There are incredibly many educational activities for preschoolers today, but it is not so easy to seat children who have already mastered a smartphone: they lack perseverance. Microlearning can help solve this problem. Neuropsychologist Polina Kharina talks about the new trend.
Children under 4 years old cannot yet keep their attention on one thing for a long time. Especially if we are talking about a learning task, and not a fun game. And it is all the more difficult to cultivate perseverance today, when children use gadgets literally from the first year of life. Microlearning helps to solve this problem.
This way of learning new things is one of the trends of modern education. Its essence is that children and adults receive knowledge in small portions. Moving towards the goal in short steps — from simple to complex — allows you to avoid overload and solve complex problems in parts. Microlearning is built on three basic principles:
- short but regular classes;
- daily repetition of the material covered;
- gradual complication of the material.
Classes with preschoolers should not last longer than 20 minutes, and microlearning is just designed for short lessons. And it’s easy for parents to devote 15-20 minutes a day to children.
How microlearning works
In practice, the process looks like this: let’s say you want to teach a one-year-old child to string beads on a string. Divide the task into stages: first you string the bead and invite the child to remove it, then you offer to string it yourself, and finally you learn to intercept the bead and move it along the string so that you can add another one. Microlearning is made up of such short, sequential lessons.
Let’s look at the example of a puzzle game, where the goal is to teach a preschooler to apply different strategies. When I propose to assemble a puzzle for the first time, it is difficult for a child to connect all the details at once to get a picture, because he does not have experience and knowledge. The result is a situation of failure, a decrease in motivation, and then a loss of interest in this game.
Therefore, at first I assemble the puzzle myself and divide the task into stages.
The first stage. We consider a picture-hint and describe it, pay attention to 2-3 specific details. Then we find them among others and put them in the right place in the hint picture. If it is difficult for a child, I suggest paying attention to the shape of the part (large or small).
The second stage. When the child copes with the first task, in the next lesson I choose from all the details the same as last time, and turn them over. Then I ask the child to put each piece in the right place in the picture. If it is difficult for him, I pay attention to the shape of the part and ask if he is holding it correctly or if it needs to be turned over.
The third stage. Gradually increase the number of details. Then you can teach your child to assemble puzzles on their own, without a picture-hint. First, we teach to fold the frame, then the middle. Or, first collect a specific image in a puzzle, and then put it together, focusing on the diagram.
Thus, the child, mastering each stage, learns to use different techniques and his skill turns into a skill that is fixed for a long time. This format can be used in all games. By learning in small steps, the child will master the entire skill.
What are the benefits of microlearning?
- The child does not have time to get bored. In the format of short lessons, children easily learn those skills that they do not want to learn. For example, if a child does not like to cut and you offer him to do a short task every day, where you need to cut out only one element or make a couple of cuts, then he will learn this skill gradually, imperceptibly to himself.
- Studying “little by little” helps the child get used to the fact that studies are part of life. If you study every day at a certain time, the child perceives micro-lessons as part of the usual schedule and gets used to learning from an early age.
- This approach teaches concentration, because the child is completely focused on the process, he has no time to be distracted. But at the same time, he does not have time to get tired.
- Microlearning makes learning easier. Our brain is arranged in such a way that already an hour after the classes end, we forget 60% of the information, after 10 hours 35% of what has been learned remains in memory. According to the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve, in just 1 month we forget 80% of what we have learned. If you systematically repeat what has been covered, then the material from short-term memory passes into long-term memory.
- Microlearning implies a system: the learning process is not interrupted, the child gradually, day by day, moves towards a certain big goal (for example, learning to cut or color). Ideally, classes take place every day at the same time. This format is perfect for children with various developmental delays. The material is dosed, worked out to automatism, and then becomes more complicated. This allows you to fix the material.
Where and how to study
Today we have many different online courses and mobile applications that are based on the principles of microlearning, such as the popular English learning apps Duolingo or Skyeng. Lessons are delivered in infographic formats, short videos, quizzes and flashcards.
Japanese KUMON notebooks are also based on the principles of microlearning. The tasks in them are arranged from simple to complex: first, the child learns to make cuts along straight lines, then along broken, wavy lines and spirals, and at the end cuts out figures and objects from paper. Building tasks in this way helps the child always successfully cope with them, which motivates and develops self-confidence. In addition, the tasks are simple and understandable to young children, which means that the child can study independently.