Principal Investigator: Maria Birbili, Associate Professor, Department of Early Childhood Education, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
This research project, guided by a Froebelian understanding of young children’s development and early childhood pedagogy, explored how early childhood educators can improve young children’s question-asking skills. The project was funded by The Froebel Trust (UK) and was conducted in Thessaloniki, Greece. An early childhood educator and 23 children, and their families, participated in this qualitative study where evidence was collected through teacher observations and field notes, audio-recordings of classroom dialogues, documentation of children’s learning and samples of children’s work. Parents were also invited to share their observations from home and their thoughts on the project and children’s learning. Organized in four phases, the project supported children to ask better questions using various strategies, and resources, suggested in the literature and Froebel’s pedagogy.