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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.

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.

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.

Introduction. The article is devoted to the problem of assessing the process and the result of understanding a child by a preschool teacher.

The purpose of the study is to develop and initial approbation an algorithm for self-analysis and expert assessment of the teacher’s understanding of a child as a practical tool for overcoming difficulties in interacting with the child and planning educational activities with him.

The methodological basis of the study was the system-activity and competence-based approaches to the consideration of the teacher’s activity for the knowledge of a preschooler, qualitative (ideographic) and subjective approaches to psycho-diagnostics.

As a result of the research, a step-by-step algorithm for analyzing the teacher’s understanding of the child has been developed. At the first stage, the teacher answers questions compiled in the form of a non-standardized self-report for reflecting the shape of a preschooler in educational activities. The sequence of questions is built in the following logic: identifying the child’s characteristics as perceived by the teacher, comparing them with each other, and then correlating them with the specifics of educational activity with the child, setting tasks for his further understanding in professional and pedagogical activity.

At the second stage, the expert evaluates the teacher’s answers, identifying difficulties in understanding the child and determining the directions for improving his professional training or methodological support. The teacher analyzes the answers in the aspects of, firstly, the manifestation of the social perception and the operational-technical component of gnostic competencies; secondly, their compliance with the criteria and indicators in the content of the information received about the child. At the third stage, the expert together with the teachers discuss and analyze their answers to clarify the shape of the child, make changes in the planning of educational activities and determine the directions for further development of gnostic competencies of teachers.

Conclusions. The three-stage algorithm of reflection and analysis of the child’s shape is developed.

The article discusses the relevance of the problem of children’s speech readiness for schooling, including the development of language and communication abilities of preschool children. It is shown that the transition from kindergarten to school is associated with a change in the social status of a child who becomes a pupil. This is preceded by a huge preparatory work that develops general and special preparation for learning at school, which should result in readiness for school, including speech. The authors consider the cognitive aspect of preschool children’s speech readiness for school. It is shown that the study of the correlation between thought, speech and language in the formation of a preschool child’s personality provides opportunities to identify patterns of development of intellectual, communicative, speech and language abilities in preschool childhood. Language (linguistic) competence in relation to preschoolers is considered as an elementary awareness of the phenomena and facts of language and speech, the formation of the ability to use words, their forms and syntactic structures in accordance with the norms of the literary language, to use synonymic and antonymic resources of the native language. The tasks of the development of linguistic and communicative abilities are presented. The development of all aspects of speech, knowledge of the rules and norms of speech etiquette, and their use, depending on the situation, play an important role in educating the culture of speech communication among preschoolers. The improvement of communicative competence is impossible without learning the basics of speech culture, the absence of which can cause a misconception about the essence of the statement. The prospects of research on the formation of speech readiness for school education are outlined. The conclusions summarize the main points of the article.

Introduction. This paper describes results of an integrated multivariate research project, provisionally called “Artifacts of Childhood”, that studied sociological and pedagogical tendencies connected with correlation between the values of the modern adult’s and child’s worlds. The purpose of this study was to look into the specifics of the modern attitude to the childhood, the child’s values-based attitude towards the adult’s world, and to develop an understanding of the value determinants of the child’s social and personal development.

Methods. Research methods were based on Adlerian conceptual model of a deliberate and purposeful changing of parenting styles (A. Adler); the concept of a cultural-historical development (L. S. Vygotsky, A. N. Leontiev) of the child’s personality in the course of mastering the knowledge of previous generations with guidance from an adult (N. F. Radionova); understanding of the child as the subject of child’s activities (T. I. Babayeva, A. G. Gogoberidze and others).

Results. Authors defined essential and structural characteristics of the value‑based attitude of children towards the adult’s world, and established pedagogical determinants that ensure the development of the values-based attitude to the childhood period. Authors received actual data on the interaction between the preschool and the family in the course of shaping the value orientation of adults and modern preschoolers.

The article presents the experience in implementation of innovative educational project, in which educators, students of the Faculty of Elementary Education, colleagues of the Department of Psychological Anthropology and parents with children of early and preschool age took place. Due to the project the Center for Family Education was opened at the Moscow Pedagogical State University at the Institute of Childhood. The environment of the Centre for Family Education is based on the principles of Montessori Method. Therefore, the content of the activity in the Center includes both psychological and pedagogical theories of preschool education system in Russia and strong points of the Montessori Method of education.

The article pays attention to the analysis of multiple resources of higher education institutions for the implementation of the project of Centre for Family Education, it also describes the specifics of designed and field-proved programmes of supplementary education for children and adults based on which the work content in the Centre is framed. The implementation of the research project focuses on the results of testing programs designed by the Department of Psychological Anthropology at the Institute of Childhood: “Montessori Plus” comprehensive educational program of preschool education, “Family Festivals” partial program, “School for engaged parent” educational program of psychological and pedagogical support for parents.

