Israeli Kindergarten Research Articles

The Impact of Physical Activity and Screen Time on Motor Creativity in Kindergarteners

Background/Objectives: Motor creativity and physical activity are essential to early childhood development, impacting physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development. This study investigates the relationships among motor creativity, motor working memory (MSTM), screen time, and physical activity (PA) in kindergarten children, focusing on the mediating roles of cognitive functions and screen time. Methods: Data were collected from 124 Arab Israeli kindergarten children through assessments of Thinking Creatively in Action and Movement (TCAM) for motor creativity and the Hand Movement Test for MSTM. Parents reported the children’s screen time and days engaged in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Results: The results show significant positive associations between motor creativity and both MSTM and PA, underscoring the role of cognitive processes in creative motor expression. Linear regression and mediation analyses showed that MSTM significantly mediates the relationship between PA and motor creativity. Conversely, screen time negatively correlates with PA and motor creativity, serving as a significant mediator that restricts opportunities for physical and creative activities. Conclusions: This study emphasizes the bidirectional relationship between PA and motor creativity, wherein diverse physical activities stimulate creativity, and creative movements encourage active participation. The combined mediating effects of MSTM and screen time highlight the complexity of these relationships, suggesting the need for integrated interventions. The findings inform early childhood education by advocating for strategies that promote physical activity, enhance cognitive functions, and limit excessive screen time, fostering holistic development in young children.

A qualitative study of kindergarten teachers’ views on superintendents’ authority and power

PurposeThe study aimed to explore the authority and power of kindergarten superintendents in public education to elucidate their leadership dynamics.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 Israeli kindergarten teachers about the authority and power of their superintendents. Thematic analysis was used to construct a description of two overarching authority categories: formal and informal.FindingsWithin the realm of formal authority, two prevalent leadership types were discerned: bureaucratic management and management by exception. Each type incorporated distinct official strategies for influencing kindergarten teachers. Three predominant informal leadership types emerged – authoritarian, empowering and pedagogical – reflecting different unofficial approaches to influencing kindergarten teachers. The study elucidates the power base that underpins each leadership type, describing the resources superintendents use for influence and leverage.Originality/valueThe importance of the study lies in providing valuable insights into the authority and power of kindergarten superintendent leadership in a centralized public early childhood system.

Creativity and Motor Skill Learning Among Kindergarten Children: Investigating Predictive Correlations and Performance Differences

Creativity, often linked to enhanced problem-solving and adaptive thinking, may play a considerable role in how children acquire and retain motor skills. This study investigates the effect of creativity on motor learning in kindergarten children. Using a sample of 120 Arab Israeli kindergarten children (60 girls and 60 boys, aged 5-6 years), we measured creativity through Torrance's Thinking Creatively in Action and Movement (TCAM) and assessed motor learning through invented letter task (ILT), in terms of speed and accuracy, administered at multiple time points: beginning and end of training, 24 hours post-training, and 4-5 weeks post-training. Our results indicate a significant correlation between the creativity measures and skill acquisition, consolidation, and long-term retention. Additionally, the results show that the creativity tests predict, skill acquisition and learning. Moreover, children with higher creativity scores exhibited significantly better performance in both speed and accuracy throughout the motor learning phases. Specifically, these children showed superior acquisition of skills, enhanced consolidation 24 hours post-training, and better retention. While the TCAM test focuses on creative thinking within physical activities, the observed association between creativity and motor learning suggests that creative activities may foster adaptive learning strategies and enhanced motor development. The study's findings underline the importance of incorporating creative activities into motor learning interventions. Such integration could, potentially, optimize developmental outcomes by fostering cognitive and motor skill development. This study deepens our understanding of the relationship between creativity and motor development, providing valuable insights for designing educational methods that support child development.

Perceptions of head kindergarten teachers in Israel of the role of their teaching assistants

ABSTRACT Few studies investigate the issue of kindergarten assistants, most probably because kindergarten assistants are often considered ‘invisible’ and are unappreciated because of their lack of appropriate education and training and low wages. This article examined how Israeli kindergarten teachers perceive the role of their assistants in an attempt to show the changes in the perception and definition of the role, especially following changes introduced by the ministry of education, which considers early childhood education an important goal and supreme value for the future of education and the state. Based on a questionnaire among kindergarten teachers in northern Israel, the study found a division of duties between the kindergarten teacher and the assistant, while the character of change in this division of duties stemmed from the managerial culture of the kindergarten and/or the kindergarten teacher’s years of experience. This suggests that kindergarten teacher assistants should receive appropriate professional development to ensure optimal fulfilment of their role.

