Smilies, emojis, stickers... Why is it difficult for children to express their emotions: the opinion

Modern children's children's lives have moved into the Internet space: they actively use smartphones, write messages on social networks, and communicate on forums. According to statistics, 92% of smartphone users use emojis in everyday communication. Emoticons have become a substitute for an emotional, lively reaction to events and situations. Tatyana Smirnova, head of the circle of the Zelenograd family center of the Department of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Moscow, talks about the use of stickers, Discord Emojis, and emoticons affects the cognitive development of a child.

"You will be surprised, but it was the primitive emoticons, rock art of our distant ancestors that became the engine in the development of the speech of a reasonable person," says the specialist. "But with the development of social networks, the desire to communicate briefly, quickly, and at the same time emotionally began to dominate the beauty and ornateness of direct speech. This was helped by bright emojis and stickers, reflecting a different range of emotions, filled with various characters and heroes."

On the one hand, using graphic icons in a text message simplifies people'speople's lives: it saves time, softens intonation, and makes the text more conversational. But behind these virtues, there is a real threat to educating the younger generation, who does not know how to express their thoughts. Smiles and emojis are contagious because they do not teach us to work on ourselves and develop speech. For a child whose vocabulary is not so extensive and lacks the skill of using epithets, and metaphors that adorn human speech, this can become a barrier to the development of all cognitive functions.

"He does not know how to talk. He answers in monosyllabic phrases. All we hear from him is "norm" or "ok," " Irina, the mother of a 14-year-old teenager, shares her experiences. "In literature and the Russian language, we are underachieving!"

It is difficult for a child who does not practice speaking to write correctly and colorfully. Therefore, using emoticons, many mask their illiteracy. The way out of the situation may be a teenager's participation in a theater studio since memorizing a text, retelling, and tongue twisters develop the basics of an artistic presentation of his thoughts.

Pay attention to the following points in your child's use of emojis and emoticons.

I know of limits. Do not overload text messages with emojis. 5-6 characters are enough for a post.

Emoji is not a substitute for a word! Try to encourage your child to use words, not allowing him to replace terms with emoticons. One sticker can mean several emotions. Explain that the reader may generally misunderstand the meaning of the message and the author's attitude to the subject of discussion.

Stickers as helpers. Use icons to separate text, highlight a title, or show emotion.

They were using, developing. If your child likes to use symbols, then make them a stimulus for spoken language development. Here are just a few exercises.

Encrypt the titles of movies, books, and tongue twisters with emoji symbols. Let the child try to solve them. This is an excellent reason to re-read books, speak tongue twisters, and have a good time in live communication.

""Sticker text"". Compose text from emoticons, stickers, and emojis. Let the child tell a connected text based on a graphic image. Discuss how correctly. Conveyed the message's meaning, it is emotional coloring and tone. Only by example can a child understand and appreciate all the risks of the uncontrolled use of such alluring emoticons and emojis.

"Stickers have become a part of communication, but it is in our power to make them a tool for the development of children," Tatyana calls. "Make your child's life more interesting, fill it with real events and situations, stimulate success in life, and then no, even the brightest set of stickers will replace the felt emotions of happiness, joy, inspiration."