Young Children's Ideas about Astronomy

Autor/inn/en	Callanan, Maureen A.; Shirefley, Tess A.; Castañeda, Claudia L.; Jipson, Jennifer L.
Titel	Young Children's Ideas about Astronomy
Quelle	In: Journal of Astronomy & Earth Sciences Education, 6 (2019) 2, S.45-58 (14 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	2374-6246
Schlagwörter	Astronomy; Diaries; Parent Attitudes; Parent Child Relationship; Preschool Children; Whites; Hispanic Americans; Cross Cultural Studies; Age Differences; Gender Differences; Teacher Student Relationship; Learner Engagement; Science Education; Informal Education; Environment; California + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Astronomie; Diary; Tagebuch; Elternverhalten; Parents-child relationship; Parent-child-relation; Parent-child relationship; Eltern-Kind-Beziehung; Pre-school age; Preschool age; Child; Children; Pre-school education; Preschool education; Vorschulalter; Kind; Kinder; Vorschulkind; Vorschulkinder; Vorschulerziehung; Vorschule; White; Weißer; Hispanic; Hispanoamerikaner; Cultural comparison; Kulturvergleich; Age; Difference; Age difference; Altersunterschied; Geschlechterkonflikt; Teacher student relationships; Lehrer-Schüler-Beziehung; Naturwissenschaftliche Bildung; Informelle Bildung; Nichtformale Bildung; Umwelt; Kalifornien
Abstract	Young children express interest and understanding about science topics through everyday conversations with parents. Little is known about how much interest preschool-aged children show in astronomy. Using a diary report methodology, we asked parents in three communities in coastal California to keep track of conversations with their three to five-year-old children about nature. The communities varied in demographics, including one community with predominantly European-American families, one community with predominantly Latinx families, and one community with families from a variety of backgrounds. Overall, young children showed interest in astronomy through initiation and engagement in conversations about a variety of astronomical objects and events; this was consistent across gender, age, and community. Across all three communities, conversations about astronomy accounted for approximately 15% of the conversations about nature, ranking in the top three most frequent topics for each group. Children initiated the vast majority of conversations with their parents, including those about astronomy. Within astronomy, children were most interested in the sun, moon, stars, and day or night sky. Thus, while science educators may see astronomy as too complex for young children, children observe and comment on astronomical phenomena as part of their everyday life. Finding ways to support educators and parents in talking with children about these observations may productively build on this early astronomy interest and position children for greater understanding and engagement in this domain. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01