”De barnen har ju ett stort försprång och där måste vi bli bättre på att utjämna det här försprånget. Där har vi en jätteviktig roll” : Högläsning som språkutvecklande aktivitet i förskolan

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this study is to compare whether childcare workers' and preschool teachers' perceptions of the phenomenon of reading aloud differ. A qualitative method in the form of semi-structured interviews with childcare workers' and preschool teachers' was used to collect empirical data for the study. In the analysis, we used content analysis as a basis, and in the discussion section, we connect our findings to sociocultural theory. The results show that reading aloud is mainly organized in connection with nap time, with a perception that the activity is beneficial for children's language development. All informants believed that reading aloud contributes to children's language development, but the view of what language development is differs to some extent between childcare workers' and preschool teachers'. Childcare workers seemed to focus more on group dynamics, where the purpose was for the children to have the opportunity to speak during reading aloud. Preschool teachers seemed to focus more on the development of the individual in order to adapt the teaching and provide the child with favorable conditions. All informants advocated using some form of artifact to attract children interest in literature. What differed between childcare workers' and preschool teachers' was that preschool teachers used the book itself as an intriguing artifact. This includes where to place the books in the children's immediate surroundings, and how to present the book to the children before reading it.  Keywords: Interest, language development, reading aloud, reading rest