Tactile memory: characteristics and developmental features

Sometimes, to cheer yourself up, it is enough to stroke your beloved cat, hold your hands by the fireplace, or, conversely, cheer up by dipping your fingers into cold water. This opportunity is given to us by tactile memory. Do not underestimate it, since this type of memory appears one of the first and persists throughout life.

Tactile memory or body memory remains with a person after he physically comes into contact with anything. It is also called tactile memory. It is well developed in everyone, because the first tactile memories we get in infancy. - the warmth of mother's hands gives a feeling of safety, the first contact with a sharp needle activates the instinct of self-preservation, and the brain remembers that sharp is a potential danger.

And if most of us do not even think about how it works, since tactile memory works "in the background", then there are people for whom this type of memory is vitally important. First of all, we are talking about the blind or visually impaired. For them, tactile memory is an alternative to vision.

Such memory is of great importance. For example, it is very helpful for those who quickly type on the keyboard. Over time, they develop a brilliant tactile memory, which allows them to perform these actions almost blindly. When driving a car, tactile memory often helps us, especially in unforeseen driving situations. For athletes, this ability is a significant contribution to future Olympic victories.

If their tactile memory is well developed, then once they touch a hot kettle, they no longer touch it. And when they come across a sharp corner, the next time they try to get around it. Psychology textbooks say that children with good tactile memory learn better, have richer imaginations and developed speech.

Even in the 2nd century BC, wise Chinese understood that the activity of the hands and fingers affects the functioning of the brain, moreover, it allows to achieve a psychological balance between the mind and the physical shell. The Japanese found convincing evidence of this. It was in the Land of the Rising Sun that they discovered that there are many active points on the palms., electrical impulses from which are quickly transmitted directly to the central nervous system.

Modern physiologists assure that the activity and sensitivity of the hands is directly related to the development of the central nervous system. For example, the famous psychiatrist Vladimir Mikhailovich Bekhterev noted in his writings that simple exercises with the hands help relieve mental fatigue and stress. As for children, according to the scientist, fine motor skills help to improve the pronunciation of many sounds and develop the vocal apparatus. Another prominent scientist, the famous teacher Vasily Aleksandrovich Sukhomlinsky wrote that "the mind of a child begins with the fingers."

So how does this type of memorization work? Information that a person, including a very small one, receives tactilely, instantly enters the cortical region of the brain and begins to interact with other parts of it. Especially with the visual center, as well as the area that is responsible for muscle sensitivity. As a result, we get this type of memorization and can distinguish objects by touch.

Analyzing all of the above, it can be argued that an adult needs to develop tactile memory only in the event of an emergency in life, for example, in the event of a sudden loss of vision. And here it is vital for a child to do this, and regularly.

And it develops in babies much better than in adults. In this regard, experts strongly recommend that you engage in the development of tactile memory with them. This should be done at least once a day. For this, special exercises are suitable.

There are many ways to develop tactile memory in a child. Let's consider just a few examples.

This technique is suitable for children who already have drawing skills. It can be used both in group and individual lessons. Invite your child to touch this or that object with closed eyes, and then draw what he "remembered" with his own hands.

Such a game requires preliminary preparation of props, although if you wish, you can buy it in the store, since now there are plenty of outlets with educational toys. Various materials are glued onto small pieces of cardboard or planks: fabric, wool, plastic, and so on. The child's task is to identify the material with closed eyes. Another type of identification exercises - the child must guess what the object is filled with. Offer him a choice of a ball, a plush toy, a wooden cube.

For this game you need to bring several kids together. You can play it both in kindergarten and organize a training game as entertainment during children's parties. Participants are given cards with the name of the subject and its description written on them. For example, a wooden chair, an iron fence, a hot iron, and so on. The child's task is to describe the object that came across to him, without naming it directly, so that other children can guess it from the story.