<p>Studies show that the interest and knowledge about science among teenagers is decreasing. They also reveal the difficulties to explain the ecological processes and that the ideas about the nature are collected from everyday life and early school years.</p><p>The intention of this investigation was to find out more about children’s ideas and knowledge about the ecological processes and to compare these results with the curriculum.</p><p>The method was a questionnaire and interviews with children in school year 1 – 6. The aim of the studies was also to find out if any progress connected to age could be found, concerning understanding of the ecological processes.</p><p>The results showed difficulties in achieving the predestined goals for biology and chemistry concerning ecology cycles and they differed a lot between the children. Often the learning process showed very little progress. No matter the age there was a huge difference individually in their knowledge and understanding of the nature. Many of the children in this research had the idea about the soil to be a final destination for decomposition rather than a part of an ecology cycle. Also the idea about plants getting their food from the soil showed to be common.</p><p>Keywords: ecological processes, early school years, biology, children’s ideas, circulation</p>

Studies show that the interest and knowledge about science among teenagers is decreasing. They also reveal the difficulties to explain the ecological processes and that the ideas about the nature are collected from everyday life and early school years. The intention of this investigation was to find out more about children’s ideas and knowledge about the ecological processes and to compare these results with the curriculum. The method was a questionnaire and interviews with children in school year 1 – 6. The aim of the studies was also to find out if any progress connected to age could be found, concerning understanding of the ecological processes. The results showed difficulties in achieving the predestined goals for biology and chemistry concerning ecology cycles and they differed a lot between the children. Often the learning process showed very little progress. No matter the age there was a huge difference individually in their knowledge and understanding of the nature. Many of the children in this research had the idea about the soil to be a final destination for decomposition rather than a part of an ecology cycle. Also the idea about plants getting their food from the soil showed to be common. Keywords: ecological processes, early school years, biology, children’s ideas, circulation

Contagion is a common occurrence in preschool. It is therefore relevant to examine what the children understand about it. The aim of the study was to highlight preschool children's understanding about contagion to contribute with increased awareness among preschool teachers about the subject. The study uses a qualitative method that includes interviews with children. The study included 17 children aged 3-5 years.  The data collected and analyzed is based on both a deductive analysis and an inductive analysis. The framework is based on the results of a study, which is a theoretical framework for understandings about contagion. Children's understanding is compared to the content of the framework. The inductive analysis is based on a thematic analysis.  The result of this study showed that children have knowledge of how to apply the right behavior to prevent the spread of infection, but that they could rarely give a reason why they did what they did. The results can provide an insight into what children understand about contagion today. This allows preschool teachers to see which areas they can work with children regarding their understanding about contagion.