INTEGRATION OF INQUIRY AND PLAY: YOUNG CHILDREN’S CONCEPTUAL CHANGE IN ASTRONOMY

This study aims to introduce inquiry-based play activities and to examine their effectiveness on young children's conceptual understanding of the shape of the Earth and the day-night cycle. The inquiry-based play activities for preschool children were designed to support children to learn the concepts of the shape of the Earth and the day-night cycle. The activities were designed based on the Preschool Learning Cycle (Play, Explore, and Discuss). The study sample consisted of 80 children, 33 of whom are girls and 47 are boys. The children’s ages ranged from 54 to 70 months. To measure children's conceptual understanding, Earth-2 (EArth Representation Test for cHildren-2) developed by Straatemeier et al. (2008) was used. Science journals were used to promote children’s reflective thinking and to evaluate their learning. The results revealed that the inquiry-based play activities positively affected young children's conceptual understanding of the shape of the Earth and the day-night cycle. Keywords: inquiry, play, early childhood, science education, astronomy.

SORGULAMA VE OYUNUN BÜTÜNLEŞTİRİLMESİ: KÜÇÜK ÇOCUKLARIN ASTRONOMİ İLE İLGİLİ KAVRAMSAL DEĞİŞİMLERİ

Bu çalışma, sorgulama temelli oyun etkinliklerini tanıtmayı ve bu etkinliklerin çocukların Dünya’nın şekli ve gece-gündüz döngüsü gibi astronomik olgulara ilişkin kavramsal anlayışları üzerindeki etkililiğini incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Okul öncesi dönem çocuklarına yönelik sorgulamaya dayalı oyun etkinlikleri, çocukların Dünya'nın şekli ve gece-gündüz döngüsü kavramlarını öğrenmesini desteklemek için tasarlanmıştır. Okul Öncesi Öğrenme Döngüsü (Preschool Learning Cycle), Oyna, Keşfet ve Tartış aşamalarından oluşmakta ve etkinliklerin öğrenme süreci bölümünde yer almaktadır. Araştırmanın örneklemini 33'ü kız 47'si erkek olmak üzere 80 çocuk oluşturmaktadır. Çocukların yaşları 54-70 ay arasındadır. Çocukların kavramsal anlayışlarını belirlemek için Straatemeier ve diğerleri (2008) tarafından geliştirilen Earth-2 (EArth Representation Test for cHildren-2) kullanılmıştır. Öğrenmenin değerlendirilmesi ve yansıtılması için bilim defterleri kullanılmıştır. Sonuçlar sorgulamaya dayalı oyun etkinliklerinin, küçük çocukların Dünya’nın şekli ve gece-gündüz oluşumu ilgili kavramsal anlayışlarını olumlu yönde etkilediğini ortaya koymuştur.

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