PRACTICAL APPROACHES TO INTRODUCING PROSE WORKS IN PRESCHOOL EDUCATION

MRS Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Studies Abbreviate TitleMRS J Mul Res Stud ISSN (Online) 3049-1398 Vol-2, Iss-11 (November-2025) This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license 36 PRACTICAL APPROACHES TO INTRODUCING PROSE WORKS IN PRESCHOOL EDUCATION Dr. Teodora Valeva* Burgas State University “Prof. d-r Assen Zlatarov Corresponding Author: Dr. Teodora Valeva (Burgas State University “Prof. d-r Assen Zlatarov) Article History: Received: 02 / 08 / 2025:, Accepted: 10 / 11 / 2025:, Published: 20 / 11 / 2025 Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has not only been a health crisis but also a turning point that deepened debates on justice and inequality at the global level. One of the most critical phases of the pandemic-the development and distribution of vaccines-brought the concept of “vaccine nationalism” to the forefront. Vaccine nationalism is defined as states prioritizing limited vaccine supplies for their own citizens, engaging in large-scale stockpiling, and relegating international solidarity to a secondary position (Fidler, 2021). This situation particularly restricted access to vaccines for lowand middle-income countries and made inequalities in global health more visible. Although global mechanisms such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and COVAX undertook significant initiatives with the aim of ensuring equitable vaccine distribution, the economic and political priorities of powerful states often limited the effectiveness of these mechanisms (Eccleston-Turner & Upton, 2021). Thus, the pandemic emerged as an arena where the preservation of the “global common good” and the pursuit of national interests clashed within international relations. This article examines vaccine nationalism in the context of global inequality and discusses its consequences in terms of both international cooperation and health diplomacy. While highlighting the unequal effects of the pandemic, the study also explores how the concept of justice in global health has been redefined in the international system. The findings demonstrate that vaccine nationalism is not merely a short-term crisis management preference but a phenomenon that reproduces permanent injustices within the global order. Keywords: children’s literature, prose, preschool pedagogy, artistic interpretation, reading culture, literary education. Cite this article: Valeva, T. (2025). PRACTICAL APPROACHES TO INTRODUCING PROSE WORKS IN PRESCHOOL EDUCATION. MRS Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Studies, 2(11),36-39. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17656672 INTRODUCTION The introduction of preschool children to prose works represents one of the most subtle and, at the same time, most formative dimensions of literary education. It is in early childhood that the foundations of aesthetic perception, emotional empathy, and verbal imagination are laid, forming the basis for the child’s future capacity to understand, evaluate, and emotionally respond to artistic language. Literature at this stage is not a preliminary form of reading instruction but an encounter with art that develops sensitivity to beauty, moral understanding, and awareness of the rhythm and imagery of language. For prose to reach the child’s consciousness as an authentic artistic experience, the educator must establish an environment in which intellectual curiosity, sensory impression, and emotional resonance coexist. The teacher’s role extends far beyond the mechanical act of reading aloud. It requires transforming the encounter with literature into an event of shared artistic discovery, where every narrative becomes a bridge between the child’s personal experience and the author’s imaginative world. The educator serves as a cultural interpreter who decodes the author’s artistic and emotional intentions and translates them into expressive forms comprehensible to the child’s inner world. This process necessitates a comprehensive methodological approach that integrates several forms of pedagogical artistry, including expressive reading, dramatization, dialogue, visualization, and guided reflection. Each of these forms fulfills a distinct educational function: expressive reading awakens emotional participation; dramatization cultivates empathy and embodiment of roles; visual materials stimulate imagination and aid comprehension; reflection fosters moral reasoning and linguistic awareness. When these approaches are combined harmoniously and applied in sequence, they form a holistic educational continuum in which perception, emotion, and cognition interact dynamically. A key condition for the successful introduction of children to prose works is the educator’s preliminary preparation. This involves not only the thoughtful selection of literary material appropriate to the developmental stage of the group but also the creation of a communicative atmosphere conducive to openness and emotional engagement. The teacher must anticipate possible reactions, adjust tone and rhythm, and rehearse the expressive delivery of the text in accordance with its stylistic and emotional structure. In the process of perceiving a work of art, educators justifiably assign a primary role to expressive performance, since it activates the emotional sphere and allows the artistic message to resonate with the inner experiences of the audience [1]. Through this integration of emotional authenticity and artistic intention, the teacher transforms literature into a living dialogue with the child’s imagination. The success of literary initiation in preschool age therefore depends not merely on methodological precision but on the educator’s ability to MRS Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Studies. Vol-2, Iss-11 (November): 36-39 37 awaken an emotional response that gives meaning to the act of reading and fosters the child’s aesthetic and moral development. EXPOSITION In the very structure of the situation, three parts are distinguished: introductory, main, and concluding. In the introductory part, various methodological techniques are used to focus the children's attention on the theme of the literary work and, above all, on the theme of the new work, creating interest