Israeli Kindergarten Children’s Reactions to Their Parents’ Divorce “Suddenly It Was Quiet Because They Had Stopped fighting”

ABSTRACTThe current study investigated Israeli kindergarten children’s construction of sense of coherence during their parents’ divorce. 120 kindergarten children aged 4-6, whose parents had divorced in the previous two years took part in a semi-structured interview. Qualitative content analysis showed that the children perceived the divorce as both presenting difficulties of confusion and frequent transitions, and as enabling the benefit of double gifts and fewer arguments. The children structured the meaning of the concept of family as a form of conduct in which they see the help the family provides as well as the split and the expansion of the family. They gave emotional meaning to divorce - on the one hand sorrow and longing, and on the other, the fantasy of a reunion of their divorced parents. These findings are important for understanding the unique perspective of kindergarten children regarding their parents’ divorce and ways to help them accordingly.

Developing Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors in Early Age-An Intervention Study in Kindergartens.

Childhood obesity prevention is a leading public health challenge requiring the adoption of healthy lifestyles at an early age. We examined how the kindergarten environment can promote eating sensibly, drinking water and becoming physically active. The effects of an intervention program among 42 Israeli kindergartens (1048 children, aged 4-6) whose teachers participated in a health education training program were compared to 32 kindergartens (842 children) whose teachers did not undergo this training program. An eight-month intervention program focused on knowledge/mathematical/logical/critical thinking, self-regulation/control acquisition, and sensible decision-making abilities. We hypothesized that nutrition and physical-exercise-oriented intervention programs, combining knowledge/mathematical logical thinking, would positively impact the quality of children's mid-morning snack and water consumption, their ability to express feelings following physical exercise, and the adoption of healthy lifestyles at home. The quality of mid-morning snacks and water consumption were observed in both groups pre- and post-intervention. Qualitative interviews documented children's subjective feelings following physical exercise. A significant improvement (p < 0.001) was observed in the mid-morning snacks composition and in water drinking habits in the intervention group; 80% of children offered a physiological explanation regarding energy expenditure processes following intense physical exercise. In conclusion, kindergarten interventions implemented by trained teachers can promote adoption of health behaviors necessary for obesity prevention.

Kindergarten teachers promote the participation experience of African Asylum‐Seeker families

AbstractAfrican asylum seekers live in Israel in the realities of poverty, racism, and personal insecurity. From a sociological point of view, Participation is taking part in social processes, interacting with people, texts and technologies and it may affect all areas of life. This is a qualitative‐interpretive study that examines through interviews the participation experience from the perspective of eight African couples and six Israeli kindergarten teachers. The findings indicate: (1) Increasing the parents' sense of belonging, (2) Increasing the cultural participation, (3) Increasing community cohesion. Findings reveal a tension between the parents' desire to be involved and my reality of poverty and working around the clock that prevents their presence in educational activities. Under such complex conditions, kindergarten teachers worked to establish a positive personal relationship, strengthen the parents' sense of ability, overcome language barriers, and cultivate a sense of belonging from a perception that increasing participation would help them deal with integration challenges and livelihoods social rejection. The study has a theoretical and practical contribution, and its findings may be used by educators and policymakers regarding principles for action to promote the experience of participation and involvement of parents in educational settings.

Kindergarten teachers' evaluation: perceptions of the new Israeli multiple domains performance tool

PurposeIn 2012, the Israeli Ministry of Education and its Testing and Evaluation Department introduced a new tool to evaluate the quality of kindergarten teachers’ work. This paper aims to identify how kindergarten teachers perceive the new multiple domains performance tool.Design/methodology/approachThe study applied a qualitative paradigm of data collection and analysis. Data collection consisted of semi-structured in-depth interviews conducted with 36 kindergarten teachers.FindingsFindings indicated that most kindergarten teachers perceive their work plan and the kindergarten climate as the most important evaluation domains, while perceiving involving parents as the least important and even an unnecessary domain. One-third of them indicated that an innovation domain should be added. Also, the kindergarten teachers perceived the use of the KT-MDPT as both positive and negative.Originality/valueThere is a clear dearth in scholarly literature dealing with the evaluation of the quality of kindergarten teachers’ work. This study is the first to reveal Israeli kindergarten teachers' attitudes regarding this new tool for work quality evaluation.

