Abstract
Although the revised early childhood education and care (ECEC) legislation and the Core Curriculum for ECEC in Finland demand that children’s initiatives and interests are considered, children’s potential to affect decision-making and pedagogical processes is scarce. Thus, there is a need for developing reciprocal listening and participation in ECEC. The objective of this study is to explore the benefits of the Storycrafting Method, a Finnish narrative method, for children and ECEC personnel. The research data consists of earlier studies on Storycrafting, archives of storycrafted stories and ECEC professionals’ experiences and research diaries to achieve a profound and holistic understanding of the benefits of the method. Through thematic analysis, it was found that Storycrafting strengthens children’s lives and the working practices and pedagogy of teachers and other ECEC professionals. Using the method regularly improves children’s self-esteem, is natural for children because of its playfulness, promotes reciprocal and participatory listening and promotes children’s own rich culture, experiences and thoughts. For teachers and other ECEC professionals, the method provides a deeper understanding of children’s lives, thoughts and actions. Instead of only hearing and evaluating them, teachers have learned to listen to and understand children.
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Lastikka, AL., Karlsson, L. (2022). My Story, Your Story, Our Story: Reciprocal Listening and Participation Through Storycrafting in Early Childhood Education and Care. In: Harju-Luukkainen, H., Kangas, J., Garvis, S. (eds) Finnish Early Childhood Education and Care . Early Childhood Research and Education: An Inter-theoretical Focus, vol 1. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-95512-0_11
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