Assessing the Role of Nature in Emergent Reading and Writing Activities in the Early Childhood Curriculum: A Study of Turkish Educational Practices

Year 2024, Volume: 12 Issue: 1, 1 - 26, 30.06.2024

Vahide Yiğit Gençten , Filiz Aydemir

https://doi.org/10.35233/oyea.1289092

Abstract

This study aims to examine how and to what extent nature is used in reading and writing activities in the early childhood curriculum in Türkiye. Using a document analysis method, the authors analyzed curriculum documents and activity plans from a preschool program and two activity books, identifying a total of 12 activities related to nature-based learning and emergent literacy. These activities were analyzed in terms of the development areas they supported, the types of activities, materials used, and themes covered. Our investigation into emergent reading-writing activities that utilized nature as a support or main subject yielded compelling findings. The curriculum documents showed that nature-based emergent reading-writing activities offer a wealth of potential for fostering young children's cognitive, linguistic, socio-emotional, psychomotor, and self-regulation skills. These activities are often integrative in nature, incorporating emergent reading-writing with other domains such as mathematics, language, art, and more. Our analysis of the curriculum documents also indicated that nature-based emergent reading-writing activities commonly employ a diverse array of materials, including both natural and unnatural resources. Moreover, we found that such activities frequently encompass a broad spectrum of vocabulary and concepts. These encompass a wide range of subjects, ranging from seasonal phenomena such as winter to societal issues such as human rights and citizenship to scientific concepts like reproduction and fermentation.

Keywords

Preschool curriculum, emergent reading-writing, nature-based learning

Erken Çocukluk Öğretim Programında Erken Okuma ve Yazma Etkinliklerinde Doğanın Rolünün Değerlendirilmesi: Türkçe Eğitim Uygulamaları Üzerine Bir İnceleme

Abstract

Bu çalışma, Türkiye'deki erken çocukluk eğitim programlarında yer alan okuma ve yazma etkinliklerinde doğanın nasıl ve hangi ölçüde entegre edildiğini araştırmayı hedeflemektedir. Bu çalışmada doküman analizi yöntemi kullanılarak, bir okul öncesi programından ve iki etkinlik kitabından elde edilen program belgeleri ve etkinlik planları incelenmiş ve doğa temelli öğrenme ile erken okuryazarlıkla ilgili toplam 12 etkinlik belirlenmiştir. Bu etkinlikler, destekledikleri gelişim alanları, etkinlik türleri, kullanılan materyaller ve ele alınan temalar açısından analiz edilmiştir. Araştırma, doğayı destek ya da ana konu olarak kullanan erken okuma-yazma etkinliklerine yönelik ikna edici bulgular ortaya koymuştur. Program belgeleri, doğa temelli okuma-yazma etkinliklerinin küçük çocukların bilişsel, dilsel, sosyo-duygusal, psikomotor ve öz düzenleme becerilerini geliştirmek için zengin bir potansiyel sunduğunu göstermiştir. Bu etkinlikler genellikle doğası gereği bütünleştiricidir ve erken okuma-yazmayı matematik, dil ve sanat gibi birçok diğer alanla birleştirmektedir. Program belgelerine ilişkin analiz, doğa temelli erken okuma-yazma etkinliklerinin hem doğal hem de doğal olmayan kaynaklar dahil olmak üzere çok çeşitli materyaller kullandığını göstermiştir. Ayrıca, bu tür etkinliklerin sıklıkla geniş bir kelime dağarcığı ve kavram yelpazesini kapsadığı ortaya çıkmıştır. Bunlar, kış gibi mevsimsel olaylardan insan hakları ve vatandaşlık gibi toplumsal konulara, üreme ve fermantasyon gibi bilimsel kavramlara kadar geniş bir konu yelpazesini kapsamaktadır.

Keywords

Okul öncesi programı, erken okuryazarlık, doğa temelli öğrenme

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