The story of “Beat”: A concert program in kindergartens

Orchestras all over the world have concert programs in various formats for children, including some designed for preschoolers. Presenting concerts to children in kindergartens and schools is a long-standing tradition in Israel. The uniqueness of these programs and their main innovation is the preparatory work and process through which the children are prepared for the concert—which is the culmination of the whole process. This case study focuses on the first 10 years (2005–15) of one of these programs—“Beat”—implemented in Israeli kindergartens. We aim to characterize the development of the various stages of this program, and to describe its integration into kindergarten life. The data were collected from semi-structured interviews with 26 program participants over the years (kindergarten teachers, music teachers in kindergartens, musicians, etc.), as well as documents (concert programs, preparation booklets, etc.) from its collaborating bodies. The main findings show the importance and impact of the cooperation between kindergarten teachers and music teachers during the preparatory stages, making music a part of daily life in kindergarten.

Promoting positive intergroup attitudes using persona dolls: A vicarious contact intervention program in Israeli kindergartens

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a vicarious contact intervention program for improving knowledge and attitudes of Jewish-Israeli secular and religious children regarding their ingroup and three outgroups: secular/religious Jews, Ethiopian-descendant Jews, and Arabs. One hundred and nine kindergartners participated in a four-week intervention, in which experimenters introduced to them four persona dolls representing the different groups. Accompanied by stories, children were exposed to the dolls’ individual and group characteristics, and to positive encounters between the dolls. A pre- and post-test battery assessed the intervention’s effects on children’s intergroup knowledge and attitudes. Findings revealed an increase in children’s knowledge of the groups, improvements in religious children’s attitudes towards Arabs, and in both secular and religious children’s willingness to sit closer to Ethiopian-descendant children. These findings highlight the potential of indirect contact for reducing intergroup bias in young children living in multicultural and conflict-ridden societies.

Effects of Workplace-Related Factors on the Prevalence of Fibromyalgia among Israeli Kindergarten Teachers.

Background Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), a chronic widespread pain disorder, has been associated with various models of stress, including those that are workplace-related. In a previous study, we have documented the significantly increased prevalence of FMS among schoolteachers, as well as correlating symptoms with stressful workplace-related factors. In the current study, we have focused on the specific population of kindergarten teachers and attempted to document both the prevalence of FMS symptoms among this group and the association with stress and symptoms of posttrauma. Methods All participants in the study were working as kindergarten teachers in Israel at the time of the study. Participants responded to a questionnaire documenting FMS symptom, which included the widespread pain index (WPI) and symptom severity scale (SSS), which together constitute the suggested American College of Rheumatology (ACR) FMS diagnostic criteria. Additional items on the questionnaire documented work motivation and performance, the occurrence of workplace-related stressful events, and the presence of posttraumatic symptoms. Results 242 participants were recruited to the current study, including 239 (98.8%) females and 3 (1.2%) males. 62 individuals (25.6%) were found to fulfill ACR FMS criteria. Significant differences in work performance were found between teachers fulfilling FMS criteria compared with those not fulfilling criteria. Thus, FMS-positive teachers reported significantly higher rates of missing workdays, leaving work early, and a lower quality of interaction with children in the kindergarten and with peers and supervisors. Motivation to work was also significantly lower among these individuals. The widespread pain index (WPI) and symptom severity scale (SSS), which together constitute the components of the FMS diagnostic criteria, were positively correlated with both stress and posttraumatic symptoms. In addition, widespread pain, disordered sleep, difficulty with concentration, and other FMS symptoms were strongly correlated with many specific stressful factors at the workplace, including the number of children in the kindergarten, interaction with parents, lack of optimal physical conditions in the classrooms, and various demands on behalf of the educational system. Conclusion FMS symptoms were found to be highly prevalent among Israeli kindergarten teachers, at a rate that greatly exceeds the prevalence in the general Israeli population. Stressful work-related events appear to be positively associated with the occurrence of FMS symptoms and may serve as triggers for their development. Healthcare professionals treating individuals engaged in this occupation should be vigilant for the occurrence of symptoms that are clinically associated with FMS and overlapping functional disorders.