in it. The techniques used can vary: in the first group, for example, finished objects or pictures related to the theme of the work may be shown, a song on the topic may be sung, or simply the beautiful cover of the new book from which the work will be read may be displayed; a few introductory words may be said to create interest in what will be read or narrated. In the second and third groups, one can begin with a brief introductory discussion based on one or two questions about similar events from the children's own lives or about another analogous and familiar work previously heard. Most often, with one or two questions, the teacher guides the children to recall an episode o from their life, similar or opposite to that described in the work [1]. In the main part, children first get acquainted with the core work related to the situation, which is usually new and unknown to them. According to Margarita Terzieva, three methods can be used to introduce the new work: 1. Verbatim transmission of the text of the work by reciting shorter works (mostly lyrical) from memory, which achieves the best contact with the children, and by reading from a book for longer works, where the teacher demonstrates a model of careful attention to the book to the children; 2. A freer transmission of the text of the work through storytelling, allowing for some shortening of the text, rearrangement of words, insertion of words, explanations, etc., without compromising the artistic quality of the work; 3. Staging the text of the work (using toys or pictures on a table, with puppets behind a screen, etc.). The main requirement in these three methods of introducing children to a literary work is the expressiveness in the teacher's performance, which can either enhance the work's impact on the children or diminish it. Introducing a literary text is often accompanied by the use of various visual aids [2]. However, it should be noted that when familiarizing children with literary works, the use of illustrations and any other visual materials should be done very tactfully and carefully, as shifting the children's focus to visual perception during reading and listening may disrupt their artistic perception. Therefore, an important task of the teacher is to teach children, especially the older ones, to first perceive the literary work aurally, without additional visual aids. During the initial reading of the work, the teacher aims for the children to be imbued with the feelings expressed in the piece, allowing them to experience corresponding joy, sorrow, pity, admiration, and so on. Therefore, reading any literary work is done fully, without interrupting the reading with comments or explanations. After the first reading of the work, a short creative pause is taken. Since children are strongly impressed by the work, they usually ask to have it read to them again. Therefore, after the first reading, the teacher maintains only a general and informal discussion about the work, recalling the most vivid episodes and reviewing the illustrations related to them. A general rule is that the illustration should be shown after reading the text. Only in some exceptional cases can an illustration be shown before reading to capture the children's attention. When showing the illustration, it is necessary again to focus on the text and selectively reread the episode to which it relates. In this way, a close connection is established between the perception of the text and the illustration. Children need to learn to look at illustrations carefully and for a long time. A relatively traditional, yet widely applicable method is to compare illustrations of individual moments from a literary work, which should be related to the plot and arranged in the proper sequence. To add an element of aesthetic provocation, in addition to their "disorder," another entertaining element is applied – one of the moments is deliberately not depicted by the artist, appearing as a blank page with a large question mark on it. Children must identify the missing moment and place it in the correct order according to the sequence of the plot. Entertaining tasks of a logical type related to illustration as a technique include depictions of "mixed-up drawings," in which characters and details unrelated to the text's content are present. The teacher's narrative, which usually precedes the discussion but is organically linked to it, aims to reveal interesting facts about the author's personality – primarily his childhood, events surrounding the creation of the work itself, its thematic relation to a certain group of works, and so on. Usually, with younger children and when introducing works that are easier to perceive and understand, working with the texts consists of conducting an informal conversation about the work, examining illustrations, and rereading. For older children and when introducing works that are more complex to perceive and understand, after rereading, it is necessary to conduct a more detailed discussion, especially when it is found that the children have not fully grasped the main idea of the work. Conducting the discussion of the work itself is one of the most challenging methodological aspects of the situation. It must be very carefully considered, maintaining a certain measure in posing the questions. Excessive indulgence in conversation is not only unnecessary, but can often even cause harm, because splitting the work into very small and trivial questions causes it to lose its appeal for children and their interest in it suddenly declines. Children should derive ethical and aesthetic concepts themselves from the literary work, rather than from the teacher's moralizing reflections on the read work. The greatest portion of the discussion should be dedicated to aesthetic questions, directing the children's attention to the form of the work, to imagery and to the expressiveness of the language, to identifying and remembering the artistic descriptions, epithets, comparisons, and idiomatic expressions used in the work. According to Malinka Dimitrova it is also necessary to draw children's attention to the personality of the writer, to his ability to find the most precise words to characterize the qualities, actions, and experiences of the characters [3]; [4]. Children are also guided towards