First-graders have a negative attitude towards school. The adaptation period has passed

The concept of “adaptation” in the scientific literature is interpreted as the process and result of an individual’s active adaptation to new conditions of existence. Adaptation is associated mainly with periods of radical changes in human activity and his social environment.
There are three main forms of adaptation to the external environment:

a person’s search for an environment that is favorable for his functioning;
changes that a person makes in the environment to bring it into line with his needs;
internal psychological changes of a person with the help of which he adapts to the environment.

Let us consider the mechanisms of the emergence of the third form of adaptation in more detail.

Onboarding process begins with subjective perception and assessment of changed conditions and proceeds as a reaction to the result of this perception, which manifests itself in the form of attempts to cope with a situation when the usual response to it is impossible. The basis of a person’s adaptation to a situation is not only subjective perception, but also objective criteria. The productivity of the corresponding activity is usually identified as an objective criterion of adaptation, and the subjective one is the emotional well-being of a person, his experience of a state of balance or anxiety.

The study of the adaptation process can be carried out in three directions. The first direction involves studying the relationship between the subjective perception of the situation and the response to it. If the response to subjective perception corresponds to the requirements of the situation and the person’s goals, then a state of internal balance is achieved quickly enough. So, for example, if a first-grader perceives a school situation as threatening his emotional comfort and well-being, then he begins to avoid it. A sense of security and safety in this case is one of the main goals of the child, and not attending school restores internal balance. If we consider adaptation from the point of view of its internal criteria, then the only indicator of adaptation will be the success of internal adaptation. In this case, any behavior of the child that helps him achieve calmness is assessed as adaptive.

The second direction of adaptation analysis is associated with identifying the relationship between the subjective perception of the situation and its objective characteristics. A passive reaction to changed conditions may be subjectively functional, but objectively dysfunctional. Conversely, subjectively unpleasant reactions (actively confronting the situation, overcoming fears and anxieties) can be objectively functional in the long term.

The third direction of adaptation analysis involves determining the relationship between the method of overcoming a difficult situation and the requirements of this situation. Behavioral responses that meet the demands of the situation may be subjectively perceived as unacceptable and even traumatic, but they are often the most effective. Subjectively functional reactions, understood as a response to a subjective assessment of the current situation, and not to its objective characteristics, give only a short-term effect. Optimal adaptation presupposes an adequate perception of the situation and the choice of the most effective ways to transform it in accordance with the objective characteristics of the given situation and individual requirements.

There are two groups of psychological adaptation mechanisms: 1) unconscious protective mechanisms of information processing and 2) conscious, targeted adaptive mechanisms. The formation of a certain attitude (substantive, formal, indifferent, negative) to the demands of the situation can also be considered as a psychological mechanism of adaptation.

1. Mechanisms of psychological defense. The study of subjective methods of defense against unpleasant thoughts and threatening assessments was first carried out within the framework of psychoanalysis. Z. Freud believed that during development a person develops protective mechanisms in order to protect himself from internal stimuli that may not be directly related to the situation that has arisen. According to the scientist, the main problem of human existence is to cope with fear and anxiety that arise in a variety of situations. Therefore, eliminating anxiety and getting rid of fear is the most important criterion for the effectiveness of defense mechanisms.

Z. Freud defined psychological defense as a set of mechanisms that, being products of development and learning, weaken the external-internal conflict and regulate the behavior of the individual. He associated it with such mental functions as balancing, adaptation and regulation. The functional purpose and goal of psychological defense mechanisms is to weaken intrapersonal conflict (tension, anxiety) caused by the contradiction between the instinctive impulses of the unconscious and the internalized (internalized) requirements of the external environment that arise as a result of social interaction. By weakening this conflict, psychological defense regulates human behavior, helps to increase adaptability and balance the psyche.

The expansion of ideas about psychological defense is associated with the name of S. Freud’s daughter - A. Freud. She carried out an analysis of the child’s transformations and affects. A. Freud emphasized the protective nature of defense mechanisms and pointed out that they prevent disorganization of behavior and maintain the normal mental status of the individual. She made certain adjustments to Freud's concept. A. Freud focused on the role of defense mechanisms in resolving external (sociogenic) conflicts and considered them not only as a manifestation of innate inclinations, but also as products of individual experience and involuntary learning. In her opinion, the set of defense mechanisms is individual and characterizes the level of adaptability of the individual. Considering the development of children as a process of gradual socialization (i.e., the transition from the principle of pleasure to the principle of reality), A. Freud emphasized that the psychological health of a child largely depends on how much his “I” is able to overcome displeasure and be able to make decisions independently .

A. Freud divided defense mechanisms into perceptual, intellectual and motor ones. These mechanisms provide a consistent distortion of the image of the real situation in order to reduce traumatic emotional stress. In this case, the idea of the environment is distorted minimally, i.e. it is in the maximum possible accordance with reality. As a result, unwanted information can be ignored (not perceived), if perceived, it can be forgotten, and if admitted into the memorization system, it can be interpreted in a way convenient for a person.

In addition to these mechanisms of psychological defense, there are situational (arising in a traumatic situation, transient and not requiring correction) and stylistic (characterized by stability and generalization) mechanisms.

The defense style is a system of external and internal “psychotechnical actions”, relatively constant over time and individually outlined for each person, aimed at weakening the conflict in the sphere of self-awareness to ensure a positive attitude towards oneself. The development of stylistic defense mechanisms is influenced by psychodynamic qualities, experience of satisfying basic psychological needs (needs for safety, freedom and autonomy, success and efficiency, recognition and self-determination), family relationships as a model of behavior in various life situations, chronic psychotraumatization of the child’s personality.

As a means of adaptation and resolution of psychological conflicts, defense mechanisms develop in ontogenesis. They protect the child from displeasure coming from within (internal instinctual stimuli) and from displeasure, the sources of which are in the external world. On the basis of innate unconditional reactions, by complicating the forms of behavior in the process of individual development, the forms of mental reflection also become more complex. As a result of such development and learning, more complex defensive behavioral reactions (refusal, opposition, imitation, compensation, emancipation) and psychological defense mechanisms (denial, suppression, repression, projection, rationalization, regression, sublimation) begin to function.

Defensive behavioral reactions and psychological mechanisms are triggered in situations of conflict, frustration, psychological trauma and stress against the will and consciousness of the child. Typical children's defensive reactions include refusal (passive protest), opposition (active protest), imitation, compensation and emancipation.

The earliest form of protective behavior in a child is refusal (passive protest). It manifests itself in withdrawal from communication even with loved ones, refusal of food, games, and leaving home. This behavior most often occurs in a child if he is torn away from his mother, family, or familiar peer group and placed in unusual conditions.

Opposition (active protest) of a child against the norms and demands of adults is observed when there is a loss or decrease in attention from loved ones. Typically, opposition is provoked by resentment, dissatisfaction of whims, requests and manifests itself in the form of outbursts of anger, destructive actions, aggression, motor agitation, and intentional harm to the offender.

Imitation presupposes a pronounced desire to imitate a certain person, a favorite hero (actions, appearance, etc.). Primary schoolchildren are characterized by either global acceptance of someone (positive imitation) or global denial (negative imitation). Most often, children imitate the behavior of parents, adults, teenagers from their immediate environment, as well as teachers. As a model, the first grader chooses a person who, as it seems to him, has been more successful in satisfying his needs than he has. Children rejected by their parents tend to imitate the behavior of their father and mother in everything in the hope of returning their love. In this case, the child usually does not choose a role model himself, but borrows from the environment.

Compensation involves the child emphasizing his positive qualities in order to overcome his shortcomings (real or imaginary).

Emancipation is a child’s desire to break free from the control of caring adults. The likelihood of developing an emancipation reaction increases in the case when parents and teachers make unreasonable claims, excessive demands that do not correspond to the capabilities of the level of development achieved by him.

The joint work of several defense mechanisms ensures a holistic response to the situation and effective psychological adaptation. One of the first in ontogenesis is the mechanism of denial (not seeing, not hearing threatening information), which switches the child’s attention to other objects or phenomena that do not cause him anxiety.

