Play and learning in early childhood education in Sweden

Lohmander M.K.,

Samuelsson I.P.

Published: May 14, 2015

Learning through play is a common phrase in early childhood education worldwide. Play is often put forward as the overarching principle for working with young children (Johnson, Christie, & Wardle, 2005). However, if we go beyond the rhetorical level and explore how “learning through play” and a “play-based curriculum” are understood and transformed into practice, we may find differences both within and between countries (Karlsson Lohmander & Pramling Samuelsson, 2014a, 2014b; Pramling Samuelsson & Fleer, 2009). In this article we discuss the relationship between the concepts of play and learning and describe how they are enacted in everyday practice in …