Using an intersectional analysis, this article critically analyses implied and expressed norms to identify perceptions of appropriate behaviour in children's play, and to explore how social communicative arenas such as Internet forums construct knowledge and values. Adults' responses to an incident that occurred amongst a group of children in…

This paper provides a discourse analysis of 12 Swedish sexuality education texts intended for preschool practitioners and published between 1969 and 2021. Using Fairclough's framework, we identify three discourses about children's sexual play in relation to children's sexual agency in the texts: child sexuality as encouraged and entangled with…

Digital devices such as iPads are prevalent in children's play from an early age. How this shapes young children's play is an area of considerable debate without any clear consensus on how different forms of play are brought into the iPad interaction. In this study, we examined 98 play activities of children in two preschool settings, featuring 2…

The aim of this paper is to study teachers' roles in preschool children's mathematical reasoning using analysis of epistemological moves. Three moves were identified: instructional moves, confirming move and a new move, concluding move. There were no generative moves encouraging the children to produce different arguments for choice of strategy or…

Collaboration is an important aspect of social activity associated with young children's digital gameplay. Children organise their participation as they communicate with and support one another, through sharing knowledge and problem-solving strategies, displaying their expertise, encouraging others and creatively exploring possibilities for…

Purpose: Preserving and caring for nature in a sustainable way has long been part of Swedish preschool practice. However, recently has it been explicitly referenced in the Swedish preschool curriculum with the goal of incorporating sustainability holistically and coherently in all areas of children's daily preschool experiences through play, care,…

This study presents an analysis of a video observation of three six-year-olds interacting in front of a synthesizer in a Swedish preschool and using a new music technology ("MIROR-Impro"). It investigates how a musical role-play unfolds as an intermediate activity when there is a malfunction with the set-up of the technology and how it…

This study, which is part of a larger longitudinal ethnographic study of young deaf children, reports on deaf children's use of fingerspelling. The children observed were early signers using Swedish Sign Language (SSL) in communication with teachers and peers. This study centres on the functions of fingerspelling in the children's everyday…

Educational software in the form of games or so called "computer assisted intervention" for young children has become increasingly common receiving a growing interest and support. Currently there are, for instance, more than 1,000 iPad apps tagged for preschool. Thus, it has become increasingly important to empirically investigate…

This article sketches out a philosophy and practice of open listening, linking open listening to Bergson's (1998) concept of creative evolution. I draw on examples of small children at play from a variety of sources, including Reggio-Emilia-inspired preschools in Sweden. The article offers a challenge to early childhood educators to listen and to…

Swedish leisure-time centres were formerly part of Swedish social and family policies but were transferred to an educational context in the 1990s. This transfer was accentuated by both the Education Act of 2010 and the new teacher training established in 2011, which also included education particularly directed for leisure-time centres. The…

This article reports a meta-analysis based on a multiple case study of the use of learning study (LS) to understand children's learning in Swedish preschool. The aim is to investigate whether and how the LS model can be developed, adjusted and used to meet contemporary demands placed upon preschool teachers for increased content focus and improved…

The aim of this article is to describe how field studies can be useful in teacher education. While participating in a specialty area called "Play, learning and development," student teachers collected data about their own and young children's experience and perception of the outdoor environment. They observed, carried out interviews from…

Based on Vygotsky's theory amongst others that play reflects different aspects of children's development and culture, this thesis explores in depth how aesthetic activities can influence children's play and the nature of the connections between play and culture, primarily in the aesthetic forms of drama and literature. The thesis also presents…

A translation of parts of a Swedish study conducted in 73 full-day and 42 part-day Swedish preschools is presented. Although official Swedish policy maintains that the two types of preschool should have the same social and educational goals, Swedish public opinion holds that full-time preschools are mainly caretaking schools, and part-time…