The modern rhythm of life, stressful situations arising at work and in the family often lead a person to a bad mood and overstrain. The result of this condition is often depression. In order to avoid this situation, psychologists advise to learn how to relax. At the same time, it is recommended to use various means of meditation and relaxation. With adults, everything is clear. And what if a young child is over-excited and over-stressed, who finds it difficult to calm down after active communication and games?
One of the problems of childhood
The child’s nervous system is far from perfect. This is especially true for babies up to three years. It is difficult for children of this age to exercise control over the processes of inhibition and excitation of the nervous system. This can explain the troubled infant sleep, as well as problems with sedation after active games. First of all, this applies to excitable children.
Keeping the right daily routine
There are various ways to calm an excitable child. One of them is the organization of wakefulness and sleep patterns. Active children are sometimes difficult to put to bed on a specific schedule. In such a situation, it is important to create for the baby the conditions of a certain daily rhythm. It is important to carry out all meals and walks at the same hours. In addition, in the period that precedes the rest, there should not be active classes. Only then will the child get used to a certain regime.
Physical education and massage
Everyone knows about the benefits of these two components. However, massage and physical education are often lazy or simply forgotten to be used in everyday life. Sport is especially important when raising an active child. Thanks to physical culture, the baby intellectually develops. Sport educates him as a person. Alternating physical and intellectual exercises or their harmonious combination is very useful for young children.
Important for the child and relaxing massage. Knowing the technique of such manipulations, when exposed to certain points, you can in a certain way control the emotional state of the baby. Especially miraculous is the massage of piles. They should be kneaded with a little effort and “draw” eights on them. The main thing is to find the moment when the child will lie, and not try to run away in search of any activity.
Aromatherapy
Smells have tremendous power. Some of them are able to inspire, while others, on the contrary, upset. Fragrances affect the sense of smell of a child in the same way as an adult. However, not all sedatives are suitable for a little man. In children's practice, essential oils of lemon balm and chamomile, sage and rose are used. But when using them, caution is required. So, you should not apply undiluted oils directly to the skin of the child, especially if he is not yet three years old. The most harmless way to use such tools are aroma lamps.
Relaxation
The workload of modern preschoolers is sometimes amazing. They attend kindergarten, various clubs and sports sections. Receiving a large amount of information, children get tired both physically and emotionally. Moreover, they always need to be in time. The stresses experienced by the children's body adversely affect its health. That is why relaxation exercises are used in working with preschoolers . What is this
Relaxation came to us from abroad. In the 30-40s of the last century, the muscle relaxation technique was developed and applied by the psychologist from America E. Jacobson, as well as the neuropathologist from Germany I. Schulz. The basis of this technique is the fact long ago proven by science that there is a certain relationship between our body and mind. It is known that in a state of stress in a person, muscle tone increases. There is also feedback. Relieving mental stress is possible with a decrease in muscle tone. This is relaxation. It can be either involuntary or arbitrary. The second type of relaxation is possible when performing certain exercises.
The meaning of relaxation
What is relaxation for children? This is the best way to relieve stress (nervous, physical and mental), as well as relaxation, which eliminates the irritation factor.
Very useful relaxation for children. After performing special exercises, the child becomes calm and balanced. He begins to become more aware of his feelings. Relaxation exercises for children play a big role. Toddlers begin to control their own actions and emotions, and also take control of their feelings. Relaxation allows the little man to concentrate and relieve excitement.
Relaxation exercises for children are recommended for all preschoolers. But they are especially important for those who are prone to frequent diseases, as well as anxious, excitable and hyperactive.
Muscle relaxation exercises are performed by psychologists working with children. Such classes are part of a wellness course. But at the same time, simple playful relaxation for children can be used by educators or parents. Relaxation in this case is caused by special gaming techniques, each of which, as a rule, has a figurative name (this can captivate children). Toddlers perform relaxation exercises, not only copying the movements of the educator. Children transform and enter the image set by him. New games are able to interest the child, which allows him to relax well. The effect of the lesson is immediately noticeable by a calm facial expression, rhythmic and even breathing, etc.
Relaxation for preschool children is extremely important. Daily exercises included in the regime of the day allow you to achieve a more calm and balanced state. In children, increased irritability and anger, excessive anxiety and fears, as well as tension, are eliminated.
The principle of muscle relaxation
What is E. Jacobson's method based on? The principle of this relaxation is quite simple. It is based on the ability of muscles to relax after intense tension. Such relaxation for preschool children is available in the simplest form of play. Exercises include alternating tension of various muscle groups. At the same time, relaxation of the whole body is very effectively achieved, which has a beneficial effect on the body.
Many sets of exercises have been developed, with the help of which relaxation is carried out for preschool children. You can relax the muscles of the face and shoulder girdle, body and neck. As a rule, they take one or two exercises from a certain block. Five to seven minutes are allotted to complete the entire complex.
Relaxation exercises
In order to emotionally discharge the child, offer him various games. Below you can find a description of some of them.