Suppression involves forgetting the content of an unpleasant situation that has already been experienced. Most often, feelings of fear, one’s own weakness, aggressive intentions towards parents, as well as unfulfilled desires are suppressed.
If threatening information cannot be ignored or forgotten, then the repression mechanism is triggered, which allows you to forget not the event itself (action, experience, situation), but only its cause.

Projection is a psychological defense mechanism associated with the unconscious transfer of one’s own unacceptable feelings, desires and aspirations to another person. It is based on the rejection of one’s experiences, doubts, attitudes and attributing them to other people, shifting responsibility for what happens within the individual to the outside world. The child unconsciously strives to make others more predictable by making them more like himself. The projection mechanism is more typical for insecure, suspicious and suspicious children.

Rationalization involves awareness of only that part of the perceived information, thanks to which one’s own behavior appears as well controlled and does not contradict objective circumstances. Unacceptable moments of the situation are removed from consciousness, transformed in a special way and realized in a changed form.

The main mental process that implements rationalization is abstract thinking, which develops intensively during primary school age. The motive for an action does not necessarily coincide with the reason that preceded the action, since justifying motives are often put forward and realized after the action has been committed. In these cases, the decision on what to do is made unconsciously; the person is not aware of the true forces behind it. When an action is committed, there is a need to find a justification for it in order to convince oneself and others that the actions are being performed correctly, in accordance with the real situation.

Rationalization can be carried out in various ways, including: self-discrediting (self-justification based on decreased self-esteem); discrediting the victim (allows you not to feel pity for the victim and continue persecuting him on the principle of “it’s your own fault”); affirmation of harm for the good (“it’s even good that we’re still feeling bad”). Rationalization is achieved using two types of reasoning: the “green grapes” and the “sweet lemon” type of reasoning. The first is based on reducing the value of an action that could not be performed, or a result that was not achieved. In this case, the child, claiming that he didn’t really want this, essentially refuses to achieve the goal. The second option is based on increasing the value of the action performed and the result obtained.

Regression - a return to early “childish” forms of behavior - is associated with the demonstrably selfish and irresponsible behavior of a child when for some reason he does not want to behave as the situation requires. This defense mechanism inhibits the feelings of self-doubt and fear of failure associated with taking initiative. Parents often encourage the development of regressive behavior because they want him to always remain small. If this method of behavior becomes stereotypical, then the maturing schoolchild will be characterized by infantilism, characterized by rapid changes in mood, the need for stimulation, control, encouragement, consolation, intolerance of loneliness, impulsiveness, susceptibility to the influence of others, inability to complete the work started, etc.

Sublimation is one of the highest and most effective human defense mechanisms. It implements the replacement of an instinctive goal in accordance with social norms and values. In children, this defense mechanism is formed quite late. Thanks to this form of processing unacceptable information, it is not the object itself that is replaced (unacceptable by acceptable), but the way of interacting with it. Thus, drawing as one of the manifestations of sublimation allows you to respond to instinctive impulses and reduce stress through productive visual activity.

Defense mechanisms have externally observable and recorded signs (at the level of human actions or reasoning). For example, a child may not pay attention to a disturbing message, keep forgetting a textbook on an unloved subject at home, or constantly shield himself.

The problem of psychological defense also found its solution in the concept of K. Horney, which linked the emergence and use of various protective strategies with basal (basic) anxiety. The main anxiety is initially determined by the relationship between the child and parents (adult aggression towards the child, his rejection, ridicule, preference for a brother or sister, etc.). In the future, its development is influenced by culture and conflicting values, which often leads to internal conflicts. To reduce anxiety, the individual develops protective forms of behavior.

K. Horney identifies three defensive strategies: striving for people, striving against people, and striving from people. Trying to overcome helplessness and loneliness, the child gradually develops a certain way of interacting with others. Based on the desire for people, a compliant personality type is formed. In this case, the child tries to be flexible and puts the desires of others above his own. This precautionary behavior is explained by a feeling of inferiority and self-doubt. The dominant desire against people forms an aggressive personality type. The owner of this type shows persistence in achieving his goals, does not allow the superiority of others, is hostile and distrustful. The predominance of aspirations from people leads to the formation of a detached personality type. A person takes the position of an observer in relation to the world and to himself, avoids cooperation and competition, strives to defend his own independence and uniqueness.

The existing personality type is consolidated by two psychological mechanisms: the selection of familiar situations and the stabilization of a certain type of relationship with the environment. The first mechanism assumes that a person selects his environment in accordance with his existing attitudes. But the preference for familiar, habitual situations and, as a consequence, their constant reproduction contribute to the generalization of a certain type of behavior to the detriment of the formation of a flexible and adequate behavioral strategy. In this case, the mechanism is manifested in the preference for a certain method of interaction with the environment, which is formed in the process of assimilating patterns of behavior given from the outside. Society responds to the individual in accordance with the manner of behavior and communication demonstrated by him, which reinforces existing expectations.

Currently, most researchers consider psychological defense mechanisms as processes of intrapsychic adaptation of the individual through the subconscious processing of incoming information. All mental functions are involved in these processes: perception, memory, attention, imagination, thinking, emotions, but in each specific situation one of them plays the leading role in overcoming negative experiences. When involved in a traumatic situation, defense mechanisms act as unique barriers to the advancement of information. As a result of interaction with them, alarming information is either ignored, distorted, or falsified. This creates a specific state of consciousness that allows a person to maintain harmony and balance. Such an internal protective change is considered as a special form of adaptation of the individual to the environment. It is fundamentally important that all these processes are unconscious. Research has shown that the organization of defense and its ability to withstand harmful external influences (i.e., perform its functions) varies from person to person. There is a distinction between normal defense, constantly operating in everyday life, which performs preventive functions, and pathological defense, which is an inadequate form of adaptation.

Working automatically, psychological defense reduces tension, improves well-being and thereby adapts a person to the situation, as it reduces anxiety and fear. However, it often takes too much effort from a person to keep his fears and desires under control. In this case, protection creates many restrictions for the individual and inevitably leads to isolation and isolation. Significant expenditure of energy on constantly restraining one’s emotions and desires leads to chronic fatigue or an increase in the general level of anxiety. In addition, excessive activation of the defense mechanism does not allow the individual to recognize the objective, true situation and adequately and creatively interact with the world.

2. Mechanisms of conscious coping with the situation. Psychological defense is unconscious, but the individual is able to resolve internal and external conflicts, deal with anxiety and tension, guided by a consciously formed program. To denote the conscious efforts of an individual made in a situation of psychological threat, the concept of “coping behavior” (“coping strategy”) is used. To consciously cope with anxiety-generating events, at least three conditions must be met: firstly, to be sufficiently fully aware of the difficulties that have arisen, secondly, to know how to effectively cope with a situation of this type and, thirdly, to be able to apply them in a timely manner in practice . The effectiveness of coping behavior depends on whether the triggering of this defense is situational, or whether the defense is an element of the individual style of responding to difficulties.

Adaptive, purposeful and potentially conscious actions add up to a holistic picture of coping behavior. In this case, each stressful episode can be represented as a certain sequence of the following acts: perception of a change in the situation - emotions as a result of assessing what was perceived - thoughts about the event - coping reaction. The result of this chain is the conscious formation of a new situation, i.e. adaptation.

Coping strategies can be divided into three groups:

behavioral strategies for relieving tension caused by external and internal factors;
strategies related to the emotional processing of the suppressed (emotional release in order to relieve a source of tension or in order to seek social support);
strategies related to the sphere of cognition, allowing to neutralize the tension of stress through a change in the subjective assessment of the situation and a corresponding change in the level of its control.

Behavioral coping strategies include:

active cooperation and participation in resolving the situation (made peace with a friend, corrected the “deuce”);
switching to seeking support in order to be listened to, gain understanding and assistance (told my parents, teacher, friend about my problems);
distracting satisfaction of one’s own desires (went riding a bike, playing on the computer);
way out of the situation, solitude and peace (locked himself in his room, turned off the phone).

