Conditions for the formation of cognitive and metacognitive skills in children 8 years old

The study examined the possibilities of improving cognitive skills associated with the actions of reasoning and comparison, and metacognitive skills associated with the reflection of ways to solve problems in children of 8 years old. It was assumed that the author's non-educational program "Thinking" would create conditions for the implementation of the noted opportunities. The children of the experimental group mastered the school curriculum of the second grade and participated in 16 additional group lessons (weekly, from February to May). Children in the control group mastered only the school curriculum. The results of solving diagnostic tasks indicate that the children of the experimental group demonstrate significantly higher results than the children of the control group. The study showed that the "Thinking" program contributes to the improvement of cognitive and metacognitive skills in children of 8 years old.