic and essential for the age at hand, and essential for personal development including personal relevance, recognition in the group, autonomy and initiative. It was important for us to hear the “voice of the child”, attitude towards kindergarten, what makes child happy and discomforting. It was found that children of 6-7 years old can express their opinion and attitude to what is happening in kindergarten. Organized forms of activity are less interesting for children than free activity; there are discrepancies between children’s and adults’ assessment of issues important for the child; children remember conflicts in kindergarten and it is important for them how the teacher resolves the children’s conflict. The educational environment and style of interaction between adults and children in groups implementing different pedagogical systems influences children’s attitude towards kindergarten, which was shown in significant statistical differences.

Changes in the world’s education system and new conditions for the existence of the education system have radically affected the infrastructure of education institutions. Many legal acts, conferences, publications, etc. are devoted to its changes. Much less attention has been paid to such a crucial element of the education system, which sets spatial, substantive, aesthetic and programmatic norms of life activities, which is a link between education and the human community, as architecture. Teachers, speaking about the role of the environment in education, rarely pay attention to architecture. Nevertheless, the space of the kindergarten has a significant impact on the creation of the environment. In different historical periods, there were different views on where children should be, what kind of education they should receive and who should provide it. Depending on the era, the answers to these questions differed significantly. The author focuses on modern trends in the construction of kindergartens and schools, the risks that arise in the construction of standard buildings and shows what requirements should the space of a modern kindergarten meet, reveals how changes in education generate new trends in architecture.