Strategies of emotional coping manifest themselves in the form of various inadequate assessments of the situation, leading to worries, irritation, protest, anger, or to emphasized optimism, demonstrative confidence in overcoming a difficult situation. Sometimes a person experiences suffering, blames himself, and sometimes, on the contrary, refuses an emotionally active reaction and moves on to passive complicity, i.e., he abdicates responsibility for the consequences and places it on someone else (here the projection-type defense begins to appear ).

Strategies related to the cognitive sphere involve:

distracting or switching attention to something else (this can lead to attentional control that provides denial-type defense);
ignoring an unpleasant situation, irony;
searching for additional information: asking questions, thinking about the problem;
analysis not only of the situation itself, but also of its consequences (such elaboration of the situation leads to its reassessment during rationalization);
comparing oneself with other people who are in a worse state, which makes it easier to accept the event (this is how the movement towards rationalization of the “sweet lemon” type is realized: “I’m not at all as bad as they are”);
giving new meaning and meaning to an unpleasant situation, for example treating it as a test of strength of character and fortitude. At the same time, there is an increase in self-esteem and a deeper awareness of one’s value as an individual (preparation for rationalization like “sour grapes”: “But I am strong and persistent”).

The child’s ability to use strategies related to the cognitive sphere is still small, since their use presupposes the presence of developed abstract-logical and theoretical thinking, the ability to work with information, often without relying on the specific life situation that generated this information.

In addition to unconscious defense mechanisms and conscious coping strategies, attitudes towards different aspects of the situation play an important role in the adaptation process.

The process of adaptation to school is associated not only with mastering educational activities, a new social role and joining a peer group, but also with the acceptance and implementation of new requirements and rules. The success of a child’s adaptation is determined both by external adherence to rules and by the development of a certain emotional attitude towards the evaluative categories and values of the adult world. In our opinion, we can distinguish four different ways in which a child relates to social norms: meaningful attitude, formal acceptance, manipulation (indifferent attitude) and open rejection (negative attitude).

The child’s meaningful attitude towards norms is based on a clear understanding of school rules and their emotional acceptance. This type of attitude is the result of successful internalization of new social requirements and provides the opportunity for personal growth and self-realization of a first-grader. Based on the emotional acceptance of school norms, the ability to change and correct learned attitudes is formed, while remaining within the framework of social norms, which is manifested, in particular, in the ability of children to successfully build social contacts depending on the situation and communication partner. Younger schoolchildren, who are meaningfully related to norms, strive to resolve conflicts that arise in accordance with accepted rules of behavior, which is manifested in communication with peers and the teacher. A high level of competence, success in learning and a high rating from the teacher make such children popular among their classmates. They have high self-esteem, are self-confident, emotional and open, so difficulties that arise during the learning process do not lead to deviations in personal development.

The formal adoption of norms, as a rule, is accompanied by difficulties in their implementation, and children’s uncertainty about their compliance with the norm. Schoolchildren who relate to norms in this way are characterized by high emotionality and barriers to communication, a tendency to withdraw, minimize contacts, and anxiety, which generally disrupts the process of adaptation to school. Such children also find it difficult to identify with a group, and for some of these schoolchildren the family is the only social group they would like to join and which would recognize them as members. Difficulties in the process of adaptation of these children to an educational institution are accompanied by a lack (full or partial) of social identification, which is a serious defect for younger schoolchildren.

First-graders, who formally belong to the norms, know the rules of behavior, but do not strive to follow them, because they believe that adults, focusing on these standards, do not value children highly. Often, a low assessment is not based on the child’s rejection, but on the high demands of adults; nevertheless, children who formally accept school rules tend to evaluate themselves as unsuccessful, incompetent, unnecessary, which causes them to have a negative emotional attitude towards requirements and norms, but not to the adults themselves. Such first-graders willingly obey the instructions of adults, but their lack of self-confidence and self-worth leads to a reduction in contacts with both adults and peers. Children accept and comply not only with the rules and requirements of behavior, but also with a general system of attitudes and evaluation criteria, although the emotional attitude towards them is rather negative and completely depends on the success of younger schoolchildren.

Manipulation of norms is typical for demonstrative, hostile children who are not satisfied with their position in the system of social relations. Reality does not always coincide with the high level of aspirations of these younger schoolchildren, so they develop tension and aggression as a means of defense in a traumatic situation. At the same time, asociality or disagreement with accepted rules of behavior, especially in the presence of a significant adult (teacher), often does not manifest itself openly. Behind the outwardly “correct” behavior lies an internal protest against excessive restrictions and rigid boundaries, which manifests itself in the desire to break the rule without any special consequences for oneself. Thus, children who manipulate norms know the rules and accept them as given, although they seek to circumvent or violate them in order to verify their own worth, attract attention, or receive a reward.

Open rejection of norms is manifested in their demonstrative disregard. Children who have a similar attitude towards rules are characterized by defiant behavior, open disagreement to follow norms, and pronounced demonstrativeness. In general, such schoolchildren are familiar with the rules of behavior, but do not want to comply with them, which often leads to conflicts in communication, since first-graders not only do not hide their negative attitude towards norms, but also strive to openly demonstrate. Many guys who reject rules have a pronounced need for dominance, inflated self-esteem and pretensions. If the child’s actual behavior does not correspond to accepted norms, he will most likely deny the rule, doubt the authority of the person who sets it, or emphasize the conditionality of this rule for himself (“let others do it, but I won’t”). In the future, this can lead either to the marginalization of the younger student, or to his entry into a new group, often antisocial, and deviant behavior.

A meaningful attitude towards school rules and their emotional acceptance contribute to successful adaptation to school if these rules are understandable and accessible to children. Too strict requirements and norms do not allow first-graders to express themselves and their abilities and gain the approval of a significant adult. As a result, an emotionally ambivalent attitude arises not only to specific rules, but also to general cultural and moral values that are set by adults. In principle, most children do not reject the norms themselves, but they also do not show a positive attitude towards them, which calls into question the process of appropriation and internalization of these rules.

Thus, mechanism of psychological adaptation helps the child cope with the situation in three ways:

reduce internal tension due to unconscious processing of information;
regain a state of psychological comfort through conscious and purposeful influence on the situation or on yourself (your thoughts, emotions, behavior);
ease anxiety, develop a certain stable attitude towards the situation.

Surely there are no parents who would not be interested in how their first-grader adapts to a new life - lessons at school. Contact with peers and the teacher, level of academic performance and interest in knowledge, fatigue and poor sleep - all these are elements of adaptation, that is, the student’s getting used to school.

What should adults know about the indicators of such adaptation, its features and their role in this process? Let's try to figure it out.

Indicators of a child’s good psychological adaptation to first grade are when he goes to school with joy, prepares his lessons with eagerness and patience, and regularly and sincerely tells his parents about all school events and activities. If the reaction to school is the opposite, then this is evidence of the first-grader’s poor psychological adaptation to school and a signal for parents, which indicates that the child needs their help.

Both dad and mom should delve into the problems that the first grader talks about. If he does not want to talk about school at all, then he should correctly find out the reasons for such reluctance, perhaps go to school and talk with the teacher.

During the adaptation period, you cannot raise your voice at a child, much less ridicule and shame him. Parents who at this time give examples of other students who cope better with the learning process are fundamentally wrong. After such comparisons, children, as a rule, withdraw into themselves even more and do not want to share their experiences and anxieties with their parents. And they can also harbor hatred for their classmates, who, according to their parents, cope with everything themselves at school, learn English, and go to music school.

Support and praise, a calm tone of communication with first-graders should be characteristic of their parents. Children, feeling the support of their parents, cope better with psychological adaptation and demonstrate, although not significant, success. They always need to be encouraged and noticed. The phrases “I’ll look later” or “I don’t have time” should not be in the vocabulary of parents of first-graders. Praise your child for what he has learned, what he has read, and what he has improved in.

Help your little student if he can't cope. Find time to show and explain, but do not do the tasks instead of the child. Build independence skills in him.

The physiological adaptation of a student to school is the physical adaptation of their body to a new rhythm and stress. This type of adaptation is divided into several stages:

Physiological storm. The period lasts the first two to three weeks. At this time, the child’s body responds to all stress and innovations with tension in all its systems. This means that the child spends most of the body's energy resources. This is precisely what explains the trend of frequent illness among schoolchildren in September, especially first-graders.
Unstable device. The child's body finds acceptable reactions to new conditions.
Relatively stable device. During this period, the first-grader’s body reacts to loads with less stress.

