Animals in the Lives of Young Maltese Children (original) (raw)
Related papers
Guest Editor's Introduction: Animals in Children's Lives
Society & Animals, 1999
In contemporary Western society, nonhuman animals play an extraordinarily salient role in the lives of children. For their first gifts, almost all infants receive soft toys manufactured in the likeness of animals. Throughout childhood, children continue to receive such objects from friends and relatives-the recent cult of the beanie baby providing a suitable case in point. Animal representations liberally decorate the clothes, cribs, strollers, and prams of both babies and toddlers. In a child's room, these same representations tend to appear on wallpaper, curtains, and lampshades. The overwhelming majority of fairytales, fantasies, fables, storybooks, and other literary genres associated with children are either about animals or feature animals as important central characters (Bettleheim, 1976; Tucker, 1989; Johnson, 1996). Animals also predominate in television programs, cartoons, and films, especially those produced for younger children. After all, the entire media and entertainment edifice of the Walt Disney Corporation arose from animated caricatures of mice and has evolved through a veritable bestiary of comic, tragic, and heroic animal characterizations. Real animals occupy an equally prominent position in the child's world. Almost all children enjoy visiting zoos, aquaria, and natural history museums. Documentary films about animals and nature fascinate many children, and almost all, at some time in their lives, will keep companion animals. Market research has demonstrated that pet ownership occurs most frequently in households with children (Messent & Horsfield, 1985). Various studies suggest that over 90 % of children, if they do not already "own" a pet will express-when prompted-a desire to do so (Salomon, 1981; Kidd & Kidd, 1985). Whether child or adult is primarily responsible for promoting this apparent affinity for companion animals is unclear. Survey results indicate that the majority of parents either believe or assume that children benefit in various ways from the company of companion animals. Companion animals may teach a child responsibility, encourage caring attitudes and behavior, provide companionship, security, comfort, amusement, or an outlet for affection. They may promote respect and compassion for animals and nature by offering a child opportunities to learn about
Building a model of the environment: how do children see animals?
Journal of Biological Education, 1999
In order to name an animal they see, children use their existing mental models to provide the animal with a name. In this study, pupils of a range of ages (4, 8, 11 and 14 years old) were presented with preserved specimens of six different animals and asked a series of questions about them. The results indicate that pupils of all ages mainly recognise and use anatomical features when naming the animals and explaining why they are what they are. However, older pupils are more likely to also use behavioural and habitat attributes. For both girls and boys, the home and direct observation are more important as sources of knowledge than school or books, though books seem more important for boys than for girls. As pupils age, their reasons for grouping animals become more complicated: in addition to relying on shared anatomical features, they begin to show evidence of an embedded taxonomic knowledge, knowing, for instance, what a mammal is and using this knowledge to group animals.
Children€s Wild Animal Stories and Inter-species Bonds
Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, 2002
In this paper, I discuss the contemporary dilemma of animals disappearing from the minds and direct experiences of many human beings in Western culture, and the implications of this dilemma for the fields of child development, environmental education and biological conservation. As part of a larger research project, I explored kindergarten and grade 5 children's (N = 177) ideas and stories about three common, familiar and wild, Canadian animals-bats, frogs, and raccoons. In the research process, I attempted to attend to the methodological decisions I made along the way. I reflect upon trends in the children's wild animal stories, and questions they raise about anthropomorphism, kinship, and inter-species bonds. Résumé Dans ce document, j'aborde le dilemme contemporain de la disparition des animaux de la pensée et de l'expérience directe de plusieurs êtres humains de la culture occidentale ainsi que les implications de ce dilemme pour les champs du développement infantile, de l'éducation environnementale et de la conservation biologique. Dans le contexte d'un plus vaste projet de recherche, j'ai exploré les idées et les histoires d'enfants (177) de la maternelle et de la 5e année portant sur trois animaux sauvages qui nous sont familiers au Canada : la chauve-souris, la grenouille et le raton laveur. Au cours de la recherche, j'ai tenté de prêter attention aux décisions méthodologiques que je prenais chemin faisant. Ma réflexion porte sur les tendances de la littérature enfantine sur les animaux sauvages et les questions qu'elles soulèvent à propos de l'anthropomorphisme, de la parenté et des liens interspécifiques.
'A Dog who I Know Quite Well': everyday relationships between children and animals.
