Abstract:

The article examines the possibilities for integration of information technologies (IT) into Kindergarten. The psychological specificity and the level of children’s opportunity to perceive the world in the age group 3-6 year are taken into account.
Still the question of integration of technologies into the Kindergarten is disputable. The computer should support the management of knowledge in different educational fields, making the process interesting for the child. It should be used just as an educational tool for achieving a specific educational purpose in certain direction. Facilities of kindergartens in Bulgaria significantly limit the degree of integration of technologies into the learning process. In the best case, there are one multimedia projector and one or two computers available. The digital skills of teachers are at very low level in average.
The use of IT in Kindergarten is determined by several factors. The pre-school period is the time when main habits and values that last lifetime and determine human behavior are formed. During this period, the new generation in addition to basic health and hygiene rules has to form some rules concerning IT.
Kindergarten children are characterized by concrete and figurative thinking. Nowadays teachers still use mainly paper technologies. The power of new technologies for providing visual resources is used at very low level. The cognitive activity of children in Kindergarten is a process of active interaction with objects or phenomena on the basis of games and practical activities. The implementation of educational software with appropriate games and multimedia exercises creates a smooth transition from playing to learning and leads to stimulation of cognitive interests.
Based on the analysis of theory and practice, the authors developed the multimedia system “Znayko” for implementation into the learning process into Kindergarten. The system is created to support learning in different educational fields and follows the content of the most popular educational system for Kindergartens in Bulgaria, approved by the Ministry of Education, the system “I will be a student”.
The structure of the system “Znayko” includes four modules that can be used in dynamic way. The first module is Games. There are some educational games, classified in age groups and in themes. The second module is Presentations – interactive multimedia presentations, created on particular themes. The third module is Whiteboard – exercises for use with interactive whiteboards. The fourth module is Multi-mouse – collection of variety of tests created with Mouse Mischief software.
The system Znayko was approbated in practice. The system is implemented through frontal work with the whole group of pupils. The teacher uses a laptop, multimedia projector, low cost interactive whiteboard and five to six computer mice, depending on the concrete situation.
The opportunities provided by the information technologies are limitless and constantly developing. Their proper use could contribute for the increasing of pupils’ knowledge and motivation in learning at the pre-school period. Technologies integrated teaching and learning based on effective combination between paper-based educational system and multimedia package, following the interdisciplinary approach and game-based educational process gives a solid foundation for learning about the world and prepares pupils to deal with real life at 21st century.

Keywords:

Informational technologies, Kindergarten, Multimedia.