Both parents and teachers tend to underestimate the complexity of children’s physiological adaptation to school. And, nevertheless, according to the observations of doctors, many children lose weight by the end of the first quarter in the first grade, some experience a decrease (increase) in blood pressure and headaches. And these are clear signs of overwork, which are most often observed in the first quarter. The difficulty of physiological adaptation to school can also be manifested by the capriciousness of children.

Signs of a child’s successful adaptation to school are:

Satisfaction with the learning process: he feels good at school, he goes there with pleasure.
Successful mastery of the program. If it is traditional, and the student has difficulties in learning, then it is impossible to do without parental and, possibly, psychologist support.
The level of independence of a first-grader when completing tasks. Often parents show excessive zeal and control, and the habit of preparing homework together becomes permanent in the child.
Satisfaction with interpersonal relationships. This refers to contact with the teacher and classmates, which is very important for further success and support of the desire to learn.

Stress and child's adaptation to school

First-graders often experience stress during the period of adaptation to school. And children who did not attend kindergarten are especially susceptible to this. First-graders experience three types of stress:

Social. This is manifested in the formation of relationships with classmates and the teacher.
Intellectual. It manifests itself during intellectual stress and assimilation of new knowledge.
Immunological. At the age of seven, children experience physiological changes in their bodies, which in itself leads to fatigue and mood swings. And the consequence of this is diseases of strong and healthy children, which are sometimes provoked by the natural exchange of bacteria between classmates.

In order to alleviate all these types of stress, parents should follow certain recommendations developed by psychologists and pediatricians:

Dream. Seven-year-old children need to sleep 10-11 hours a day. At this age, especially in the first half of the school year, daytime naps are also possible.
Walking and physical activity. The best rest is a change of activity, so mental activity must be combined with motor activity. Enrolling in a swimming pool or sports club will help you cope easier with adaptation at school. Doctors advise first-graders to spend at least two hours a day in the fresh air.
Preparation of lessons should be carried out so that after 30 minutes of continuous classes there is a 15-minute break. The peak brain activity of children in first grade occurs between 9-12 and 16-18 hours. Parents need to take this time into account when organizing their daily routine.

Adaptation of children with mental retardation to school

Children with mental retardation will more easily adapt to the first grade if they are taught an educational program that matches their capabilities. We are talking about special correction programs.

Education of such children according to the programs of mass general education schools in most cases leads to school maladjustment, especially in the first year of study. School maladaptation is the inability of a student to master the program and behavioral disorders. Such a child perceives himself as a failure. Therefore, the leading role in the normal adaptation of such children to the first grade is played by the organization of their education according to a feasible educational program.

It should be noted that children with mental retardation, according to research, make up approximately 50% of underperforming first-graders. For such children, schools and classes for correctional and developmental education have been created.

Adaptation to a new school

Getting used to a new school, the need to change which is often due to family circumstances, is a strong emotional stress at any age. Moving to another school is always associated with many questions that concern the student: “How will I be perceived in the class?”, “Will I like the new teachers?” And at first the child will definitely compare the old school with the new. When friends remain there, it will not be easy for a student, even a successful one, to adapt. Therefore, attention and help in getting used to it are required from his parents.

You can, for example, invite new classmates home. Walking and spending time with them should be encouraged.

Differences in programs or requirements may be a problem. Therefore, parents at this time require support and patience, and attention to the child’s mood. It may be acceptable to relieve him of household duties during the adaptation period. If your student has become overly irritable, then treat this with understanding. Surely this is a protective reaction of the child’s body to stress.

If irritability worsens, the child shows aggression for several months, and does not want to talk about school, then you need to go to the class teacher or school psychologist (preferably both) and ask them for advice.

Adaptation to school after summer holidays

After a three-month vacation, it is much more difficult for children to get used to school than for adults to go back to work after vacation. In order for them to quickly get involved in the educational process, psychologists advise changing their daily routine from mid-August. It should be the same as in September. The child needs to go to bed earlier and get up accordingly at the time at which he usually gets up during school. In the second half of August, it is necessary to repeat the material covered in the last academic year and read more.

Over the summer, a child's hand becomes unaccustomed to writing, so it is necessary to write several dictations with the child. Let him write an essay at home about his holidays and his best impressions.

In the first days of September, give your student the opportunity to rest after school for an hour or an hour and a half. It is also important to monitor your son or daughter’s time in the fresh air.

A child's restless sleep at this time is a symptom of anxiety and fatigue. It would be a good idea to brew mint tea at night and spend some quiet time together in the fresh air. Make sure that an hour or two before bedtime, your student or student does not play too active, stimulating games.

Enhance your children's diet with vitamins in early September. Include more salads and fruits in your menu. Let your child eat a handful of nuts daily, which will help ease mental stress. Chocolate can also help with intellectual activity. But only black. Pamper your child!

Especially for - Diana Rudenko

The child goes to first grade. Why is it difficult for him to get used to school and how can his parents help him with this?

It seems like just recently you picked up your baby from the maternity hospital. And then the years flew by unnoticed, and it was time to take him to first grade. Joyful expectations, new impressions, elegant bouquets, white bows or bow ties – this paints a picture of a wonderful holiday for a first-grader. But the effect of novelty and charm in the unusual setting quickly wears off, and the child begins to understand that he came to school not for a holiday, but for study. And now the most interesting thing...

Suddenly you begin to notice that your previously obedient and kind child suddenly becomes aggressive, refuses to go to school, cries, is capricious, complains about the teacher and classmates, or collapses from fatigue. Of course, a loving parent immediately begins to sound the alarm: what to do about this? How to help your child get used to school? Is everything that is happening to him normal?

As always, there is no single answer to all these questions. After all, your child is a person, and he has his own individual characteristics, his own temperament, character, habits, health, and finally. Factors such as:

the child’s level of readiness for schooling - this means not only mental, but also physical and psychological readiness;
the degree of socialization of the baby - how well can he communicate and cooperate with peers and with adults, in particular, did he go to kindergarten?

How can you understand how successfully your child gets used to school?

Starting school is a serious event in the life of a little person. Essentially, this is his step, or even a leap, into the unknown. Try for a moment to put yourself in the shoes of your daughter or son, or, if possible, remember your first school experiences. Exciting, right? Even if mom and dad told the baby in as much detail and in advance about what awaits him at school, the first time will still be very unexpected for him. And the words “You will study there,” in fact, are unlikely to say very much to a 6-7 year old. What does it mean to study? How to do this? Why do I need this? Why can’t I, as before, play and walk with my mother and sisters and brothers? And this is only the first level of your child’s experiences.

This includes new acquaintances and the need to get used to new operating conditions. Do Masha and Vanya like me? What about the teacher? Why do I have to sit at the same desk with Vasya, who pulls my pigtails? Why does everyone laugh when I want to play with the car? Why should I sit for so long if I want to run? Why doesn't the bell ring for so long? Why, if I want to go home to my mother, am I not allowed?

It’s easy to guess what enormous intellectual, physical, and emotional stress children experience while adapting to school. And we, as loving parents, are simply obliged to help them get through this period as gently and painlessly as possible. It is for this reason that it is worth periodically trying to put yourself in the place of a child, learning to look from his bell tower, remembering how you felt when “the stars shone brighter and were big at home.” And give the baby exactly what he needs most now.

The baby needs time to get used to the new environment. Not one day, not one week and not even one month. According to the observations of experts, the average duration of adaptation to school is from two months to six months. Adaptation is considered successful if the child:

calm, in a good mood;
speaks well of the teacher and classmates;
quickly makes friends among peers in the class;
without discomfort and easily completes homework;
understands and accepts school rules;
reacts normally to the teacher’s comments;
not afraid of teachers or peers;
accepts the new daily routine normally - gets up in the morning without tears, falls asleep calmly in the evening.

Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Signs of child maladjustment may often be observed:

excessive fatigue of the baby, difficulty falling asleep in the evenings and equally difficult awakenings in the morning;
the child’s complaints about the demands of teachers and classmates;
difficult adaptation to the demands of school, resentment, whims, resistance to order;
as a result, difficulties in learning. With all this “bouquet”, it is simply impossible for a child to also concentrate on gaining new knowledge.