The role of self-efficacy components in predicting Israeli kindergarten teachers’ educational leadership

ABSTRACT In recent years, the kindergarten teachers’ role has evolved to assume leadership tasks in addition to the traditional caring and instructional ones. This study examined the contribution of the self-efficacy variables of Israeli kindergarten teachers to predicting their educational leadership efficacy. This empirical study is based on the perceptions of the Israeli kindergarten teachers reporting on their self-efficacy for teaching and management (n = 175). The findings of the SEM model show that the combination of the elements of teacher self-efficacy and managerial efficacy is indeed significant for predicting the teacher’s leadership potential. In other words, self-efficacy in teaching and in managing a facility are essential for predicting educational leadership efficacy. The research model is constructed in a graded fashion, so that systematic paths of action can be derived from it for training the kindergarten teachers and developing them professionally.

Supporting children to act as change agents for parents in preparing their lunch box

This study aims to examine the effects of an intervention model, Change Nutrition by Doing, in which children act as agents of change – by ‘doing’ – in taking responsibility for the contents of the lunch box they bring from home to consume at an early childhood centre. This quasi-randomised case-control trial consisted of 35 Israeli kindergartens whose teachers were participating in an in-service training programme of an intervention model for improving children’s healthy nutritional behaviour. The control group consisted of 26 kindergartens whose teachers were participating in other in-service training programmes. The intervention model ran for eight months. The quality of the contents of the children’s lunch box in the experimental groups was measured pre- and post-intervention through structured observations that yielded standardised scores. Mann-Whitney U Test for independent samples (at the kindergarten level) was employed to compare the change in lunch-box content across the controls. The results showed that in all the variables the difference between the intervention and the control kindergartens was significant, p&lt; .002. It was concluded that the intervention had a significant positive impact on the content of the lunch boxes. This study shows the potential of supporting children to be change agents at home. In the future, there should be a follow-up of the family’s perseverance of the acquired habit.

The Obstacles to ICT Implementation in the Kindergarten Environment: Kindergarten Teachers’ Beliefs

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to identify the obstacles to information and communication technology (ICT) implementation in the kindergarten environment through exploring the beliefs of kindergarten teachers. Thirty Israeli kindergarten teachers participated in semistructured interviews. Their content analysis revealed three main obstacle-related categories, of which the first two are most salient: (1) pedagogically, despite acknowledgment of its value, ICT does not play a key role in the kindergarten teachers’ education philosophy; (2) didactically, ICT is used mainly as a source of information and for instructional illustration, rather than as a means to new teaching strategies; and (3) developmentally, computer use affects children’s social development, especially those with special needs, but not always positively. The main conclusion is that kindergarten teachers neither overcome these obstacles nor utilize ICT potential to its fullest; hence, teachers should be encouraged to participate in ICT-related professional training to understand the didactic opportunities ICT offers early childhood education and its developmentally related pros and cons and adopt innovative ICT-related pedagogies.

Young Children in Intractable Conflicts

The article examines the political socialization of young Jewish-Israeli children who live under the Israeli–Palestinian intractable conflict. It proposes arguments and presents empirical evidence to suggest that the way in which political socialization of young children happens in this context contributes to the development of conflict-supporting narratives of ethos of conflict and collective memory by the youngest generation. As a result, the conflict solidifies adherence to these narratives in adulthood, thereby serving as a major obstacle to the processes of peace-making and peace-building. Specifically, as evidence for showing how the political socialization works in Israel, a series of studies conducted in Israeli kindergartens and elementary schools are presented. These studies recount the contents acquired by young children, as well as contents delivered by teachers, related to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. This indicates the serious consequences of acquiring conflict-supporting narratives at an early age in societies involved in intractable conflict.

"The Multi-Faceted Kindergarten Teachers" — A Multicultural Perception of Kindergarten Teachers' Role in Light of the 'New Horizon' Reform

This study aimed to expose the perception of kindergarten teachers' role from a multicultural aspect, following the 'New Horizon' reform, i.e. a systemic change which transpired during the last decade in Israeli kindergartens and schools. The study was conducted in a qualitative-interpretive approach and the research population comprised eight female kindergarten teachers, four Bedouin and four Jewish. The data were collected by a semi-structured interview. The research findings illustrate procedural changes in the perception of kindergarten teachers' role following the reform: from an organisational change through a pedagogical change and up to a leadership-oriented change. The contribution of the study resides in providing applied information which will constitute another layer in the development of education and professional development programmes for kindergarten teachers.