- "A game with a sand." The child should sit on a stool, resting on his back. He must imagine that he is on the bank of a river with loose and cool sand. The kid, closing his eyes, should take a deep breath as if to draw him into a fist. Fingers need to be squeezed as tight as possible. In this position, the child should sit for a while. When exhaling, imaginary sand must be slowly "poured" onto your knees. At the end of the exercise, hands should be “dropped” along the body.
- "Pipe." This exercise will allow the baby to relax the muscles of the face. The child must imagine that he is holding a pipe in his hands. To “play” the instrument, the baby needs to be invited to draw as much air as possible into the lungs, and then stretch out his lips with a tube and pronounce a long “oooh” sound.
- "Sunny Bunny." Performing this exercise also helps to relax facial muscles. The kid should imagine that the ray of the sun "walks" on his face. First, a bright "bunny" jumps on his eyes - they need to be squeezed. Then the ray moves to the cheek, forehead, nose, mouth and chin. This playful "bunny" the baby needs to be affectionately stroked.
- "Icicle". When performing this exercise, relaxation of the muscles of the whole body is achieved. An adult invites kids to imagine themselves in the role of an icicle, closing their eyes and standing up with hands up. In this position should be one to two minutes. Then the children are invited to imagine how slowly the icicle melts, warmed by warm sunlight. In this case, the hands should be relaxed, and then the muscles of the neck, shoulders, trunk and legs. At the same time texts for relaxation can be applied. For children, this "game" will be most interesting. So, during this exercise, the teacher is invited to say the following words: “An icicle hangs under the roof of our house. The sun will warm, it will melt and fall. ”
- "Stroll". When performing this exercise, children sit on chairs. For muscle tension, they should raise their legs and, without touching the floor, “run” and “walk”. And at this time texts for relaxation can be used. For instance:
We gathered for a walk. Hurry up, keep up!
Everyone ran a little, our legs got tired.
We will not sit long, but then we'll see.
The texts used for relaxation should help the baby in creating the necessary image, which will allow him to most effectively relax.
The use of special equipment
From a very young age, every child is familiar with the ball. This item serves him for games and entertainment. Currently, manufacturers offer a fairly wide selection of balls, diverse in quality, size and color. More recently, a new proposal has appeared on the consumer market - a fitball ball, the diameter of which can leave from 45 to 70 centimeters. With its help, relaxation is carried out for preschool children. With a ball-fitball, kids begin to practice from the age of four to five. In this case, programs that produce a healing effect can be used. The main goal of the exercises is:
- strengthening the musculoskeletal system;
- improvement of motor function of the joints;
- creating a strong muscle corset.
All this, in turn, allows you to develop the emotional-volitional and intellectual sphere of the child. In the applied complex of exercises there may be those that contribute to relaxation and relaxation. For example, a child sits on the side of the ball, hugs him with his left or right hand and puts his head on it. This position should be fixed for ten to fifteen seconds.
Relaxation for preschool children can also be done with alternating tension and muscle relaxation. The child should sit on the floor, pressing as much as possible, as well as clasping the ball with his hands and feet. This position must be maintained for eight to ten seconds. Then the child should relax.
Relaxation and music
Currently, the number of children having various forms of disturbance in the psychoemotional sphere has significantly increased. The reason for this is the limitation of the circle of communication of preschoolers and their focus on computers and televisions. Invaluable help in educating the baby and improving his mental health is provided by music. Even the ancient healers noted her ability to heal a person from various ailments. For example, the sounds of a violin cheer up, a flute can help with coughing, and viola melodies eliminate neuroses.
Music has a truly fantastic ability to regulate the child’s psycho-emotional state. It helps to overcome feelings of discomfort, expressed by fear, insecurity, confusion and fear. Contributes to this and the music of nature. Relaxation is achieved by listening to the rustling of leaves and birdsong, the sound of rain and the murmur of a stream. These sounds relieve the baby from anxiety and fears. They give him confidence and a good mood. Experts recommend combining calm melodies and sounds of nature. Relaxation is most effective.
Relaxation before bedtime
Young children love to listen to fairy tales. Often, parents read them before bedtime. However, this does not always help to quickly lay the baby. The kid begins to make assumptions and ask a lot of questions. In order to prevent this from happening, special relaxing tales are needed. Relaxation for preschool children before bedtime is carried out with them. Such tales have no meaning. The plot of them is quite simple and very understandable for the child. The fairy-tale character in such stories should always want to sleep and sleep soundly at the end. The narrator’s voice is monotonous and smooth. It calms and relaxes the baby. He disconnects from his surroundings and falls asleep.
It’s not at all difficult to come up with a relaxation tale. You should only follow some rules:
- the child should know the main character of the tale well and love it;
- the text of the story is compiled using simple sentences;
- important repetitions of words that contribute to peace and relaxation;
- at the end of the tale, the protagonist must fall asleep;
- the narrator’s voice must be quiet.
If you tell the same relaxation tale many times, then the child will develop a conditioned reflex that allows him to quickly and calmly fall asleep. Much more effective relaxation comes to a soothing melody, as well as to the sounds of nature.
All of the above recommendations will help to “fight” even with very active kids. An important point in this case is the internal state of an adult, which any child certainly feels.