3.19. FEATURES OF ART AND AESTHETIC ACTIVITY OF PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Artistic and aesthetic activity is a spiritual and practical activity, emotional and rational human activity, the content of which is shaping, and the goal is to harmonize oneself, the world and one’s own relations with the world. Art and aesthetic activity is an activity aimed at the aesthetic education of children of preschool age by means of art. Aesthetic education is a purposeful process of forming a creatively active person, capable of perceiving, feeling, understanding, evaluating the beautiful in life and art; raising a child’s desire to participate in transforming the world around him, introducing himself to artistic activities, as well as developing creative abilities.

Aesthetic education contributes to the enrichment of sensory experience, the emotional sphere of the personality, affects the knowledge of the moral side of reality, increases cognitive activity, develops the child’s creative abilities. It is carried out in various types of creative activity: graphic, musical, constructive, literary, labor, etc. In the process of aesthetic education, the aesthetic development of the child takes place.

Aesthetic development is the process of formation and improvement of aesthetic consciousness, attitude to the aesthetic activity of a person. In the process of aesthetic education, aesthetic feelings develop - the subjective experience of an evaluative attitude towards aesthetic objects and objects. In the process of artistic and aesthetic activity a child develops an aesthetic taste - the ability to judge the beautiful or ugly by the feelings of pleasure or displeasure experienced from an object or phenomenon. Taste is manifested in the aesthetic evaluations of a person and depends on the general culture of the individual, the development of his mind, feelings.

Aesthetic evaluation is a value attitude of a person to certain phenomena and images, comparing it with aesthetically normative ideals. This is the ability to judge the aesthetic advantages and shortcomings of objects and phenomena on the basis of its comparison with the norms and ideals developed by mankind. The aesthetic ideal is a socially determined concept of perfection, beauty, nature, and art.

The goals of artistic and aesthetic education: the development of the individual’s readiness for perception, mastering, evaluation of aesthetic objects in art and reality; improvement of aesthetic consciousness; inclusion in harmonious self-development; the formation of creative abilities in the field of art, spiritual, physical culture.

Based on its goals, the tasks of aesthetic education of preschool children are highlighted:

- development of aesthetic perception, aesthetic emotions, feelings, attitudes and interests;

- the formation of an elementary aesthetic consciousness;

- the formation of aesthetic activity through the introduction to the different types of art;

- development of aesthetic and artistic and creative abilities.

The tasks of artistic and aesthetic education are inextricably linked and ensure the harmonious development of the child.

The content of the aesthetic education of preschool children includes the study of elements of the theory of aesthetics; systematic communication with the artistic culture; organized participation in artistic creation. The content of aesthetic education is presented in the “Program of education and training in kindergarten” in the following blocks: fiction (introducing children to highly artistic literature, creating a stock of literary and artistic impressions); visual arts (development of the ability to visual activity); artistic decorative activity; music (listening to music, playing musical instruments).

The process of aesthetic education is carried out with the help of certain means: aesthetics of life, nature, various types of art; (decorative and applied, musical, painting, literature, architecture, theater).

All the aforementioned means of aesthetic education are effective both by themselves and in relationship. When selecting means, the educator relies on the specifics of the tool itself, its potential pedagogical abilities, takes into account the nature of the task for which the tool is chosen, and, of course, takes into account the age and individual characteristics of development.

Each group of tasks of aesthetic education correspond to its own methods. The first group of methods is aimed at introducing children to art, developing aesthetic taste in preschoolers, understanding the beautiful. The leading methods for solving these problems are: display, observation, explanation, analysis, example of an adult. The second group of methods is aimed at developing the skills of artistic activity . Practical methods are used as lead tutors : show, exercise, explanation, modeling, joint-separate activity. The choice of forms, methods and means of artistic and aesthetic education of preschoolers is determined by the goals, objectives, age and individual characteristics of children.