The first results of the “Happy children at the University” project showed that the work on the project was a good start to unite various educational interests of professional teaching community and students of the University for implementation of interesting and fruitful solutions for the benefit of Russian preschool education. Analysis of the results also assures that the Centre for Family Education as a structural department of the University is an available option for Moscow parents to be chosen for its educational programs for children since early childhood. It is also a source of personal development and educational competence.

The article gives an overview of improving the methodology for developing elementary mathematical representations in preschool pedagogy and in preschool special education concerning the formation of mass perception. The authors describe the history methodology development in preschool education including the task for forming such measuring skills in children as an orientation in the mass of objects. Theoretical review made it possible to elucidate the under-development of the methodology for forming elementary mathematical representations in preschool children with intellectual disabilities. The article reveals the content of the methodology for corrective and pedagogical work on the formation of a mathematical function like understanding the mass of objects in preschool children with intellectual disabilities (mental retardation). It is based on the theory of the stage-by-stage formation of mental actions by P. Ya. Galperin. The methodology presupposes eight stages, each of which uses its own set of methods and techniques of training and a set of illustrative and handout material. The authors offer fragments of tasks on the formation of this understanding in preschool children with intellectual disabilities in the mass of objects at each stage of education. The methodology is implemented within the framework of the educational field “Cognitive Development” in classes on the formation of elementary mathematical representations. The introduction of the methodology in correctional and educational process of special (correctional) preschools in Ufa showed its effectiveness.

The article is devoted to the study of the specific features of a kindergarten teacher’s professional position and is based on the materials of the questionnaire survey involving 320 caregivers from Moscow daycare centers. One of the most important factors affecting the child development is the nature of the educational strategies preschool care-givers use when interacting with the child. Special attention is given to the analysis of educators’ target orientations, the specifics of the style of their relationship with the child, teachers’ emotional well-being when dealing with children and the forms of control (reward and punishment) they use in response to the child’s behavior. The analysis of the materials pays special attention to the influence of various factors (the caregivers’ educational level and work experience, children’s age) on a caregiver’s idiosyncratic professional position.

The article examines meaning of the early periods of child’s life for the development of imagination, original creative ideas, freedom of expression in a decent personal conduct. From the position of L.S. Vygotsky childhood importance in the occurrence of the imagination and the beginning of formation of creative abilities through training and education of the child is analyzed. The role of aesthetic education for the personality development is shown to be not less valuable than the work and training activities of children. The author refers to the 25 years of experience gained in the establishment of additional education “The Golden Cockerel”, and notes that talented teachers are actively developing children’s imagination in the process of aesthetic education, based on the different types and practices of creative activity, games, modeling forms of culture presented in the traditional Russian folklore. It is also noted that the successful solution of problems of the aesthetic development of preschool children with difficulties in behavior and in communication with peers was possible on the basis of creative cooperation between Center of Aesthetic Education of Children “The Golden Cockerel” with the Faculty of Psychology of the Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Relevance of the article. Studies aimed at studying the cognitive aspect of the development of language ability in preschoolers show that the center of the development of language ability is the semantic component that underlies the linguistic development of a preschool child, which includes not only expanding the vocabulary, but also educating children to pay attention to the content of the word, its semantics, enriching connections with other words, because in monologue speech, the meaning of a single word interacts with the semantics of the entire utterance. The formation of coherent monological speech is the central task of the speech development of a preschooler. The work on the meaning of the word, the expansion of the semantic field, the use of the associative principle of vocabulary assimilation, the formation of linguistic generalizations in the assimilation of the grammatical structure of speech develop in preschoolers the arbitrariness and awareness of speech, the ability to sel ect accurate and expressive means when constructing coherent utterances of different types. These provisions apply to mastering not only the native language, but also any other language.

The aim of the study. To summarize the results of research conducted for more than twenty years in the kindergarten No. 215 (then – the preschool department of school No. 324 in Moscow).

Progress of the study. The research conducted under the leadership of F.A. Sokhin, O.S. Ushakova, V.I. Yashina was aimed at developing the theory of language acquisition in preschool childhood, organically combining pedagogical, psychological and linguistic aspects in theoretical analysis and experiment. These studies have shown that children, starting from the younger preschool age, show great interest in language reality, “experiment” with words, create new words, focusing on both the semantic and grammatical side of the language. A necessary condition for their linguistic development is a gradual awareness of linguistic phenomena, i.e. the development of children’s metalanguage activity, which leads to a genuine mastery of the richness of the language.

The research results also showed that enriching the dictionary includes not only expanding its scope, but also educating children to pay attention to the content of the word, its semantics, clarifying the meanings of words, expanding the connections of the word with other words. Along with the semantic side of the word, the problem of lexical compatibility of words also plays an important role, which makes it possible to close the mastery of the semantics of the word with the development of coherent speech.

Conclusions. The formation of elementary awareness of the phenomena of language and speech is one of the most important tasks of both speech and linguistic development, starting fr om preschool age, therefore, we consider this aspect to be central in the initial development of a linguistic personality and understanding the meaning of a word, which is the basic unit of language and the basis of a child’s cognitive development, determines the essence of the development of his language ability.