Question for a psychologist. In modern society, many mothers strive to ensure that their child learns to count, write, play musical instruments, etc. as early as possible. Is this right or wrong and why? Of course, every loving parent strives to ensure that his child was the smartest and most developed, but here it is important to know that everything has its time. Any development has its own periods that we will not be able to jump through, and if we do, the child may not have time to acquire those necessary skills that are acquired in each specific period. Of course, in preschool age, this is, first of all, play activity, play as a way of interacting with objects at an earlier stage of development and play as the ability to build communicative connections with peers, as a kind of learning the rules of interaction between people. And this is by no means less important than training. In the preschool period, it is important to develop hand motor skills, proper physical development, teaching the child to follow a routine, etc. Sometimes children who have learned to count can, of course, amaze those around them, but most often they cannot apply this knowledge in practice. For example, a child who can count to one hundred at the age of 3-4 is unlikely to be able to say which number is greater than 35 or 78. It is important for parents to understand that the correct comprehensive cognitive development of a child requires not only daily care for his physical development, but also care for his psycho-emotional well-being. Basically, the development and maintenance of the last factor depends not on the kindergarten teachers, but on his close people, and, most importantly, on his mother. By playing and listening to fairy tales, a child acquires a unique experience of orientation in the external, visible world, which cannot be acquired in any other activity. The child learns self-expression and spontaneity. He comprehends the world in his own way, which is most understandable and accessible to him. We teach a child to draw when he has actually been drawing for a long time and, what is also important, he understands his drawings. He learns to fantasize and invent based on the knowledge, skills, and materials that he has. There is another side to the issue. A very developed child among his peers may remain unaccepted due to his personal characteristics, and older children will treat him like a child. And then he simply will not have a social circle, friends, friends. We must not forget about the leading activities of the preschool period that must be completed, and without which there will be no normal development of the child’s intellectual and mental spheres, thinking and emotional development will not be correctly formed. Strive not to achieve success, but to ensure that your life made sense. Albert Einstein Love your children and be happy! Psychologist Yulia Khramkova