In preschool, numbers and shapes typically appear as separate topics. This study explores how a game, designed as a guided play activity with figurate numbers, functions in a preschool context. The guided play involved parking Lego cars in a rectangular shape, and to find out for which number of Lego cars this is possible. Thirteen preschool…

The aim of this study was to investigate in what ways children's language development could be supported from the staff at Swedish preschools in the 'Tambour situation' (the transition time at the preschool's reception area). The support of Physical Language Learning Environment and Language Learning Interactions were observed for children (1-5…

In the present study we focus on physical touch that is judged to be just outside what is considered to be 'normal'. We explore how preschool teachers describe and explain situations where educators give children too much or too little touching. Semi-structured interviews have been conducted with 30 qualified preschool teachers working in Swedish…

This article is based on data generated in an ethnographic study of gender in a Swedish preschool. Drawing on Judith Butler's understanding of performativity and (un)doing of gender, a new theoretical concept, "situated decoding of gender," is further developed by showing how the material and spatial dimension of the educational practice…

This article reports the Swedish results and experiences from the survey study "Educators' perspectives of belonging in early years education," which was part of the research project "Politics of belonging: Promoting children's inclusion in educational settings across borders". The purpose of the survey study was to gain…

According to the Swedish Preschool Curriculum, one of the tasks of the preschool is to pass on a cultural heritage, its values, traditions and history, language and knowledge, from one generation to the next. The formulation indicates that cultural heritage plays an important role in defining the tasks of preschool teachers as far as the…

This study investigates preschool student teachers' views on how early writing should be supported in preschool. The sample consists of 66 preschool student teachers from Finland, Norway, and Sweden, who participated in the study by responding to open-ended questions on a written questionnaire. Results show that the respondents' answers were…

During the last decade, the Swedish School-age Educare has been the object of multiple government-enforced reform initiatives in order to clarify its purpose and increase educational quality and equivalence. In 2019, a teacher certification reform was imposed on the educational programme, concretizing responsibilities between categories of staff…

The framing of news promotes certain interpretations. The representation of a problem in public media thereby affects the idea of what to do about that problem. This article analyses discourses about child sexual abuse (CSA) in preschools, occurring in Swedish printed media 2014-2015, and interprets the effects that the discourses may have on the…

In this qualitative study, we explore teachers' perspectives on spatiality, school design and school bullying. The study is part of a larger, ongoing ethnographic research project into the relations between school bullying and the institutional context of schooling being conducted in schools in Sweden, focusing on the perspectives of teachers and…

This paper presents and discusses the findings of a collaborative investigation into Nordic approaches to evaluation and assessment in early childhood education and care. The project explored values and principles that underpin and guide evaluation in ECEC systems and practices in five Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and…

Caring for children and teaching the youngest students have a strong historical connection to women and femininity. The few men working within early childhood education and care occupy an ambivalent position. On the one hand, they often receive a positive reception in preschools; on the other, they are also met with mistrust and suspicion. The…

This article focuses on the need for increased attention to content issues and working methods for science teaching in Early Childhood Education (ECE). Science education research emphasises the importance of not only focusing on specific phenomena, but also on the Nature of Science (NOS). NOS teaching deals with questions about what science is,…

Modern preschool education is seen as an essential foundation for nurturing children's digital literacy. Early childhood education environments have witnessed increased emphasis on integrating programming activities in combination with digital tablets. However, little is known about how preschool teachers implement programming as part of…

The focus of this study is to examine seven municipalities that, in different ways, are working to recruit more men to work in preschools. The aim of the study is to identify different ways of working to recruit more men to work in preschools and to effect a change in the gender imbalance among the working staff in preschools. Relational agency is…