This research aims to increase knowledge about how preschool teachers in three Nordic countries view their preschool’s physical and psychological literacy environment regarding read-alouds. A total of 222 Nordic preschool teachers (52 Finnish, 91 Norwegian, and 79 Swedish) responded to a survey about early literacy practices. Likert-scale questions that contained statements about teachers’ views of the physical literacy environment and methods of reading aloud were used. Scales indicating a physical and psychological literacy environment were created based on statements that reflected the respective literacy environment. The results revealed that the teachers, on average, rated their preschool’s physical literacy environment positively. Their attitudes towards the psychological literacy environment were, on average, high regarding reading aloud as an opportunity for meaning-making and even higher for language-stimulating interaction. The attitudes towards reading aloud to organise everyday activities scored very low on average, which was a somewhat unexpected finding.There were some statistically significant differences in the measures between countries and groups, such as educational level. Emphasising high-quality literacy environments as early as for one- to three-year-old children is discussed as being essential in preschool teacher training and in-service training.

This study investigates early childhood education and care (ECEC) teachers’ reported practices and views regarding children’s invented writing. A total of 222 teachers from Finland, Norway, and Sweden responded to a questionnaire on their practices regarding invented writing activities and rated statements on a Likert scale. The data were analyzed quantitatively with descriptive statistics, and open answers were analyzed qualitatively using content analysis. The results showed that few teachers arranged daily writing activities and that writing was especially uncommon with children aged three years and younger. A dominant view expressed was that children needed to be of a certain age for writing to be relevant and that the children were simply too young. The writing that did take place focused on letters and children’s names. Although most teachers reported that the alphabet was visibly displayed in their ECEC units, few teachers had included writing materials in play settings. However, some teachers reported physical and social learning environments that engaged children in invented writing. We believe that the latter teachers’ accounts indicate a didactic approach in Nordic ECEC that could serve as a starting point for future investigations regarding the didactics of invented writing in ECEC.

«Lek uten vokseninvolvering er verdifullt, og barna skal absolutt få leke selv, men iblant må personalet være med skriver» innleggsforfatterne.

There is previous research about play in preschool teaching (Pramling et.al, 2019). However, in the preschool class (6-years) this is a new research field. The purpose of the study is to contribute with knowledge about strategies for incorporating play in teaching when to learn written language. With increased focus on knowledge in early childhood education, there is a risk that play and creativity is neglected and that the gap between play and teaching increases in the preschool class. A crucial question for preschool class teachers is what children’s play means for learning and teaching, a question that is of international interest. Theoretically, the study builds on Play-Responsive Early Childhood Education and Care (PRECEC). Central to PRECEC is communicative patterns where children and teachers shift between culturally established knowledge (as is) and fantasy (as if).

The study is a combined research and development project. Teachers in two preschool classes together with a researcher, work on developing strategies for incorporating play in teaching. The empirical data consist of video observations which were generated by the teachers themselves with focus on literacy activities. Interaction analysis has been used to clarify the communicative patterns between children and teachers. The study has been ethically reviewed by the Ethics Review Authority and follows prevailing research ethics principles (Vetenskapsrådet, 2017).

The results show how children in the teaching activities not only engage in as-if and as-is thinking, but also in what-if thinking. The results clarify how the pupils are engaged in the literacy activity through imaginatively playing with how it could have been different (what if it were…). By using what-if thinking the teachers support the pupils to elaborate questions and play with ideas to develop problem solving abilities, which is important for children appropriating the cultural tools of written language.

Preschool teachers’ read-aloud and writing practices were investigated using a questionnaire about how activities were planned and organized, and what their purpose was. The results indicate that early literacy practices were not planned systematically. Most of the preschool teachers (77%) reported having storybook read-alouds at least three times per week. A large minority (45.5%) reported never or seldom using writing activities, and rarely in play. The main aims of read-alouds were to promote learning and development, create a sense of community, and regulate group activities. The main aims of writing practices were to learn about letters, understand the function of print, and arouse interest in writing. We discuss the implications of these findings in relation to a need for a didactic approach, where play is the core of early literacy practices.

The article reports a study where teachers in the preschool class, together with a researcher, incorporate play in teaching. Theoretically, the study builds on Play-Responsive Early Childhood Education and Care (PRECEC). Central to PRECEC is communicative patterns where participants (children and teachers) shift between, and relate, culturally established knowledge (as is), fantasy (as if), and prospective thinking (what if). Data consist of video observations of written language activities. The aim was to contribute knowledge about how pupils can become involved in a letter activity and how prospective thinking is actualized and responded to. The pupils were engaged through imaginatively playing with the idea of how something could be different and thereby become familiar with, and begin to appropriate, the cultural toolbox that the written language constitutes. The result shows how different forms of prospective thinking appear in the activity and how the pupils practice creativity, solve real problems, get involved in problem solving, find their own solutions and formulate new questions and solutions.

Hur kan lek och undervisning integreras och bilda en helhet i det dagliga arbetet i förskolan? I Den lekande undervisande förskolläraren ges många och rika exempel på hur en ny teori som benämns som Lekresponsiv undervisning (LRU) omsätts och formar det vardagliga arbetet i förskolan. Teorin har utarbetats i ett praktiknära forskningsprojekt i samarbete med förskollärare, utvecklingsledare och rektorer från förskolor och forskare från universitet och högskolor.

I denna bok är det förskollärare, speciallärare och rektorer som själva träder fram som aktörer i sin profession och ger ett unikt bidrag till hur lekresponsiv undervisning omsätts i praktiken. De medverkande författarna ingår i Nätverket för utvecklings­pedagogik, förskoleforskning och praktikutveckling. Redaktörerna Maria Magnusson, Linnéuniversitetet och Ingrid Pramling Samuelsson, Göteborgs universitet har båda deltagit i forskningsprojektet men är också aktiva i nätverket.

Boken vänder sig till både förskollärarutbildning och till förskolans professionella.

This study investigated teachers’ self-reported read-aloud practices in multilingual early childhood education and care (ECEC) classrooms in Finland, Norway, and Sweden. A total of 170 ECEC teachers participated in a survey about read-aloud practices. Data on literacy practices were analyzed quantitatively, and reasons for read-aloud approaches were qualitatively analyzed. The results showed that the ECEC teachers reported overall similar read-aloud practices regardless of the number of multilingual children in their classrooms; still, some degree of difference in didactic choices was found. Thirty-eight percent of the teachers chose a different book when reading to multilingual rather than monolingual children. Their reasons included a view of multilingual children as having different reading needs than monolingual children, such as simpler books with more illustrations. Choosing simpler books might be beneficial early in second-language development, especially when using a dialogic reading style for making the book accessible to more children. On the other hand, these reasons might indicate an underlying perception of all multilingual children as in more need of a teaching tone with explanations and instructions and less of an exchange tone with an active exchange of knowledge in read-aloud practice. The overall results point to read-alouds as an important early literacy activity in ECEC classrooms.