Preschool shall offer children instructions in biology and this includes teaching about nature's different cycles. In this study, we want to highlight how biology teaching and the use of picture books can be linked. The purpose of our study is to highlight how picture books can illustrate cycles of nature in preschool teaching. The cycles of nature have been limited to the cycle of carbon and water. The method that has been used is a content analysis of text and pictures. 16 picture books published between the year 2000-2021 have been analysed. The analysis shows that the carbon cycle could be illustrated by different categories. The water cycle emerged through the category of water movements. The results showed that the cycles of carbon and water can be made visible in both text and pictures. The images were able to expand the content beyond what the text said and make the cycle of carbon and water visible. When the cycles were illustrated in the text, this was often reinforced by a picture. The results also show that concepts are not common in picture books. It is also shown that the cycle of carbon and water can be illustrated in picture books with both anthropomorphic content and those without. The conclusions drawn from the result are that picture books can be used to illustrate the cycle of carbon and water. It is however necessary that the preschool teacher has subject knowledge in biology in order to make this content visible in teaching.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka förskollärares förhållningssätt till att arbeta med att barn ska skapa förståelse av sin delaktighet i naturens kretslopp. Kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer med åtta förskollärare gav svar på studiens frågeställningar. Resultatet visar att förskollärarna har olika erfarenheter av och syn på sin naturkunskapsundervisning, både sin egen från skolan och den som de ska utföra. I resultatet ser vi att de intervjuade förskollärarna ser arbetet med naturens kretslopp som viktigt men att det kan vara komplicerat. Arbetssättet för att lära barn om sin delaktighet i naturens kretslopp varierade beroende på förskollärarnas kunskaper och intressen men en aktivitet som alla nämnde var att vistas i skogen, så att barnen får utforska den. Förskollärarna lyfte även upp fler arbetssätt, exempelvis att följa årstider och gräva ner material i jorden. Slutsatsen är att undervisningen om människans delaktighet i naturens kretslopp för barnen i förskolan får tydliga konsekvenser av förskollärarnas förhållningssätt till ämnet. / The purpose of this study is to examine preschool teachers’ approach to work with children so that they can create an understanding of their participation in the natural cycle of nature. Qualitative semi-structured interviews with eight preschool teachers provided the answers to the study's issues. The results showed that the preschool teachers have different experiences of and view on science education. The results showed that the preschool teachers think of the natural cycle of nature as an important part of their mission but think that it can be complicated. The way to teach varied depending on the preschool teachers’ knowledge and interests but one activity that all of them mentioned was being in the forest so that the children can explore it. The preschool teachers discussed other ways of teaching, for example following the seasons and digging material into the soil. Our conclusion is that the education about humans’ participation in the natural cycle of nature is affected by the preschool teachers’ approach to the subject.