Mariane Hedegaard

Marilyn Fleer

Written by a team of international contributors and featuring case studies from a range of educational settings in Australia, Denmark, Spain, Sweden, and the USA, this edited book is the first in the field of early childhood and youth studies to draw on Vygotsky's cultural-historical theory to give insights into transitions in childhood, what they are and how they are differently experienced. Transitions are explored holistically so the chapters not only focus on the person transitioning but also the institutions in which the person is transitioning from and to, with a focus on schools and daycare. The contributors look at how societal values and policies impact these transitions and comparison are drawn between international settings. The book includes chapters on expatriate families, immigrant children, home-school transitions, the role of play and communities. Through interviews, case studies and the analysis of empirical material from fieldwork, Children's Transitions in Everyday Life and Institutions reflects on the best ways to engage children so that they may emerge as competent actors in their new settings and transition well.

Children's Transitions in Everyday Life and Institutions

This book explores the dynamics in children's everyday lives as they move between school and the family, with particular consideration of how children's motives change in response new challenges. Professors Mariane Hedegaard and Marilyn Fleer follow four children, two from Australia and two from Denmark, over a twelve-month period. Using these case studies, they show how children's everyday activities, play, and the demands of both family and educational contexts influence their learning and development. The authors contribute to a sociocultural theory formulation that includes the child's perspective in cultural historical contexts. Their approach yields insights that transcend specific nationalities, cultures, and socioeconomic situations. The analysis shows not just how children's family life shapes their experiences in school, but how schools influence and shape their lives at home.

Everyday Life in Families and Transition to School

Play, Learning, and Children's Development

Charlotte Højholt

Oddbjørg Skjær Ulvik

Karin Aronsson

Children live their lives across various social settings, including homes, kindergartens, schools and different kinds of institutions. The different contributions of this book focus on children’s perspectives, and on how children learn and develop through taking part in activities in social communities such as families, peer groups, classrooms, and day care institutions. This collection illustrate different ways of dealing with varying social contexts, and the research presented involves questions about children’s worldmaking, anchored in children’s daily lives. The studies are inspired by Vygotsky’s theory of development (1998), as well as childhood sociology. One of the aims has been to problematice time, change, continuity, developmental trajectories, and transitions in order to identify novel ways of discussing different trajectories through childhood and youth, that is ”development”.

Mariane Hedegaard

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