Natalya S. Varentsova

The article is on the results of implementing project activity method in Moscow city kindergarten # 101. The research embraced two junior and one senior kindergarten classes, and proved project activity method to facilitate development of preschooler’s cognitive abilities. Moreover, as the author shows, the contribution of project activity to development of child’s personality and cognitive abilities can not be replaced with any other child activity.

Creative projects are usually carried out collectively in conjunction with parents and take about 2-3 weeks. During these activities children learn to defend their position, see the benefits of other children, accept successful proposals. Author shows how children overcome egocentric position through project activity.

The article is on the results of implementing project activity method in Moscow city kindergarten # 1018. It describes unusual aspects of the method and difficulties teachers had faced in their practical use of it. Different children percept the same event differently and the article shows ways of using this to children’s advantage.

The author views a problem of the value of preschool age in itself, as proposed by A.V. Zaporozhets, L.A. Venger, .V. Davidov and others, and describes basic theoretical grounds of “Razvitie” (“Development”) educational program. This article provides with the results of long-term comparative study of children who did and didn’t participate in “Razvitie” program.

The article is on the results of implementing normative project activity method. The article describes teacher work on making children to establish rules for generally troublesome activities, such as going to bed or for a walk. The author illustrates how teacher-child elaboration on a rule and its sign make children integrate their emotional experience with the cognitive context. The article also points out the role of a teacher in organizing normative activity.

The article shows a possibility of developing regulatory abilities in senior preschoolers with project activity. The result of experimental project was creation of ‘Our kindergarten’s book of rules’ which embodied the rules of children’s conduct in various situations typical to a preschool educational establishment. The book included children’s drawings depicting examples of ‘correct’ and ‘incorrect behaviour in various situations, formulations of such rules, and, ultimately, sign-rules. The work proved to be effective. Psychological climate in a group of children improved, easing the work of a teacher. Children widened their cognitive and social experience. ‘Book of rules’ became a tool in behaviour regulation that largely provided for the decrease in interpersonal conflicts among children.

The authors expected that the development of general abilities, going through the mastery of project activities, influenced the development of other components of a child’s personality, in particular, self-esteem of preschool children. Children’s project activity can be regarded as a specially organized form of activity aimed at the development of general abilities of children. The survey was conducted in the senior and preparatory for school groups. As the main method of self-esteem assessment Dembo-Rubinstein technique was used. As a result of measuring the self-esteem in the senior and preparatory for school it was stated that children experienced positive impact of project activities, not only on develop of general abilities, but also on development of self-esteem.