Values education in early childhood according to the philosophy for children (P4C) approach: The example of compassion education

Early childhood is considered the most important period in terms of the child's development process and character formation. The contribution of different educational approaches is important in shaping the religious thoughts of children who think, can express their thoughts and are involved in the active learning process. Various studies have shown that the "Philosophy for Children (P4C)" approach, which makes it possible to carry religious education to a dimension that children can understand by contributing to the development of problem solving, reasoning and communication skills and is translated into our language as "Philosophy for Children", has an important role in modern religious and values education. This study aims to reveal the effect of the P4C approach on values education in the context of teaching the concept of mercy. The study focuses on the titles of P4C, Religious Education and Compassion and evaluates its relationship with Values Education. The study is a case study designed based on the qualitative research method. Evaluation and suggestions are included in the conclusion section. In the study, it was concluded that the application studies carried out with the P4C approach in early childhood have a positive effect on children. Keywords: Religious Education, Values Education, P4C