Development of spatial perception in primary school-aged children with development delay using a neuropsychological approach

Spatial perception is an important component of mental development and a marker of a child's cognitive abilities. Insufficient development of spatial functions in older preschool and primary school-aged children leads to difficulties in mastering writing, reading, counting, and understanding logical-grammatical speech constructions and temporal relationships. The issue of developing spatial perception becomes particularly important in case of a child's development delay. The research purpose is to evaluate the effectiveness of using a neuropsychological approach to overcome the underdevelopment of spatial perception in primary school-aged children with development delay. The sample consisted of 10 students in the 2nd grade (age 8–9) of a general education school with an inclusive form of education based on Federal Adapted Basic General Education Program for Primary General Education (Variant 7.2). All children had a confirmed diagnosis of development delay (F80–F89). The experiment methods are neuropsychological methods of diagnosis and correction. The research results confirm the conceptual approach to the level structure in the organization of spatial perception: from the child's understanding of the boundaries of their own body and its schema to the acquisition of complex quasi-spatial speech constructions. The research reveals the functional immaturity, unevenness, and specificity of the development of spatial and temporal perception in each of the subjects. The results analysis allows determining both the development level and the stage at which the child's spatial representations were delayed. This enabled to identify the potential of each child and outline the directions for correction based on the principles of morphogenesis and functional genesis, systemic approach, reliance on preserved forms of activity, and individual and personal characteristics of the child.