In such cases, comprehensive assistance from parents, a psychologist and a teacher is necessary. This way you can help your child go through this period in the most optimal way for him. But, for more conscious help from the baby, it’s a good idea to figure out what actually happens to him during the period of getting used to school?

First of all, let's deal with the increased physiological load on the baby. Educational activities require the child to maintain a relatively motionless posture throughout the lesson. If previously your child devoted most of his time to all sorts of activities - running, jumping, fun games - now he has to sit at a desk for several hours a day. Such a static load is very difficult for a six or seven year old child. The baby’s physical activity becomes actually half as much as before entering school. But the need for movement does not turn off so easily in one day - it still remains large and is now not being satisfied qualitatively.

In addition, at the age of 6 - 7 years, large muscles mature faster than small ones. In this regard, it is much easier for children to perform sweeping, strong movements than those that require greater precision - for example, writing. Accordingly, the child quickly gets tired from performing small movements.

The physiological adaptation of a first-grader to school goes through several stages:

“Physiological storm” is what experts call the first couple of weeks of school. All systems of the child’s body are greatly strained in response to new external influences, taking away a significant part of the baby’s resources. In this regard, many first-graders begin to get sick in September.
Then begins an unstable adaptation to new living conditions. The baby's body is trying to find the most appropriate reactions to the outside world.
And only then does the phase of relatively stable adaptation begin. Now the body already understands what is wanted from it and strains less in response to stress. The entire period of physical adaptation can last up to 6 months and depends on the child’s initial data, his endurance and state of health.

Parents should not underestimate the difficulty of the period of physiological adaptation of their child. Doctors say that some first-graders are losing weight by the end of October, and many are showing signs of fatigue, such as a decrease or increase in blood pressure. Therefore, there is nothing to be surprised when 6-7 year olds complain of a constant feeling of fatigue, headaches or other pains in the first two to three months of school. Children may become capricious, partially lose control over their behavior, and their mood may change dramatically and frequently. For many children, school itself becomes a stressogenic factor, because it requires increased stress and attention. As a result, by the middle of the day children are overtired, unable to fully relax. Sometimes children are already sad in the morning, look devastated, may complain of abdominal pain, and sometimes even morning vomiting occurs. If the baby also had some health difficulties before entering school, adaptation may not be easy. Remember this before you reproach your child for laziness and unwillingness to take on new responsibilities!

First of all, let's look at some of the psychological characteristics of a first-grader. By the age of 6–7 years, a greater balance is established between the processes of excitation and inhibition than before. But still, excitement still prevails over inhibition, which is why first-graders are generally very active, restless, and highly excitable emotionally.

After 25-35 minutes of the lesson, the child’s performance decreases, and in the second lesson it may generally decline sharply. With high emotional intensity of lessons and extracurricular activities, children can become very tired. All this must be taken into account by adults to help their child adapt.

Turning to developmental psychology, we can say that a new type of activity comes into a child’s life - educational. In general, the leading activities of a child are:

from 1 year to 3 years - object-manipulative game;
from 3 to 7 years - role-playing game;
from 7 to 11 years – educational activities, operational and technical activities.

On the basis of this new activity for the child, thinking moves to the center of consciousness. It becomes the main mental function and gradually begins to determine the work of all other mental functions - perception, attention, memory, speech. All these functions also become arbitrary and intellectualized.

Thanks to the rapid and constant development of thinking, such a new property of a child’s personality appears as reflection - awareness of oneself, one’s position in a group - class, family, assessment of oneself from the position of “good - bad”. The child takes this assessment from the attitude of those close to him. And, depending on whether his family accepts and encourages him, broadcasting the message “you are good”, or condemns and criticizes him - “you are bad” - the child develops a sense of psychological and social competence in the first case or inferiority in the second.

According to psychologists, no matter how old a child goes to school - at 6 or 7 - he still goes through a special stage of development, called the 6-7-year-old crisis. The former child acquires a new role in society - the role of a student. At the same time, the child’s self-awareness changes, and a revaluation of values is observed. Indeed, what was previously significant - play, walks - becomes secondary, and study and everything connected with it come to the forefront.

At the age of 6-7 years, the emotional sphere of the child changes radically. As a preschooler, the baby, experiencing failure or hearing unpleasant comments about his appearance, of course, was offended or felt annoyed. But such emotions did not radically influence the development of his personality. Now, all failures are tolerated by the child much more acutely, and can lead to the emergence of a persistent inferiority complex. In other words, the more often a child receives negative evaluations, the more defective he feels. Naturally, such an “acquisition” can negatively affect the child’s self-esteem and the level of his future aspirations and expectations from life.

In school education, this feature of the child’s psyche is taken into account, so the first grade of school is a priori non-grading - grades are not used when assessing the work of schoolchildren. But parents should also support their child in every possible way:

celebrate all the child’s achievements, even the most insignificant ones;
evaluate not the child’s personality, but his actions - instead of the phrase “you are bad”, say “you did not do very well”;  - when communicating with your son or daughter about failures, explain that this is temporary, support the child’s desire to overcome various difficulties.

Social and psychological adaptation of first-graders can proceed in different ways. There are three types of adaptation:

1. Favorable:

the child adapts to schooling during the first two months;
he enjoys going to school and is not afraid or insecure;
the child easily copes with the school curriculum;
he quickly finds friends, gets used to the new team, communicates well with peers, establishes contact with the teacher;
he is practically in an even good mood all the time, he is calm, friendly, and friendly;
he performs school duties without tension and with interest and desire.

2. Medium:

the time to get used to school lasts up to six months;
the child cannot accept the situation of studying, communicating with the teacher, peers - he can sort things out with a friend or play in class, reacts to the teacher’s comments with insults and tears or does not react at all;
The child has difficulty following the curriculum.

Usually, such children get used to school and adjust to the new rhythm of life only by the end of the first half of the year.

3. Unfavorable:

the child exhibits negative forms of behavior and may show negative emotions sharply;
the child is not able to master the curriculum, it is difficult for him to learn reading, writing, counting, etc.;

Parents, classmates, and teachers often complain about such children; they are capable of unpredictable reactions and can “interfere with working in class.” All this adds up to a whole range of problems.

Causes of socio-psychological maladjustment

Experts identify the following factors affecting socio-psychological adaptation:

inadequate demands from adults - teachers and parents;
situations of constant failure;
child's learning problems;
discontent, punishment, reproaches from adults;
a state of internal tension, anxiety, and vigilance in a child.

Such tension makes the child undisciplined, irresponsible, inattentive, he may lag behind in his studies, gets tired quickly and simply has no desire to go to school:

unbearable additional loads - various clubs and sections that gradually create stress and “overload” for the child; he is constantly afraid of “not being on time” and ultimately sacrifices the quality of all work;
rejection of schoolchildren by their peers. Such situations in turn give rise to protest and bad behavior.

It is important for all adults - both parents and teachers - to remember that bad behavior is an alarm signal. It is necessary to show additional attention to the student, observe him, and understand the reasons for the difficulty in adapting to school.

