Abstract

OLIVEIRA, Fernanda Ferreira de. "And I ended up liking this place! " The impact of interaction and play in early childhood education. Rev. Diálogo Educ. [online]. 2025, vol.25, n.85, pp.444-461.  Epub July 24, 2025. ISSN 1981-416X.  https://doi.org/10.7213/1981-416x.25.085.ds04.

The aim of this article is to reflect on the impact of interaction and play in Early Childhood Education from the perspective of a group of children at a public school in Piracicaba. Based on an experience carried out in this setting, it explores how the children go through these processes, as well as their perceptions of the school and of the pedagogical proposals put forward by the teacher‑researcher, interpreting their engagement. This article, which is the outcome of doctoral research, is anchored in the field of childhood studies, engaging with the contributions of Vygotsky (historical‑cultural perspective) and Walter Benjamin (critical theory), who underscore the role of social relations, culture, and children’s agency. The context under investigation is a “School of Childhood,” a concept inspired by Comenius that prioritizes children’s physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development. The institution combines the Pedagogy of Childhood - which values the child as an active subject in knowledge construction - with the Macunaic perspective (inspired by the work of Mário de Andrade), reflecting Brazilian cultural diversity and the formation of multiple identities. Narrative research was adopted as the theoretical‑methodological approach, focusing on the children’s voices through drawings, utterances, and photographic records, alongside the teacher‑researcher’s reflective notes on her interventions. The analysis shows that the school functions as a space for negotiation between adult proposals and children’s interpretations, revealing how children ascribe new meaning to educational practices. In conclusion, the importance of aligning pedagogical intentions with children’s perceptions is reinforced, underscoring their leading role in the construction of a democratic and meaningful early childhood education.

Keywords : Interactions; Play; Early Childhood Education; Narratives.

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