Teaching Traumatic History to Young Children: The Case of Holocaust Studies in Israeli Kindergartens

Recently, the Israeli Ministry of Education initiated a mandatory nationwide curriculum for Jewish kindergarten children focusing on the study of the Holocaust. This initiative raises general questions regarding the inclusion of sensitive historical issues in curricula for young children. In this article, we use the new Holocaust curriculum as an instructive case through which to address the broader questions about what might constitute an appropriate and acceptable curriculum in early childhood. We discuss the initiative from three disciplinary perspectives: a developmental sciences perspective, an anthropological/cultural perspective, and a learning sciences perspective. As we demonstrate, these three perspectives not only represent different disciplines but also highlight different aspects of this issue, thus exposing the complexities of this discussion. We show that understanding these perspectives separately and then trying to combine them may enable a richer and more complex look on the broader questions that this specific curriculum raises. We conclude with an endeavor to integrate the three perspectives, all of which should be taken into account when constructing a curriculum for young children.

Testing the Cross-Cultural Clinical Utility of the VMI for Palestinian, Israeli, and American Typically Developing Kindergarten Children

Purpose: To assess the cross-cultural clinical utility of the Visual Motor Integration (VMI) standardized U.S. norms for typically developing Palestinian, Israeli, and American kindergarten children. The cross-cultural comparisons tested the extent to which the VMI standardized U.S. norms for all three tests (a) are appropriate for use with the aforementioned groups without the need for cross-cultural adaptations, and (b) have adequate rates of test sensitivity and specificity such that study classification results are comparable with those obtained using the VMI U.S. norms. Methods: The sample was comprised of 134 typically developing kindergarten children. Results: The observed mean performance scores were not significantly different from the published U.S. norms on all three tests for the Palestinian group and significantly higher for the Israeli group on all three tests. For the American group, scores were higher on the Visual Motor Integration and Visual Perception tests, but lower on the Motor Coordination test. The sensitivity rates for eight of the nine calculations resulted in perfect agreement between the study classification results and the VMI standardized classification of true positive cases. The specificity rates for the Palestinian group demonstrated perfect agreement between the study classification results and the VMI standardized U.S. norms. The specificity rates obtained for the Israeli and American groups were moderate. Conclusions: These exploratory findings merit additional research to further assess the clinical utility of employing the VMI U.S. norms with or without cross-cultural adaptations for these specific or any other cultural groups.

Long term effects of a health promotion intervention in low socioeconomic Arab- Israeli kindergartens

BackgroundObesity is the most common chronic pediatric disease in westernized, especially low socioeconomic societies. We previously demonstrated the beneficial effects of a randomized prospective school-based health education program for low socioeconomic status Arab-Israeli kindergarten children.MethodsTo examine whether the effects of our program on nutrition and physical activity knowledge and preferences, anthropometric measures, and fitness persisted one year after the end of intervention.We were able to perform the one year follow-up in 203 kindergarten children (59% of our 342 original cohort; 85 control, 118 intervention).ResultsAt one year following the intervention BMI and BMI percentiles approached baseline level in both the intervention (16.4±0.2 kg/m2 and 61.5±2.4%, respectively) and control group participants (16.5±0.2 kg/m2 and 58.5±3.3%, respectively). Yet, a year after the end of the intervention, the decrease in BMI%ile from baseline was significantly greater in the intervention group (-7.8±1.5 vs. -1.9±1.9, p<0.012). Nutritional and physical activity knowledge and preferences, and physical fitness remained significantly elevated in the intervention compared to the control group participants.ConclusionsThe beneficial effects of a kindergarten dietary-physical activity intervention applied by the kindergarten teachers, on nutrition and physical activity knowledge and preferences, fitness, and BMI percentile were evident one year after the end of intervention. This promising program may play a role in health promotion, prevention and treatment of childhood obesity.

Music Literacy in an Israeli Kindergarten

This article reports on a learner-centered kindergarten music program at Gan Michael Kindergarten in Israel. Actual experiences with stories and pictures provide examples of young children engaged in music making as performers, composers, and analytical listeners. The stories include teacher thoughts and reflections, providing a model of teacher as researcher and learner. What can we learn from these stories?