Psychological task #1. Yura s father gave him the following problem: Kolya is older than Sergey, and Sergey is older

1. Yura needed matches to solve this problem because he used them as a visual representation or a concrete manipulative to help him understand the relationships between the boys. By breaking two matches into pieces of different sizes, Yura was able to visually represent the relative ages of the boys. Each match piece then represented a boy, with the larger piece representing the older boy and the smaller piece representing the younger boy.

2. This example illustrates several aspects of the child"s mental actions:

a) Concrete Operational Thinking: Yura"s use of matches as a visual representation indicates his ability to think in concrete, tangible terms. He is able to manipulate the matches to represent the relationships between the boys and understand the problem in a more tangible way.

b) Spatial Reasoning: By breaking the matches into different sizes, Yura is able to mentally organize the boys in a spatial manner. He can arrange the match pieces in a way that reflects the age differences between the boys, allowing him to identify the youngest one.

c) Problem Solving: Yura"s use of matches demonstrates his problem-solving skills. When faced with a challenging problem, he was able to come up with a creative solution by using a concrete manipulative to aid his thinking process. This shows his ability to think outside the box and find alternative methods to solve problems.

d) Logical Reasoning: Yura"s solution also highlights his logical reasoning abilities. By deducing the relative ages of the boys based on the sizes of the match pieces, he was able to make a logical inference about who the youngest boy is.

In summary, Yura"s use of matches in this problem reflects his concrete operational thinking, spatial reasoning skills, problem-solving abilities, and logical reasoning skills. It shows how children can use concrete manipulatives to aid their understanding and problem-solving capabilities.