Many children feel their stay in preschool is long
We experience time differently; depending on what we are doing or how old we are. Those who have taken long road trips with children know that their experience of time is completelydifferent from that of adults. But how do children experience the time they spend in preschool, where they spend a big part of their waking hours? Anna Magnea Hreinsdóttir, adjunct lecturer in preschool teacher education at the University of Iceland tackled this question recently. She and her colleague talked to over a hundred children about their experience of preschool.
The aim of the study conducted by Anna Magnea and Kristín Dýrfjörð, associate professor at the University of Akureyri, was to get the children's point of view, whilst shedding light on factors that influence their experience of time in preschool. "There has been an ongoing debate in recent years on how long Icelandic children stay in preschool each day. International comparative studies have shown that Icelandic children stay longer in preschool than many European ones. Children who are younger than three stay 37.3 hours on average per week in Iceland in 2016, and children older than three 38.1 hours per week. The average time for children in Europe was around 28 for both groups, so Icelandic children are well above the average in this respect, compared with European children," as Anna Magnea and Kristín point out in a scientific article on their results published in Netla web magazine last December.
They note that this extended stay is in line with long working hours in Iceland, but empahsis is also placed on the children's right to attend preschool, this first education level, in order to enjoy their childhood.
Anna Magnea and Kirstín also point out the importance of listening to the children themselves when discussing the impact of an extended stay in preschools; something that has not been done much of until now. "The preschool must be defined as a social platform for children as active democratic citizens and the first level of schooling, but not as daycare in this debate."
They visited nine departments in six preschools and spent time with close to 180 children at the age of 4 to 5, both to get a feel for their sense of time and the role of time in the preschools’ schedules. "The schedules can differ considerably between preschools, from being open and flexible where the only routine is sleep and naptime, meals, playtime and being outside, to a timetable for hourly activities," they point out in their article.
Anna Magnea Hreinsdóttir, adjunct lecturer in preschool teacher education at the University of Iceland is one of the author of a study. The authors say it important, since the children spend such a long period of their day in preschool, to consider their needs and listen to them when organising the school work. "The message of this study is that children's friendships are important and that they get the opportunity to tackle diverse projects in preschools designed by the children. Their sense of time must be a part of the equation and reflected in the preschools' curricula."
"The clock is twelve when I arrive and a hundred when I am picked up, or fifteen"
During their study, Anna Magnea and Kirstín asked the children ,various questions regarding their sense of time and their concept of how long events took and what created meaning for them in the preschool. They point out that other research hasshown that children at this age can remember a few events from the preschool schedule, in the correct order, and understand the connection and sequence of activities such as breakfast, gatherings, lunch and so on.
Anna Magnea and Kristín's results show that the some of the preschools in the study had a traditional curricula whereas, others were more flexible in their timetable, with certain fixed events such as mealtimes, gatherings, playtime and being outside.
Anna Magnea and Kristín point out in their article that the children they talked to did not know another reality than staying in their preschool during most of their waking hours. The opinion of the length of time varied among the children who spoke about how long they stayed there. "Many of the children felt they stayed for a long time at the preschool, some children felt that their time there varied; sometimes short, sometimes long and other children felt their time there was short," says in the article that also includes a few answers from the children:
- "I am always the first child there, but I sometimes leave early, but sometimes not."
- "I have stayed a long time in the preschool when my dad picks me up."
- "I sometimes have to wait a long time in my preschool when my mom takes a long time to pick me up."
- "I stay for a long time in my preschool and it is very long ago that I was only a short time in preschool."
- "When I am playing outside I stay a long time but when I am playing inside I only stay a short time."
- "You sometimes stays a long time in preschool, but not always."
- "The clock is twelve when I arrive and a hundred when I am picked up or fifteen"
It is important to listen to the children
The children's experience of their stay in the preschool is thus quite individual, but Anna Magnea and Kristín say it quite clear that most of them have a good grasp of the sequence of events and have a sense of time connected to them even though it was not linked to clock time. "There are many things in the preschools that support this experience; there is a visual schedule posted in many places or in gatherings. Most preschool days are marked by events that are the same from day to day, such as mealtimes, circle time and playing outside. They form a rhythm to the day that sticks in the children's heads, forming stepping stones in the daily routine providing the children with a sense of what comes next thus helping to develop a sense of time," as Anna Magnea and Kristín point out in their article.
They say it important, since the children spend such a long period of their day in preschool, to consider their needs and listen to them when organising the school work. "The message of this study is that children's friendships are important and that they get the opportunity to tackle diverse projects in preschools designed by the children. Their sense of time must be a part of the equation and reflected in the preschools' curricula.