Children’s Geographies, 2011
Adult discourses often represent relationships between children and animals as beneficial for children's psycho-social development or as reflecting a 'natural' connection between children and animals. In contrast, this paper draws on recent work in sociology and geography where human-animal relationships are seen as socially situated and where conventional constructions of the human-animal boundary are questioned. Focussing on children's own perspectives on their connections with animals, it is argued that these relationships can also be understood within the social and relational context of children's lives. This relational orientation to children's relationships with animals might significantly enhance our understanding of children's lives, and might also open up ways of thinking about the place of animals in children's (and adults') social lives. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14733285.2011.562378
The concept of " pets " as perceived by 4-8 year-old children
A number of studies examining the interaction of children with animals have shown the benefits of animals on the physical, mental, emotional and social development of children. Especially thanks to pets, children can learn a great many things like love of nature and animals, in addition to developing a sense of responsibility and loyalty and building good relationships. This study aimed to put forward the concept of “pets” as perceived by children aged between four and eight. The study group used in this research consisted of kindergarten and 1st - 2nd grade primary school children (n = 94) from Bursa Province (Turkey) over the 2014-2015 school year. Semi-structured interview questions and the children’s drawings of “pet themed” pictures were employed as data collection tools. A document review of the collected data was conducted and analyzed using content analysis techniques. According to the results obtained, while a large number of the children knew the concept of “pets”, they had different ideas about the characteristics of pets, as was revealed in their drawings. Moreover, regarding the perception of pets, there appeared to be a difference between children who had pets and those who did not. Keywords: early childhood, child, pets, perception.
Students (ages 6, 10, and 15 years) in six countries knowledge of animals
Nordic Studies in Science Education
This article considers the knowledge students (ages 6, 10, and 15 years) have of animals from a cross-cultural perspective. Students from six countries (Brazil, England, Finland, Iceland, Portugal, and the United States of America) were asked to free-list as many animals as possible and state where they had seen or learned about the animals. The results were analyzed and they indicate that 1) Students are aware of animals. 2) Students are more aware of mammals as examples of animals. 3) There is a globally shared folk biological knowledge of animals. 4) Students learn about animals during sociocultural interactions. The educational implications are discussed.
1998
In order to name an animal they see, children must use their existing mental models to provide the animal with a name. In this study, pupils between the ages of 4 and 14 are presented with preserved specimens of 6 different animals and asked a series of questions about them. The results indicate that pupils of all ages mainly recognize and use anatomical features when naming the animals and explaining why they are what they are. Older students are more likely to use behavioral and habitat attributes and girls are more likely than boys to refer to features of the head, face, and eyes. For both girls and boys, the home and direct observation are more important as sources of knowledge than school or books, though books are more important for boys than girls. As students age their reasons for grouping animals becomes more complicated. (Contains 17 references.) (DDR)
2020
Animals fascinate children. This chapter discusses the understanding and interest of young children about animals, vertebrates and invertebrates. The information has been derived from research, observations and from particularly the analysis of drawings created by children of animals. Using drawings as such a technique in establishing primary children of the internal organisation of a variety of organisms is becoming more frequently used.. The analyses discussed are from children's drawings of vertebrates, themselves, birds, fish, and invertebrates, namely crabs, earthworms and snails as well as external views of insects. Drawings were analysed by using a rubric which has adapted for use with invertebrates based on the level of occurrence of organ systems. The drawings are scored per the rubric. A children mature they produce more realistic drawings but gradually learn the internal organs of an organism and even the systems. Of which organs are a part. Young children use their understanding of themselves as their template or reference point for the structure or anatomy of other animals, internal and external, and for physiology and discussing behaviours and needs. In some organisms, the influence of popular culture and pictorial fiction books can be identified.
Too many monkeys jumping in their heads: Animal lessons within young children's media
Young children's media regularly features animals as its central characters. Potentially reflecting children's well-documented affinity for/with animals, this mediabooks, toys, songs, clothing, electronic media, and so on-carries with it many explicit and implicit messages about animals and human-animal relationships. This article focuses on the particularly foundational age of children under four and their parents/caregivers as children's first early childhood environmental educators. Drawing on ecofeminism, ecocriticism, and early childhood environmental education, we explore messages about animals in children's media, critically considering notions of mis-and dis-placement, anthropomorphism, and subjectivity. Our inquiry challenges parents and environmental educators to reconsider the lessons young children learn about animals from their surrounding media and explore possible alternatives that question and seek to transform social and ecological inequalities.