From the author: the article was published in the newspapers "Energia" of the Balakovo NPP, the city newspaper "Essence" If a child is 6 years old, is it time to go to school? Among the future first-graders, there are also those who are only 6 years old, but whose parents have decided that it is time to take their child to school. You can hear from parents that their child can read and count to one hundred or more, but... The ability to read and write is certainly important, but not the most important sign of a child’s readiness for school. The main indicator is whether a six-year-old child has reached a certain level of physical and psychological readiness. When making a general diagnosis of psychological readiness for school, it is necessary to take into account the level of physiological development and state of health of the child, since they form the foundation of school activities. It is known that modern children in terms of height and intellectual capabilities are significantly ahead of their peers of the 60-80s and almost any six-year-old person is capable of learning. However, the results of a study of the psychophysiological development of children 6-10 years old showed that at the age of six, almost half of boys and a third of girls do not achieve the development necessary for schooling. This age period has some physiological characteristics that make schooling difficult. It is precisely at this age that the first period of “lengthening” occurs, when the rapid growth of bones outstrips the development of the muscular system, but the ossification process is not yet completed, and this also applies to the bones of the wrist and phalanges of the fingers, and this is important to know and take into account when organizing working with children. Incorrect posture, prolonged work at a desk, prolonged graphic exercises - all this can lead to poor posture, curvature of the spine, deformation of the writing hand, and the child may experience pain in the limbs. And, finding himself at a school desk during this period, a six-year-old child quickly gets tired, his attention is depleted, and as a result, poor learning of school material. At this age, he is not yet able to concentrate for a long time, and high motor activity makes it difficult to maintain the necessary working posture. He needs to change classes within 20-25 minutes, and the break should be at least 10 minutes of active activity, which, unfortunately, is not provided for in a regular school. And inactivity and a low level of physical activity of a child negatively affect learning. In addition to the level of physical development, psychological readiness should also be taken into account, which includes: - motivational or personal readiness; - social and psychological readiness; - volitional readiness; - intellectual readiness; - sufficient level of development of visual-motor coordination. Briefly about these components. If there is personal or motivational readiness, the child must have a desire to go to school, that is, in the language of psychology, there must be motivation to learn or motivational readiness. In this regard, a child who is attracted to school not only by its external aspects, but also by the opportunity to gain new knowledge, is ready for school. There is even a “Cognitive Need” test, which helps parents determine the level of cognitive need in a child. Social and psychological readiness is characterized by the well-formed social position of the student: that is, he must be able to interact with peers, fulfill the requirements of an adult (teacher), and control his behavior. Main a feature of volitional readiness is the ability to manage one’s behavior, whether this concerns behavior in the classroom, where one has to work according to a plan, or in communication with peers, where there are also certain rules, that is, when one is required to do not only what one wants, but also what is needed, showing volitional effort. The child begins to understand the importance of moral behavior, he develops self-esteem, and a sense of responsibility is formed. Intellectual readiness includes sufficient