Abordagem lúdica na educação científica nos anos iniciais do ensino fundamental

Abstract

Playfulness constitutes an excellent pedagogical strategy for promoting science education in the early years of Elementary Education. From this perspective, playful practices enable students to understand scientific content presented in the classroom in an enjoyable and meaningful way. Therefore, the general objective of this study was to investigate the conceptions of a group of in-service education professionals regarding the importance of playfulness for science education in the early years of Elementary Education. To achieve this objective, a qualitative field study (Gil, 2008; Minayo, 2014) was conducted with professionals working in the early years of Elementary Education at a public school located in the municipality of João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil. Data were collected through structured interviews conducted in person at the school. Data analysis was carried out using Content Analysis (Bardin, 2016), following three stages: pre-analysis, material exploration, and treatment and interpretation of the results. The findings revealed that, although the three participating professionals reported challenges in implementing playful practices in science teaching, they were able to incorporate playful activities into their science classes. It is therefore concluded that playfulness has significant educational potential in the school context, particularly in science teaching, as it promotes the construction of scientific knowledge in a dynamic and engaging manner by stimulating students' interest, active participation, and protagonism in the teaching and learning process.