The problem of reflection of magnitude can not be considered only as a problem of perception. Equally, it should be considered as a problem of thinking

Cognition of the magnitude is carried out, on the one hand, on a sensory basis, and on the other - mediated by thinking and speech. Adequate perception of the value depends on the experience of practical operation of objects, the development of the eye, the inclusion in the process of perception of the word, the participation of thought processes: comparison, analysis and synthesis.

To form the most elementary knowledge of the magnitude, it is necessary to formulate concrete ideas about objects and phenomena of the surrounding world.

Orientation of children in the value of objects is largely determined by the eye measure - the most important sensory ability. Development of the eye is directly related to the mastery of special methods of comparing objects. First, the comparison of objects along the length, width, height of the children is done by practical application and application, and then based on the measurement. The eye, as it were, generalizes the practical actions of the hand.

The very word magnitude is not clear to children, since they rarely hear it. When the attention of the children is drawn to the size of the subject, the educators prefer to use the same words, the same ones that are multivalued, so they should be supplemented with the word denoting the feature by which objects are compared (find the same in size: length, width, height,).

Selecting this or that particular dimension, the child seeks to show it (runs a finger along the length, divorced hands shows the width, etc.). These survey actions are very important for a more differentiated perception of the magnitude of the subject.

Inability to differentially perceive the value of objects significantly affects the designation of words of objects of different sizes. Most often, children use words "big - small" with respect to any subjects. This is due to the fact that the adults surrounding the children often use inaccurate words to indicate the size of objects (a large ruler instead of a long one).

The value of perception in the life of a preschool child is very great, since it creates a foundation for the development of thinking, promotes the development of speech, memory, attention, imagination. A well-developed perception can be manifested in the form of a child's observation, his ability to notice features of objects and phenomena, details that an adult will not notice. In the senior preschool age the child learns to distinguish between the parameters of quantities, their properties, learns the verbal description, the use of properties of objects in different types of activity. At this time, he mastered the receptions of perception of more complex phenomena.

The magnitude of the object, that is, the size of the object, is determined only on the basis of comparison. It can not be said whether it is a large or a small object, it can only be compared with others. The perception of magnitude is curved from the distance from which the object is perceived, and also from the magnitude of the object with which it is compared. The farther the object from the one who perceives it, the less it seems to him, and vice versa, the closer - the more it seems.

The characteristic of the size of the object also depends on the location in space. One and the same thing can be characterized as high (low), then as long (short). It depends on whether it is in the horizontal or vertical position.