Magic University in Kindergarten: Chemical Experiments for Scientific Thinking

Abstract

Chemistry experiments at preschool age are not only fun and interesting, but also help develop children’s love of and interest in science, as well as developing problem-solving skills and critical thinking. Our research examines the relationship and experiences of kindergarten teachers to chemical and physical experiments. 50 kindergarten teachers from Cluj County filled out the questionnaire, in which we asked, how they related to science subjects during their school studies, how often they carry out simple experiments during their kindergarten activities, and where these experiment ideas came from. In the questionnaire, we also asked whether teachers have already participated in training in chemistry or physics and whether they would participate in such training in the future. The results show that 62% of teachers conduct experiments frequently in kindergarten, and 38% experiment very rarely or not at all. 83% of respondents conducted experiments based on sources found on the Internet, while 44.7% developed their own ideas. 40.4% sought advice from colleagues. Eight of them indicated that they used experiments learned at school, while six reported that they used experiments from their university studies and incorporated them into their teaching practice. Our questionnaire revealed that kindergarten teachers would be happy to participate in further training to learn about the experiments and scientific explanations of various experiments. Our goal in the future is to create professional training of this kind, whereb kindergarten teachers can confidently acquire the professional background to plan and implement scientific activities efficiently.