Sustainable encounters in large preschool playgrounds
Project overview
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Short summary
The study examines what the general trend in preschools towards larger two-storey buildings implies for children's social lives, activity and encounters with nature in the preschool playground.
The planning and design of good educational environments are crucial for creating sustainable communities.
This project builds on a pilot study acknowledging a new standard for preschool playgrounds when two stories buildings housing twice as many children are getting more common.
The outdoor playgrounds of the large preschools are often restricted with programmed artificial play spaces expanding at the expense of nature. In the outdoor spaces of large preschools the aim is to investigate children´s options health promoting activity in contact with nature as an integrated part of their learning about sustainable development.
The study was carried out in three steps:
- A survey of the quality and use of outdoor playgrounds in the large preschools of one municipality.
- An in-depth study of children´s outdoor encounters in a selection of the preschools with focus on children´s play and movement, social interaction and encounters with nature.
- Focus-group interviews with staff from the municipality and preschool teachers around the role and potential of the physical environment for preschool practice. The result of research should be useful for the development of large preschool units with high quality preschool service during outdoor stay.
Project manager: Annika Manni, Umeå Universitet
Publications:
Manni, A., Annerbäck, J., Löfgren, H., & Mårtensson, F. (2024). Encounters with ice and snow in preschool outdoor practices – and the becoming of (un)sustainability values. Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 1–16.
Manni, A., Annerbäck, J., Löfgren, H., Mårtensson, F. & Fröberg, A. (2024). Places, spaces and encounters with nature – socio-material discourses in Swedish preschools. International journal of early years education, 1–19.
Annerbäck, J., Manni, A., Löfgren, H. & Mårtensson, F. (2024). Toddlers’ engagements with preschool playgrounds: ethnographic insights from Sweden. Children’s geographies, 22 (5), 810–825.