A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Bringing Mythical Forests to Life in Early Childhood Education
Authors: Sintonen S
Publisher: North American Association for Environmental Education
Publication year: 2020
Journal: International Journal of Early Childhood Environmental Education
Journal name in source: International journal of early childhood environmental education
Volume: 7
Issue: 3
ISSN: 2331-0464
Web address : https://researchportal.helsinki.fi/en/publications/7105c1aa-371a-43f1-9032-1d4b5acb33ad
Abstract
In this article, I have sought to develop an understanding of the contribution of imaginative and nature appreciationin early childhood environmental education dealing with old, cultural nature myths and beliefs. The argument restson the belief that the basis of a child-environmental education is in imagination which resonates with play, aestheticsand storytelling as old, historical nature myths have a story-like power to transform human perception of the worldand our relationship to it. The thinking of the old nature myths and development of early childhood environmentaleducation is in this article relying on new materialism and posthumanist thinking of intra-action (Barad 2003; 2007).This article specifically considers the usage of material Whisper of the Spirit, which places educators in the positionof examining their environmental education practices as relative, evolving and emergent situations in which the oldnature myths and the existing material components could have their role and significance.
In this article, I have sought to develop an understanding of the contribution of imaginative and nature appreciationin early childhood environmental education dealing with old, cultural nature myths and beliefs. The argument restson the belief that the basis of a child-environmental education is in imagination which resonates with play, aestheticsand storytelling as old, historical nature myths have a story-like power to transform human perception of the worldand our relationship to it. The thinking of the old nature myths and development of early childhood environmentaleducation is in this article relying on new materialism and posthumanist thinking of intra-action (Barad 2003; 2007).This article specifically considers the usage of material Whisper of the Spirit, which places educators in the positionof examining their environmental education practices as relative, evolving and emergent situations in which the oldnature myths and the existing material components could have their role and significance.
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