The issue of helping children get used to school painlessly and smoothly without compromising their health has never been more relevant. Experts recommend following simple tips:

Help your child get used to his new role as a schoolchild. To do this, it is necessary to explain to the child what school is, why study is needed, what rules exist at school;
Correctly build a daily routine for your first-grader. Daytime exercise must be consistent and constant, and take into account the child’s personal characteristics;
Discuss with your child the concepts of self-esteem, evaluation, and their various criteria: neatness, beauty, correctness, interest, diligence. Work with your child on ways to achieve all of this;
Teach your child to ask questions. Explain to him that asking is not at all shameful or shameful;
Develop your first grader's learning motivation. Tell him what education gives, what benefits he will receive and what he can achieve through successful studies. But, of course, be honest with him and, first of all, with yourself - no need to say that a gold medal will open the door to a carefree life. You yourself know that this is not so. But it’s still worth explaining that learning is interesting, important and necessary in order to later realize yourself in some business, right?
Teach your child to manage his emotions. This does not mean suppressing and hushing up your problems and fears. But the development of voluntary behavior is very important for every person. The student must be able to obey the rules when necessary, carry out tasks accurately, and listen carefully to assignments. Games according to the rules and didactic games can help with this - through them the child can come to an understanding of school assignments;
Teach your child to communicate. Communication skills will help him function normally in group activities at school;
Support your child in his attempts to cope with difficulties. Show him that you really believe in him and are always ready to help him if necessary;
Show genuine interest in the class or school your child goes to. Be sure to listen to your child when he wants to tell you something;
Stop criticizing your child. Even if he is bad at reading, counting, and writing, he is sloppy. Criticism from loved ones, especially in the presence of strangers, can only aggravate problems;
Encourage your child. Celebrate not only his academic successes, but also other achievements, even the most insignificant ones. Any supportive words from the parents will help the baby feel significant and important in the work he is doing;
Consider your child's temperament. Active children are physically unable to sit in one place for a long time. Slow people, on the contrary, have difficulty getting used to the difficult rhythm of school;
Stop yourself from comparing your child to other children. Such comparisons will lead either to increased pride - “I’m better than everyone!”, or to a drop in self-esteem and envy of others - “I’m worse than him...”. You can only compare your child with himself, his new successes with previous achievements;
Don't think that children's problems are easier than adults' ones. A conflict situation with a peer or teacher may be no easier for a child than a conflict between a parent and a boss at work;
When your child enters school, do not suddenly change family relationships. You shouldn’t say: “Now you’re big, wash the dishes and clean the house yourself,” etc. Remember, he already has enough stress from school right now;
If possible, do not overload the child during the adaptation period. There is no need to drag him straight into the sea of clubs and sections. Wait, let him cope with the new situation, and everything else will be done later;
Do not show your baby your anxiety and concern about his performance at school. Just be interested in his affairs without judging him. And be patient while waiting for success - it may not appear on the first day! But if you label your child as a failure, his talents may never emerge;
If your child is very sensitive about school, reduce the importance of school grades. Show your child that you value and love him, and not for good studies, but just like that, that is, of course;
Be sincerely interested in your child’s school life, but focus not on grades, but on his relationships with other children, school holidays, excursions, duty, etc.;
At home, create an opportunity for your child to relax and unwind. Remember - at first, school is a very serious burden for your child, and he really gets tired;
Provide your child with a friendly atmosphere in the family. Let him know that he is always welcome and loved at home, no matter what;
After class, take a walk with your child. Help him satisfy his need for movement and activity;
Remember that late evening is not for lessons! After class, give your baby a rest, and then do your homework for tomorrow as early as possible. Then the child needs full sleep;
And remember that the main help for a child is kind, trusting, open communication with parents, their love and support.

The most important– is the development in a child of a positive and joyful attitude towards life in general, and towards daily school activities in particular. When learning begins to bring joy and pleasure to the child, then school will cease to be a problem.

Autumn has begun, and many children have become first-graders. It would seem that both the kids themselves and their parents had been preparing for this moment for a long time. But the transition from kindergarten to school is usually associated with many different psychological problems.

This includes the inability to sit for a long time without moving, a change in routine, which causes irritability, nervousness, and increased moodiness. The period of adjustment can last quite a long time, especially if the parents not only do not help the child, but also constantly increase their demands, scold them for every mistake, and force them to rewrite their homework many times. If you do not come to the child’s aid at this moment, this may cause a persistent dislike for school activities, which will accompany the child throughout the entire period of schooling.

How to help a first-grader quickly adapt to school, read the advice from psychologists collected for you by the portal website

First-grader knowledge

TO first-grader knowledge Lately the demands have been too high. If previously children who could read before school were considered the smartest and could immediately take leading positions in academic performance, now the ability to read, know the entire alphabet, write and count have become a requirement when entering first grade. In addition, many schools began to conduct exams before entering school.

At such exams, the child must demonstrate his knowledge of logic, fluent reading skills, in which the child is simply obliged to read a certain number of characters per minute, and solve fairly complex mathematical examples and problems. If a child cannot cope, he may well not be accepted or his parents may be required to pay for education at this school. All this creates an extremely tense environment, both for children and for parents of future first graders.

Adaptation of first-graders to school

The speed of adaptation of first-graders to school. Parents must clearly understand the rule: no matter how strictly the teacher treats the child, at home the child should have the opportunity to relax and unwind. There should be constant goodwill and support here. Even if you know that the child is wrong, that he did not cope with some of the teacher’s requirements, at home he will always have the opportunity to be listened to and understood. In any case, this rule should apply during the first year of study. At this stage, his attitude towards school in principle is formed. Whether he will love the learning process or whether going to school will be accompanied by a desire to go to the nearest park - this directly depends on the current behavior of the parents and the formation of a positive attitude towards school in the child.

Adaptation program for first-graders

Adaptation program for first-graders can be divided into physiological, psychological and social. As for the physiological part of adaptation, it is unthinkable without a fairly clear daily routine, which should be as close as possible to the usual. You should not cancel daytime sleep if your baby is used to it. But even if he has not slept during the day for a long time, during this period, especially in the first two to three months of training, it is worth introducing at least short-term daytime rest. Try not to leave your baby in an extended group; he needs to relax in his usual home environment.

Walk with him longer, breathe in the fresh autumn air. The assigned homework should not be done immediately after returning home, but it should not be left until late in the evening. It is optimal to finish all lessons before the whole family gathers at home. First, you should help your child complete tasks. But as he gets used to it, try to leave him more time and space for independent studies, bringing everything only to the final check.

It is best to devote evening time to free time, games, and communication with household members. Before going to bed, teach your child to pack his briefcase for tomorrow and prepare his clothes. Your child should be put to bed early, even if this is not customary in your family. Adequate sleep helps to quickly restore the nervous system, cope with stress, and avoid the occurrence of diseases that are so characteristic of this period.

Psychological adaptation of first-graders

An indicator of psychological adaptation is the fact that a child goes to school with joy, prepares his homework with pleasure, and willingly talks about all the events that happen to him at school. The reverse reaction shows that the baby has not yet adapted and needs help.

Try to delve into all the problems that your child tells you about. You shouldn’t make fun of him, shame him, and even more so, cite him as an example of those children who cope better with the learning process. As practice shows, this only leads to irritation, reluctance to share their experiences with parents and hidden hatred of more successful classmates.

Try to praise your child more often, even the smallest and most insignificant successes. Remember that constant criticism convinces the child that he is a loser, that striving for success is useless, anyway, they are always unhappy with him. You shouldn’t look up to someone else, because everyone has their own abilities, talents, and character. Those parents and teachers who are trying to bring the entire children's team to the same level are wrong. Celebrate only your child's obvious successes. Praise that he learned something he didn’t know before, read better, wrote better.

Help him if he can’t cope with something, teach and show him, but don’t do everything for him, develop independent work skills.

Social adaptation of first-graders

Perhaps this is the most difficult stage, especially for those children who did not attend preschool. How to teach a child to get along with classmates, find friends, and avoid conflicts? After all, at school, unfortunately, the teacher mainly pays attention to the educational process, and only the most talented teachers pay attention to the atmosphere in the children's group.

Therefore, here, too, parents should come to the rescue. Listen carefully to all the complaints and requests of the child; perhaps this period is the most important in the formation of subsequent trust and the emergence of friendship between children and parents. Try not only to feel sorry for your child, but also try to find fair ways out of conflict situations. If necessary, meet with the parents of those children with whom your child communicates, draw the teacher’s attention to some points that worry or worry your child.

Always remember that only you can protect and protect your child, but also only you can teach him to respect and protect others.

Time frame for first-graders to adapt to school

Typically, the time it takes for first-graders to adapt to school ranges from three months to a year. Some people get used to school very quickly, others need more time. It all depends on the situation in the family, on the support of parents, on the atmosphere that will surround school activities.

If the child is praised, if he manages to do what is required, then the adaptation process will be much shorter and smoother. Do not regret the time and effort spent, because it is during this period that you lay down and form stereotypes associated with the learning process, which will affect the entire future life of your child.

