O ensino de ciências como potencializador da relação entre criança enatureza por meio da interação com os quatro elementos naturais

Abstract

This research entitled "Science Teaching as an enhancer of the relationship between child and nature through interaction with the 4 elements" is linked to the Graduate Program in Science and Mathematics Teaching (PPGECiMa) at the University of Caxias do Sul (UCS) and is being developed in the line of research "Fundamentals and Educational Strategies in Teaching Science and Mathematics". The research was carried out at the Escola Municipal de Educação Infantil Irma Toffoli, located in the municipality of Vacaria, RS, in a preschool class, with 19 children aged between 4 and 5 years. Defending the child as a powerful, active, creative and questioning being, and believing that being in nature is a child's right, desire and need, it is intended to promote Science Teaching in Early Childhood Education, based on the 4 natural elements, to answer the following research question: "How can Science Teaching, through interaction with the four natural elements - Earth, Air, Water, Fire - contribute to the child's rapprochement with nature?". To answer this research question, studies were carried out on Jean Piaget's Theory, Science Teaching in Early Childhood Education, Inquiry-based Learning, the connection between children and nature, and the National Common Core Curriculum for Early Childhood Education. Based on these studies, a questionnaire for parents and a didactic sequence containing nine meetings were developed and applied. One of these meetings was aimed at the children's first impressions and prior knowledge about natural elements, through their experiences in the space of the natural toy library, created and organized by the researcher; and two meetings were directed to the study of each natural element (earth, water, air and fire), making eight meetings. All meetings prioritized the children's experiences with the elements of nature, through experimentation and investigation. The constructed and analyzed data show that the children, when experiencing and acting on the natural elements, in an interactive environment, tested and applied ideas and hypotheses, built concepts, and established affectionate relationships with nature, demonstrating attitudes of preservation and care for the environment. [resumo fornecido pelo autor]