Children’s play has been a recurring theme throughout the history of picture books for children,  perhaps because of its utter relevance in young children’s lives. Pija Lindenbaum and Emma  Adbåge are two authors of Swedish contemporary picture books who often explore depictions of  play. The aim of this thesis is consequently to study depictions of children’s play in Lindenbaum’s  Vi måste till jobbet (2019) and Adbåge’s Gropen (2018), and if the depictions can be interpreted  as possibly empowering or subversive for the playing characters. With Play theory as a theoretical  ground and useful concepts for picture book analysis, the aim is to compare these two picture  books and how they each portray play.    The results of the study show that Lindenbaum and Adbåge, each in their own way, explore both  different depictions of play as well as the potential for empowering and subversive feelings for the  playing child. In Lindenbaum’s case we see a depiction of pretend play and its mental evolution in  children aged 3 to 8, as well as an acclaim to children’s playrooms as safe and potentially  liberating play arenas. Whereas Gropen is more of a conflict-oriented work, Adbåge also defends  children’s own spaces for play and the empowering feeling these arenas bring the playing children  in being free from adult interference.

This study has focused on the schoolyard and how the social interaction between children plays out in the schoolyard-play from a socio-economic perspective. The reason for this is to highlight some major differences in children's social skills depending on where they go to school. We have reported on relevant previous research that shows that play that takes place in the schoolyard are an incredibly important part of children's lives but also in their development of social skills. Our analysis has been linked to key concepts in sociological and sociocultural theory. For the purpose of the study, it has utilized qualitative method in the form of observation at two different schools in southern Stockholm but at two different municipalities. The result shows that there is quite a difference in the social interaction between children in the schoolyard, depending on how the schoolyard looks and what kind of plays it offers. Based on the socio-economic status of the schools, we were able to conclude that an attractive schoolyard offers more opportunities for children to develop their social skills. The overall conclusion from the study is that children who attend school where the socioeconomic status is high have an easier time for the social interaction between the children. While in a school where the status is lower, it appears that the conditions for social interaction do not develop in the same way. The conclusion we have reached is that students' social skills do not develop in the same way because of the socio-economic background. / Denna studie fokuserar på skolgården och hur det sociala samspelet mellan barn utspelar sig i leken utifrån ett socioekonomiskt perspektiv, för att kunna undersöka hur barns sociala kompetenser villkoras det av var de går i skola. Vi har redogjort för relevant tidigare forskning som visar att lekar som utspelar sig på skolgården är en otroligt viktig del i barnens liv men också i deras utveckling av sociala kompetenser. Vår analys har kopplats till centrala begrepp inom sociologisk och sociokulturell teori. Studien utgår från en kvalitativ metod i form av observation på två olika skolor i två av Stockholms södra kommuner. Resultatet visar att det skiljer sig ganska mycket i det sociala samspelet mellan barn på skolgården beroende på hur skolgården ser ut samt vad den erbjuder för lekar. Utifrån skolornas socioekonomiska status kunde vi dra en slutsats om att en attraktiv skolgård erbjuder fler möjligheter för barn att utveckla sina sociala kompetenser. Den övergripande slutsatsen från studien är att det sociala samspelet mellan eleverna är lättare att åstadkomma i en skola där den socioekonomiska statusen är hög. På en skola där statusen är lägre visar det sig att förutsättningarna för det sociala samspelet inte utvecklas på samma sätt. Den slutsats vi kommit fram till är att elevers sociala kompetens inte utvecklas på samma sätt just på grund av den socioekonomiska bakgrunden.