Small Astronomers

Abstract

C hildren are inherently curious about science subjects, and astronomy offers an interesting theme within these subjects. In this context it is thought that understanding the preschool child's knowledge about astronomy may be a starting point for astronomy education at a young age. The purpose of this research is to investigate children's knowledge about the basic astronomy concepts. The study was undertaken with 103 children aged 4-6 years, attending various lower and upper socioeconomic level public and private preschools. The data of the study were collected using the AKTPC test created by the researchers, and analyzed using ANOVA and T-test. At the end of study, age and gender variables didn't lead to a significiant difference in terms of the astronomy knowledge of the children, whereas there was a significiant difference in favor of children at the upper socioeconomic level. Also, it was seen that children were aware of basic astronomy concepts, and they used their ability in terms of the scientific process to explain astronomic events. (C) 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd.