Embodied Learning—The Contribution of a Motion-Based Game to Kindergarten Children’s Knowledge of Local Tree Species

Petra Lindemann-Matthies (), Frauke Lutz and Martin Remmele
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Petra Lindemann-Matthies: Institute of Biology, Karlsruhe University of Education, D-76060 Karlsruhe, Germany
Frauke Lutz: Institute of Biology, Karlsruhe University of Education, D-76060 Karlsruhe, Germany
Martin Remmele: Institute of Biology, Karlsruhe University of Education, D-76060 Karlsruhe, Germany

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 16, 1-19

Abstract: Given the importance of plants for ecosystem functioning, sustainability, and human well-being, children should be introduced to local species as early as possible. This study investigated whether kindergarten children (n = 24) can acquire knowledge of trees through a motion-based educational game and a subsequent half-day excursion. During the game, illustrations of trees were shown, their names were called out, and the children were asked to perform certain movements relating to features/names of the trees they had practiced. In semi-structured interviews directly after the activities and three months later, the children were asked to identify the trees by their leaves and to provide reasons why they had remembered their names. Already, after playing the game for four weeks, species with large and iconic leaves such as Norway maple ( Acer platanoides ) were correctly identified in nature by about 80% of the children. The interviews showed that even after three months, children correctly identified more than half of the species presented. They recognized the trees by their shape and the texture of their leaves but also by remembering the corresponding movements. The combination of motion-based play and hands-on, sensory investigations can be recommended to promote plant knowledge right from kindergarten age.

Keywords: kindergarten; plant knowledge; educational games; sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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