Barns utforskande i en flyta och sjunka- aktivitet

Sammanfattning: The purpose of the study is find out what understanding the children at the age of 3 and 5 have of the physical phenomenon float and sink and to investigate whether a practical activity contributes to a deeper understanding of the phenomenon. Children at two departments at two different preschools participated in the study. Piaget’s stage theory was used to study how the children of different ages acted and expressed themselves during the activity. The investigations started with an initial discussion about the concepts of float and sink, which then turned into a practical exercise where the children had to make hypotheses and investigate the buoyancy of different objects. The activity ended with a discussion about what they had experienced through the pracitical activity. Sound recordings and field notes from the four groups’ implementation of the activity were complied and analyzed qualitatively. The results show that the practical activity contributed to the children creating a better understanding of the concepts of float and sink and that they began to use concepts relating to density. The practical activity helped to create curiosity and good communication, where the children themselves got to try it out practically. The three-year-olds created an understanding of where an artifact is in the water when it floats or sinks during the practical activity. The children began to use some concepts related to density, such as size, shape and weight. The survey showed that the 5-year-olds had an understanding of floating and sinking, but the practical activity contributed to them also them also starting to use concepts related to density concepts, and to a greater extent that the 3-year-olds.