Structural conditions for children’s play in kindergarten.

The purpose of this study is to examine how the organisation of children, physical space and materials influences the structural conditions of play in kindergartens.

The authors conclude that the kindergarten’s choice of organisational model offers different opportunities for children’s play. The authors divide the kindergartens into four different types depending on their organisational model: (1) base-organised, (2) departmental, (3) non-departmental, and (4) age-homogenous. In base-organised kindergartens, each group of children has its own base, but shares special-interest rooms with the other children in the kindergarten. The authors do not define in more detail the different organisational models, however their results showed that the majority (just under 70%) of the kindergartens were departmental. Moreover, the study shows that none of the organisational models stand out from the others with regard to enhancing the children’s opportunity for play. Each organisational model had conditions that either promoted or restricted the children’s opportunity for play.

The authors found that base-organised kindergartens have ample physical space per child, which can create good conditions for play. They also found that the following conditions may restrict children’s play: (a) large groups of children, (b) not enough opportunities to play in small groups, (c) being dependent on an adult to gain to access to special-interest rooms with e.g. paints or dressing-up clothes, and (d) limited access to art materials.

In departmental kindergartens, the authors found that the following conditions can promote children’s play: (a) small groups of children, (b) good opportunity to play in small groups, and (c) good access to art materials. In contrast, the following conditions were found to restrict children’s play in departmental kindergartens: (a) being dependent on an adult to gain access to special-interest rooms, and (b) many children per m².

The authors found that in non-departmental kindergartens (a) ample space per child and (b) good access to special-interest rooms may promote the children’s play, whereas (a) large groups of children and (b) few opportunities to play in small groups may restrict the children’s play.

Finally, the authors found four conditions that may promote children’s play in age-homogenous kindergartens: (a) small groups of children, (b) good opportunities to play in small groups, (c) good access to rooms, and (d) good access to art materials. In contrast, many children per m2 may restrict children’s play in non-age-homogeneous kindergartens.

Data primarily consists of responses from a questionnaire survey, but also includes interviews with 109 head teachers. Head teachers and pedagogical leaders from 127 kindergartens in five Norwegian municipalities participated in the questionnaire survey. The questionnaire covered six areas: (1) structural characteristics of the kindergarten, (2) characteristics of the staff, (3) the outdoor area, (4) pedagogical content and working methods, (5) parental interaction, and (6) self-evaluation of the kindergarten’s quality and management.

Martinsen, M.T. (2015). Structural conditions for children’s play in kindergarten. Nordic Early Childhood Education Research Journal 10(1), 1-18.