Watch and listen to a psychologist’s opinion on how first-graders are adapting to school:

And here’s another story about how best to help your baby adapt quickly:

How to help hyperactive children go through the adaptation period faster:

Adaptation of first-graders to school.

First year of school - an extremely difficult, turning point period in a child’s life. His place in the system of social relations changes, his entire way of life changes, and his psycho-emotional stress increases. Carefree games are replaced by daily learning activities. They require intense mental work from the child, increased attention, concentrated work in lessons and a relatively motionless body position, maintaining the correct working posture. It is known that for a child of six or seven years old this so-called static load is very difficult. Lessons at school, as well as the passion of many first-graders for television programs, sometimes music and foreign language classes, lead to the fact that the child’s physical activity becomes half as much as it was before entering school. The need for movement remains great.

A child coming to school for the first time will be greeted new team children and adults. He needs to establish contacts with peers and teachers, learn to fulfill the requirements of school discipline, and new responsibilities associated with academic work. Experience shows that not all children are ready for this. Some first-graders, even with a high level of intellectual development, find it difficult to bear the workload that schooling requires. Psychologists point out that for many first-graders, and especially six-year-olds, social adaptation is difficult, since a personality capable of obeying the school regime, mastering school norms of behavior, and recognizing school responsibilities has not yet been formed. At the same time, it is in the 1st grade that the foundation of the child’s attitude towards school and learning is laid. In order for children to most safely pass this stage of their lives, their parents need to know and daily take into account the peculiarities of the mental and physiological state of children that arise when they begin school.

From the first days of school, the child faces a number of tasks that require the mobilization of his intellectual and physical strength. Many aspects of the educational process present difficulties for children. It is difficult for them to sit through a lesson in the same position, it is difficult not to be distracted and follow the teacher’s thoughts, it is difficult to do all the time not what they want, but what is required of them, it is difficult to restrain and not express out loud their thoughts and emotions that appear in abundance. In addition, children do not immediately learn new rules of behavior with adults, do not immediately recognize the teacher’s position and establish a distance in relations with him and other adults at school.

Therefore, it takes time for adaptation to school to occur, for the child to get used to new conditions and learn to meet new requirements.First 2-3 months after the start of training are the most difficult, the child gets used to a new way of life, to the rules of the school, to a new daily routine. The situation of novelty is to a certain extent alarming for any person. The child experiences emotional discomfort primarily due to the uncertainty of ideas about the requirements of teachers, about the characteristics and conditions of learning, about the values and norms of behavior in the class team, etc. This state can be called a state of internal tension, wariness, and anxiety. Such psychological stress, if long enough, can lead to school maladjustment: the child becomes undisciplined, inattentive, irresponsible, lags behind in school, gets tired quickly and simply does not want to go to school. Weak children (and, unfortunately, there are more and more of them from year to year) are the most susceptible to maladjustment. Some first-graders become very noisy, loud, distracted in class, and capricious. Others become very constrained, timid, try to remain inconspicuous, do not listen when adults address them, and cry at the slightest failure or remark. In some children, sleep and appetite may be disturbed, sometimes the temperature rises, and chronic diseases become worse. There may be an interest in toys, games, and books for very young children.

Regardless of how the school year begins, the adaptation process continues one way or another. The only question is how long it will take the child and the teacher to complete it and how effective this process will be. According to statistics, half of the children in the class adapt in the first half of the year; the second half require more time to get used to the new school life. Much depends on the individual characteristics of the child, whether he was psychologically ready for schooling, and it also depends on the state of the child’s health and the level of his physiological development. Adaptation to school is a multifaceted process. Its components are physiological adaptation and socio-psychological adaptation (to teachers and their demands, to classmates).

Physiological adaptation.

Getting used to new conditions and requirements, the child’s body goes through several stages:

1) The first 2-3 weeks of training are called a “physiological storm”. During this period, the child’s body responds to all new influences with significant tension in almost all of its systems, that is, children spend a significant part of their body’s resources. This explains the fact that in September many first-graders get sick.

2) The next stage of adaptation is unstable adaptation. The child’s body finds acceptable, close to optimal responses to new conditions.

3) After this, a period of relatively stable adaptation begins. The body reacts to stress with less stress.

Many parents and teachers tend to underestimate the complexity of the period of physiological adaptation of first-graders. However, according to medical observations, some children lose weight by the end of the 1st quarter, many experience a decrease in blood pressure (which is a sign of fatigue), and some experience a significant increase (a sign of fatigue). It is not surprising that many first-graders complain of headaches, fatigue and other ailments in the 1st quarter. Manifestations of difficulties of adaptation and overstrain of the body can also be the capriciousness of children at home and a decrease in the ability to self-regulate behavior.

Socio-psychological adaptation.

Regardless of when a child starts school, he goes through a special stage of his development - the 7 (6) year crisis.

The social status of the former child changes - a new social role “student” appears. This can be considered the birth of the child’s social “I”.

A change in the external position entails a change in the self-awareness of the 1st grade student, and a reassessment of values occurs. What was important before becomes secondary, and what is relevant to learning becomes more valuable.

During the period of 6-7 years serious changes occur in the child’s emotional sphere. In preschool childhood, when faced with failures or receiving unflattering comments about his appearance, the child, of course, felt resentment or annoyance, but this did not dramatically affect the development of his personality as a whole. During the crisis period of 7 (6) years, the child’s intellectual development, his developed ability to generalize, entail a generalization of experiences. Thus, a chain of failures (in studies, in communication) can lead to the formation of a stable inferiority complex. Such “acquisition” at the age of 6-7 has the most negative impact on the development of the child’s self-esteem and the level of his aspirations.

This feature of the psyche of children is taken into account in school education - the first year of school is non-evaluative, that is, grades are not used when assessing the work of students, more emphasis is placed on a qualitative analysis of their activities. Parents should also take into account the generalization of experiences when communicating with their son or daughter: notice all the slightest achievements of the child, evaluate not the child, but his actions, talking about failures, note that all this is temporary, support the child’s activity in overcoming various difficulties. To optimize the adaptation period of first-graders, they need to be helped to get to know each other, with teachers, with the new learning situation, with the school and school rules.

It is especially important for parents of first-graders:

help the child get used to the position of a schoolchild (therefore it is important to show the difference: a schoolboy is not a schoolchild). To form a “student’s internal position,” which is a fusion of cognitive needs and the need to communicate with adults at a new level. To do this, you need to talk with the child about why he needs to study, what school is, what rules exist at school. It is very important for a first-grader to feel accepted into the school family. For successful schooling, a child must be sufficiently confident in himself, in his strengths, his capabilities and abilities. A positive image of himself as a schoolchild will give him the opportunity to better adapt to changing living conditions and firmly take the position of a schoolchild, and will also form an emotionally positive attitude towards school;

build a schoolchild's daily routine. Create a school day routine with justification for its sequence;

introduce the concept of assessment, self-esteem and its various criteria: correctness, accuracy, beauty, diligence, interest and develop together with the child ways how all this can be achieved.

teach the child to ask a question (not so much in a procedural sense, but in the sense of determination);

develop in children the ability to control their emotions, that is, the development of arbitrary behavior. The student must be able to consciously subordinate his actions to the rule, listen carefully and accurately carry out the task proposed orally and according to a visually perceived model. Didactic games and games according to the rules can help him with this. Many children can only come to an understanding of many school tasks through play.

develop learning motivation. Educational motivation consists of cognitive and social motives for learning, as well as motives for achievement.

develop communication skills. Communication skills will allow you to act adequately in collective learning activities. Mastering methods of educational activity requires students to be able to look at themselves and their actions from the outside, to objectively evaluate themselves and other participants in joint collective activities. You should not be surprised if, after some time, parents of children who have not had a variety of experience communicating with their peers are faced with their reluctance to go to school, as well as complaints that everyone is offended by them, no one listens, the teacher does not like them, etc. n. It is necessary to learn to respond adequately to such complaints. First of all, show your child that you understand him, sympathize with him, without blaming anyone. When he calms down, try to analyze the causes and consequences of the current situation together, and discuss how to behave in the future in a similar case. Then you can move on to discussing how you can improve the situation now, what steps to take to make friends and win the sympathy of your classmates. It is necessary to support the child in his attempts to cope with the difficulties that have arisen, to continue going to school, and to show sincere faith in his capabilities.

