Why and how teachers make use of drawing activities in early childhood science education.

The study investigates how kindergarten teachers' views and framing of drawing activities affect kindergarten children's opportunities to learn science through drawing activities. The research questions are: 1) What is the kindergarten teachers' view of the role of drawing in science education? 2) How do kindergarten teachers frame drawing activities in science education? 3) How do kindergarten teachers' views and design of drawing activities affect science learning opportunities for kindergarten children?

The results show that few of the kindergarten teachers link drawing specifically to science learning. Instead, they generally see drawing as variation in teaching and learning activities. Based on the observations in the classrooms, the researchers conclude that drawing is a relatively weak method for communicating and learning science.

The study is based on observations made in ten different classrooms in three Swedish kindergartens, where drawing activities were carried out. In addition, interviews were conducted with 13 kindergarten teachers who were involved in these activities. Each classroom was visited by researchers between two and five times, and a total of 45 lessons were observed.

Areljung, S., Due, K., Ottander, C., Skoog, M., & Sundberg, B. (2021). “Why and how teachers make use of drawing activities in early childhood science education”. International Journal of Science Education, 43(13):2127-2147.