Media Literacy for the Youngest: Working with Children's Experiences of Digital Media and AI in the “Screen-Free” Preschool

Children today are growing up in a world where digital media is an embedded part of everyday life. Many preschool children use tablets, watch videos, and play games, and some are also exposed to new AI-based services through apps and social media used within their families. At the same time, there is an ongoing public debate about children's screen use, and new guidelines mean that digital tools should be used more sparingly in preschool settings. This raises important questions about how preschools can help children understand and relate to the media and technologies they encounter outside preschool. The project is being carried out in collaboration between researchers at Södertörn University and pre school educators at Vanadis förskolor in Stockholm. The aim is to investigate how preschool children experience and use digital media in their everyday lives, what questions and reflections these experiences give rise to, and what knowledge they may need to navigate a society in which digital technology and AI are becoming increasingly important. The project also seeks to develop and test educational approaches that make it possible to address these issues.

This practice-oriented research project (ULF project) is a collaboration between researchers and educators at three municipal preschools in Stockholm. It is conducted in three phases:

1) a mapping phase, in which participating children and their guardians document one week of the child’s media experiences through a simple media diary. The diary records the types of media the child encountered and any thoughts or questions that arose. The diaries may include drawings and short written reflections. This material then serves as the basis for creative group discussions with the children, giving them the opportunity to share their experiences and reflect together with educators and researchers.

2) a pedagogic development phase, in which the media diaries and discussions are used as a starting point for developing and testing educational activities in preschool. These activities are based on creative expression, play, and other non-digital approaches, and are designed in collaboration with an artist affiliated with the project. The goal is to identify ways of working with children’s experiences of digital media and AI that are consistent with the preschool curriculum and with new guidelines promoting reduced screen use.

3) a final dissemination phase, in which the lessons learned from the project are compiled, evaluated, and shared with other preschools, teacher education programs, guardians, and other interested stakeholders.

The research problem addressed by the project concerns the tension between children’s everyday media experiences and the dominant public debate surrounding screen time and digitalization. While many children encounter digital media, social platforms, and AI-related content in their daily lives, policies and governing documents are increasingly emphasizing reduced use of digital tools in preschool settings. Knowledge remains limited regarding how this development affects preschools’ ability to address issues related to media, digitalization, and AI. In particular, there is a lack of research on how such topics can be approached pedagogically in preschool contexts where digital technology is not the primary tool for learning.