The effect of geography education provided with a project approach in preschool on children's development and geographical acquisitions

The aim of the study is to examine the effects of geography education, which is carried out with the project approach in preschool, on the development and geographical achievements of children and the permanence of the geographical concepts they have acquired. Case study, one of the qualitative research methods, was used in the research. The study group of the research consists of 5-6 years old children who attend a kindergarten in a village school in Gaziantep and their families in the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 academic years. The researcher conducted the study with the children and their families studying at the school where she worked as a teacher. "My Anatolia Project", which lasted 11 weeks, created by the researcher, was carried out with the study group. "Geographical Concepts Interview Form for Preschool Period", "Observation and Anecdotal Record Forms", "Semi-Structured Parent Interview Forms" and "Anatolian Drawings Through Children's Eyes" created by the researcher were used as data collection tools. In order to determine the permanence of the geographical achievements of the children, the "Geographical Concepts Interview Form for the Preschool Period" was applied to the children six months after the end of the project. The data were analyzed by descriptive analysis and numerical analysis of qualitative data. According to the findings, it was determined that there was a difference between the geographical achievements of the children before and after the project. Additionally, data shows that the children acquired the geographical elements such as the World in spatial terms, places and regions, physical systems, human systems and environment & society. They also remembered the information about these achievements after the project. According to the parents, the children exhibited acquisitions related to The World in spatial terms, places and regions, physical systems, human systems, and environment & society geographical themes outside the school. Parents have noticed that their children's cognitive, social & emotional, motor and language development areas, self-care skills and geographical observation, geographical inquiry and time perception skills have improved. In the research, it has been determined that the geographical gains of the children are permanent. In the light of the results, suggestions were presented to researchers and teachers. Keywords: Preschool, geography education, geographical regions, geographical elements, project-based learning approach