The purpose of this study is to examine what kind of discourses emerges among the preschool teachers working in the two different organizational forms within the preschool- age divided groups versus age mixed groups. I focus on clarifying why some preschools choose to work with all ages (1-5 years) or with age divided groups, and if they base their choice on any specific theoretical basis. I want to explore how the different preschools organize themselves and how they do to respond to the different age-related needs of the child or support the development of children. My research questions are: ● What kind of discourses emerges in conversation with the educators about the age-related organization of preschool groups and how does it affect their execution of educational activities, such as the daily gathering? ● What are the strategies of the educators to fulfill curriculum requirements in an age mixed group and in an age divided group? The study is based on, among other things, research on age structure at the preschool and the daily gathering, and interviews of preschool teachers and preschool managers. I have found two types of discourses, one that is related to childrens stages of development and one related to social interaction. I have also come to the result that the main strategy for educators is to divide the groups into smaller groups in order to execute educational activities. In both age mixed groups and in age divided groups they divide the children according to age and maturity level.

Ambitionen med utvecklingsarbetet är att planera och genomföra schackundervisning i en förskola samt analysera aktiviteterna utifrån ett didaktiskt perspektiv, i syfte att utveckla och vidga mitt, som blivande förskollärare, arbetssätt att uppnå läroplanens mål i matematik. Huvudsakliga teorier innehåller didaktik och matematikdidaktik. Arbetet utgår ifrån en hermeneutisk ansats och experimentell observation har varit arbetets främsta metod.Resultaten visar att barnen under schackaktiviteter har utövat följande matematiska mål i läroplanen (2016): rumsuppfattning; grundläggande egenskaper hos mängder och antal; mätning; reflektion omkring olika strategier och problemlösningar; urskiljande; förklaring. Under aktiviteterna har barnen visat följande svårigheter för undervisningens innehåll: förstår inte hur man flyttar pjäsen springare; har svårt att kombinera varierade sätt att flytta damen för att undersöka det optimala sättet att uppnå målen; visar inte tillräcklig förståelse att behandla flera problem synkroniserat. Monologen är det dominerande kommunikationsmönstret under aktiviteterna, vilket innehåller en liknade modell. Jag styr monologen och erbjuder barnen ungefär lika många chanser att utrycka sig och delta i aktiviteterna. Dialogen sker mellan mig och barnen, samt mellan barnen. Initiativ till dialog tas i regel av barnen och påverkas endast minimalt av mig. Antalet dialoger skiljer sig dramatiskt åt bland barnen. Metakognitiv dialog uppstår endast under den sista aktiviteten. Jag utgör en viktig roll i metakognitiv dialog för att handleda barnen kring att vara medvetna om sin egen lärandeprocess.Schackaktiviteterna erbjuder en rik möjlighet för barnen att upptäcka och undersöka matematik med ett kritiskt tänkande samt erfara sina brister i schack. Det finns många meningsfulla moment där barnen tar initiativ till att bidra till att utveckla och fördjupa undervisningsinnehåll. En del av barnens funderingar och undersökningar är inspirerande för mitt framtida arbete.

Title: "Stop! You can't play with me!" A norm-critical essay on how the teacher influences children's free play at preschool Abstract This essay is based on two cases describing two children in a few different situations at preschool. These cases form the basis of a dilemma, discussing how involved the teacher should be in children's free play. The dilemma poses questions regarding the teacher’s actions when a child does not want to play with other children, as well as a child that seems incapable of playing with other children. The cases help highlight the implicit idea that children should play with other children. My purpose is to investigate what implicit normative ideas exists about children playing at preschool and to what extent they form my own notion about the necessity for children to be able to play. The method used in this paper is a reflective essay. This enables it possible for me to reflect on my role as a teacher and how I act in the different cases. The reflective part of the essay focuses on answering posed questions, with the basis of discussion being the Swedish curriculum for preschool and its influences. Further, the essay discusses the origin of my own ideas about how children should play originate from. The focus then moves to a sociocultural perspective, specially how children learn and develop when they interact with each other. This section of the essay also discusses norms at preschool, developed from an interpretation of the curriculum, as well as existing ideas about children playing and children as competent learners. Finally, the essay also discusses current research on children and how they play, as well as current research on the importance of involved teachers, put in relation to the two children portrayed in the presented cases. My conclusion is that the teacher is subject to the curriculum, and needs to act according to its content. A significant part of the work is creating a safe environment for the children. The curriculum of the Swedish preschool, and the implicit theories that help shape it, act as a guide to the teacher’s actions. It states that children should explore the world around them; hence there are norms about how a child should play. Keywords: preschool, free play, social interaction, norms, involved teachers, curriculum