Science in kindergarten in conjuction with the elements of the concept of Reggio Emilia

Namen diplomskega dela je približati otrokom del naravoslovja v povezovanju z elementi koncepta Reggio Emilia. V Italiji so razvili koncept predšolske vzgoje Reggio Emilia, ki temelji na pedagogiki poslušanja, aktivnem učenju, predvsem pa otroke sprejema kot zelo kompetentna bitja. Velik pomen dajejo sodelovanju z okoljem, projektnemu pristopu in dokumentaciji. Da do takšnega procesa pride, so nujno potrebni naslednji elementi: načrtovanje, upoštevanje pobud otrok, evalvacija z otroki in refleksija. V empiričnem delu sem predstavila projekt z naslovom Zakaj solata ni bila dobra, ki je bil izveden v skupini otrok, starih od tri leta in pol do štiri leta in pol. Projekt je potekal tri mesece in pri vsaki izvedeni dejavnosti sem podala opis izvedbe z analizami in ugotovitvami otrok. Načrtovani in izvedeni projekt je otrokom omogočil raziskovanje snovi z lastno aktivnostjo, reševanje problemov in razvijanje sposobnosti pridobivanja, razumevanja in urejanja novih informacij. Otroci so z lastno aktivnostjo sami, na prijeten in zanimiv način pridobivali informacije in s tem prepoznavali in raziskovali kisle snovi, ki jih uživajo v vsakodnevnih obrokih. Cilj projekta je bil spodbuditi otroke v raziskovalni proces, da iščejo in uporabljajo različne možnosti za rešitev problema. Otroci s pomočjo raziskovanja pridejo do novih izkušenj in odkritij, kako pravzaprav nekaj nastane, kakšni so naravni procesi pri nastajanju in zaporedje dogodkov, ki so potrebni pri pridobivanju kisa, s tem pa spoznavajo naravoslovne pojme. Poleg tega pa sem želela otrokom približati okus kislega, raziskovanje kislih snovi in eksperimentiranje z njimi. Pri pisanju analiz sem si pomagala z dokumentacijo (izjave otrok, fotografije), ki je nastajala med projektom. V teoretičnem delu so predstavljene značilnosti pedagoškega koncepta Reggio Emilia (pedagogika poslušanja in participacija otrok), s katerim se srečujemo tudi v slovenskem prostoru. Vzgojitelj lahko poleg predpisanega programa v svoje delo vključi tudi pristope pedagogike po konceptu Reggio Emilia, ki so kot nadgradnja oz. oplemenitev nacionalnega Kurikula za vrtce. Če bomo znali otrokom na prijeten in zanimiv način približati naravoslovne teme, če bomo pri tem izhajali iz otroka, upoštevali njegove ideje in predloge ter bomo dajali prednost učenju in ne poučevanju, bodo znanje, ki ga bodo pridobili skozi igro, znali uporabljati naprej v življenju.The purpose of the thesis is to bring science closer to children using the Reggio Emilia concept. The Reggio Emilia concept of preschool education was developed in Italy. It is based on listening and active learning, but most of all, it accepts children as very competent human beings. Considerable attention is given to cooperation with the environment, project approach and documentation. The following elements are necessary for a successful process: planning, considering children\u27s initiatives, evaluation with children, and reflexion. The empirical part introduces the project entitled "Why the salad wasn\u27t good", which was carried out in a group of children aged from 3.5 to 4.5 years and lasted for 3 months. Each activity was followed by its description and analysis as well as by the children\u27s findings. The project allowed the children to be active in the research, solve problems and develop their abilities in terms of gaining, understanding and sorting out information. By being active, the children gained information by themselves in a very pleasant and interesting way and at the same time identified and explored sour substances they usually consume every day. The goal of the project was to motivate the children to be active in the research process and search and use various possibilities to solve problems. Research helps them acquire new experience and find out how things are made, which natural processes occur and what is the sequence of events in producing vinegar. In other words, they learn about natural phenomena. Furthermore, I wanted to bring the children closer to the taste of sour, let them study sour things and experiment with them. While preparing the analysis, I used all the relevant documentation (children\u27s statements, photos) that had been created during the project. The theoretical part deals with the characteristics of the Reggio Emilia concept (pedagogy of listening and child\u27s participation) that are used in Slovenia. A nursery school teacher can add elements of the Reggio Emilia concept to the prescribed programme with and thus upgrade the curriculum. Children will be able to use the knowledge they gain through games if we know how to present scientific contents in a very pleasant and interesting way, include them in all these processes, consider their ideas and suggestions, and give precdence to learning rather than teaching