Signs of successful adaptation:

Firstly, it is the child’s satisfaction with the learning process. He enjoys school and has no insecurities or fears. The second sign is how easily the child copes with the program. If the school is regular and the program is traditional, and the child is experiencing difficulties in learning, it is necessary to support him in difficult times, not to criticize unnecessarily slowness, and also not to compare him with other children. All children are different.

If the program is complex, and even involves learning a foreign language, carefully monitor whether such a load is excessive for the child. It is better to correct this in time, otherwise health problems will begin. Maybe in another class, with less workload, the child will feel more comfortable?

It is very important at first to instill in the student confidence in success, not to let him succumb to despondency (“I won’t succeed!”), otherwise you will struggle with apathy for a very long time.

The next sign of successful adaptation - this is the degree of independence of the child when performing educational tasks, the readiness to resort to the help of an adult only AFTER attempts to complete the task himself. Often parents are too eager to “help” the child, which sometimes causes the opposite effect. The student gets used to preparing lessons together and does not want to do it alone. Here it is better to immediately define the boundaries of your help and gradually reduce them.

But the most important sign, in our opinion, that a child has fully settled into the school environment is his satisfaction with interpersonal relationships - with classmates and the teacher.

Parents often scold their child because he returns late from school, that his friends often call him “for unrelated reasons,” and that he spends too much time going for walks. However, it would be good to remember that during this period the first grader is actively establishing contacts, looking for his place in the children's environment, learning to cooperate with other children and accepting help. Help him in this difficult matter! The entire period of his schooling depends on what niche your child will occupy in the distribution of social roles.

Separately, it is necessary to say about the relationship with the teacher.

First teacher - This is an important person in the life of your entire family. It would be good to immediately establish close contact with her, listen to her advice, offer help in organizing holidays and general affairs - after all, any of your participation in school life will benefit your child. Your son or daughter will have a reason to be proud of you!

Be sure to agree on the requirements so that the child does not suffer from your disagreements with the teacher. If you are not satisfied (or simply do not understand) the teaching method, ask the teacher to explain its features and advantages over other teaching methods. We think that any teacher will do this willingly, because he is interested in seeing you primarily as assistants, not critics.

Thus, we can say that the main indicators of a child’s favorable psychological adaptation are: the formation of adequate behavior, establishing contacts with students, the teacher, and mastering the skills of educational activities. The joint efforts of teachers, educators, parents, doctors, and psychologists can reduce the risk of a child experiencing school maladaptation and learning difficulties.

What knowledge should a future first-grader have?

In the area of speech development and readiness to master literacy, it is necessary:

Be able to clearly pronounce all speech sounds;

Be able to isolate a given sound in a stream of speech;

Be able to determine the place of a sound in a word (at the beginning, in the middle, at the end);

Be able to pronounce words syllable by syllable;

Be able to compose sentences of 3-5 words;

Be able to use generalizing concepts;

Be able to write a story based on a picture;

Distinguish between genres of fiction (fairy tale, short story, fable, poem);

Be able to consistently convey the content of a fairy tale.

In the field of development of elementary mathematical concepts:

Know all numbers from 0 to 9;

Be able to compare numbers from the top ten;

Be able to correlate the number and number of objects;

Be able to compare two groups of objects;

Be able to compose and solve one-step problems involving addition and subtraction;

Know the names of the shapes: triangle, square, circle;

Be able to compare objects by color, size, shape;

Be able to operate with the concepts: “left”, “right”, “up”, “down”, “earlier”, “later”, “in front”, “behind”. "between";

Be able to group the proposed objects according to a certain criterion.

In the field of ideas about the surrounding world:

Be able to distinguish by appearance plants common in our area and

name their distinctive features;

Be able to distinguish between wild and domestic animals;

Be able to distinguish birds by appearance;

Have an idea of the seasonal signs of nature;

Know the names of the 12 months of the year;

Know the names of all days of the week.

In addition, a child entering first grade must know:

What country does he live in; - what city;

Home address;

Full names of your family members;

Have general concepts about various types of their activities;

Know the rules of behavior in public places and on the street.

First time in first grade!

Admission to school - An extremely important moment for a child.

The start of school radically changes his entire lifestyle.

The carelessness, carelessness, and immersion in play characteristic of preschoolers are replaced by a life filled with many demands, responsibilities and restrictions: now the child must go to school every day, work systematically and hard, follow a daily routine, obey various norms and rules of school life, fulfill the requirements of the teacher, engage in the lessons that are determined by the school curriculum, diligently complete homework, achieve good results in studies...

Psychological readiness for schooling

Components

psychological readiness

Content characteristics

Intelligent

readiness

Having a broad outlook and stock of knowledge.

Formation of initial skills in educational activities.

Differentiation of perception as the basis of thinking.

Planned perception.

Developed visual-figurative thinking.

Good orientation in space and time.

Good memory.

Intellectual activity (the ability to transform educational

task into an independent goal of activity).

Development of phonemic hearing.

Development of fine motor skills (use of a pencil, pen,

scissors, drawing skills).

Prerequisites for abstract-logical thinking.

Personal readiness

(motivational readiness)

Positive attitude towards school, teachers, educational

activities, to oneself.

Development of cognitive criteria, curiosity.

Developing a desire to go to school.

Voluntary control of one's behavior.

Objectivity of self-esteem.

Socio-psychological

readiness

Flexible mastery of ways to establish relationships

(ability to establish contact with the teacher, with peers,

the ability to enter a children's team and find one's place in it).

Development of the need for communication.

Ability to obey rules and regulations.

The ability to act together and coordinate your actions.

Emotionally - strong-willed

readiness

Development of "emotional anticipation" (premonition and

experiencing long-term consequences of one’s activities).

Emotional stability (emotion regulation).

Voluntary regulation of attention.

The ability to prolong actions by putting effort into it.

Maintaining performance during one lesson and in

during the school day.

Don't let your child get bored during class. If a child is interested in learning, he learns better. Interest is the best of motivations; it makes children truly creative individuals and gives them the opportunity to experience satisfaction from intellectual activities.

Try to show the need for each knowledge

Connect new knowledge with already acquired and understood knowledge

Repeat the exercises. The development of a child's mental abilities is determined by time and practice. If an exercise doesn't work out for you, take a break, return to it later, or offer your child an easier option.

Don't be overly concerned about lack of success and little progress.

Be patient, do not rush, do not give your child tasks that significantly exceed his intellectual capabilities.

When working with a child, moderation is needed. Do not force your child to do the exercise if he is fidgeting endlessly, tired, or upset.

Try to determine the limits of your child’s endurance and increase the duration of classes by a very short period of time each time.

Avoid disapproving evaluation. Never emphasize his weaknesses in comparison with other children. Build his confidence in his abilities.

Try not to perceive working with your child as hard work, be happy and enjoy the communication process, and never lose your sense of humor.

Memo to parents of first-graders

1. Support your child’s desire to become a schoolchild. Your sincere interest in his school affairs and concerns, a serious attitude towards his first achievements and possible difficulties will help the first grader confirm the significance of his new position and activities.

2. Discuss with your child the rules and regulations he encountered at school. Explain their necessity and feasibility.

3. Your child came to school to study. When a person studies, he may not succeed in something right away, this is natural. The child has the right to make mistakes.

4. Create a daily routine with your first grader and ensure that it is followed.

5. Do not overlook the difficulties that a child may have at the initial stage of mastering academic skills.

6. Support your first grader in his desire to succeed. In every job, be sure to find something to praise him for. Remember that praise and emotional support (“Well done!”, “You did so well!”) can significantly increase a person’s intellectual achievements.

7. If something worries you about your child’s behavior or his academic affairs, do not hesitate to seek advice and advice from a teacher or school psychologist.

8. When you enter school, a person more authoritative than you appears in your child’s life. This is the teacher. Respect the first-grader's opinion about his teacher.

9. Teaching is difficult and responsible work. Entering school significantly changes a child’s life, but it should not deprive it of diversity, joy, and play. A first grader should have enough time for play activities.