the compositional unity of the work, to identifying its main parts, the relationship and correspondence between the title and the content, and so on. It is necessary to assign creative tasks to children, such as coming up with comparisons, epithets, synonyms, antonyms, etc., or inventing a different title for the MRS Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Studies. Vol-2, Iss-11 (November): 36-39 38 work, and so on. For older children, it is advisable to ask questions to determine the genre of the work, as well as its specific characteristics. The story has its presence as literary prose in the work on Bulgarian language and literature in kindergarten, but overall it is surpassed by fairy-tale narratives, which appeal to children with the dynamic action and plot twists [5]. According to Anikin, perception develops alongside the formation of a moral attitude towards certain human qualities and deeds [6] [7]. For children in the youngest groups and those with more limited abilities for aesthetic perception, the introduction of a puppet character, who reflects together with them and stimulates thinking by analogy with their limited but still real experience, leads to positive results. Expressive reading (the teacher's performance) is essential in working on the comprehension of a story. One method used by the teacher when introducing a work is the oral narration of the piece. Through this, the educator evokes certain feelings and various experiences in the children, enabling them to imagine the moments of the story, its characters, and so on. The fact that the teacher narrates rather than reads from a text serves as a focus stimulant, which positively influences the perception of the work [1]. In the teacher's talk, there should be room for questions that suggest the genre-specific characteristics of the story. Since stories do not have a vivid plot, and they do not feature exceptional characters or incredible actions, dramatization of them is not of primary importance for aesthetic perception. Individual moments from them can be performed by children, but a full dramatization is not necessary [8]; [9]. Among the methods successfully used by kindergarten teachers in mastering a story is the addition of the development of events to further clarify certain moral and aesthetic messages. The technique of applique has its place when working with a story to enhance the aesthetic impact. For example, when studying "Blooming Cherry" by Dora Gabe, after forming a vivid image of the trees, adorned like brides, the teacher can give each table a drawing of a tree with a green crown, and the task for the children is to turn it into the blossoming tree described by the author. This creates a lively spring picture that satisfies the aesthetic feelings of its young creators. The short story "Dew" by the same author can stimulate children's sensory experiences once again through practical activities organized by the teacher. The teacher can arrange cut grasses and flowers in a small vase, on which droplets of morning dew glisten, and invite the children to act as little explorers – to observe, touch, and even taste a drop of dew in order to describe it. This preliminary preparation is particularly important for the teacher, as it will not only facilitate the easier understanding of the content, which is inherently close to a popular science presentation, but also provide an opportunity to create their own description of the phenomenon. CONCLUSION In this sense, the development of reading culture, literary competencies, and reading interests at the primary education level actually begins long before formal schooling, already in kindergarten, when children first consciously engage with works of children’s literature, and the teacher, as a mediator between them and the authors of literary works, facilitates the perception and comprehension of artistic imagery and helps uncover the authors’ moral and aesthetic messages in the works [10]. At this early stage, literary education plays a decisive role in shaping not only the child’s linguistic abilities but also their emotional and moral world. Through fairy tales, poems, and short prose, children learn to experience the richness of language and the beauty of artistic expression. The educator’s task is to create a meaningful encounter between the child and the literary text, encouraging active participation, emotional response, and reflection The teacher’s interpretative reading, expressive storytelling, and guided discussions allow children to perceive the emotional depth of characters and situations, turning literary experience into an act of empathy and moral discovery. In this process, literature becomes more than an educational tool; it transforms into a living dialogue between the child and the world of human values. Consequently, the role of the preschool educator extends beyond the development of speech or early literacy skills. It includes fostering sensitivity to artistic language, nurturing the capacity to appreciate aesthetic form, and encouraging a reflective attitude toward moral content. When such foundations are laid in early childhood, reading ceases to be a mechanical activity and becomes a source of intellectual curiosity and emotional fulfillment. As highlighted by pedagogical theory and supported by practical experience [10], the teacher’s mission is not only to introduce children to literary works but also to awaken their sense of wonder, curiosity, and moral sensitivity through the artistic word. Only then can reading evolve into a deeply personal, lifelong form of self-discovery and cultural belonging. Bibliography [1] Daskalova, F., Terzieva, M , Methodology for the Development of Speech and Mastery of the Bulgarian Language in Kindergarten, Plovdiv, 2012.: Makos press, 2012. [2] M. Terzieva, Problems of native language learning in kindergarten, Burgas : Libra Scorp press. ISBN: 978-954-471594-6, 2020. [3] M. Dimitrova, World Literature for Children and Adolescents Volume 1, Sofia : University Publishing House "St. Clement Ohridski". ISBN: 978-954-07-2623-6, 2007. [4] M. Dimitrova, World Literature for Children and Adolescents Volume 2, Sofia : University Publishing House "St. Clement Ohridski". ISBN: 978-954-07-2824-7, 2009. [5] Margarita, T., Kapinova, E, The tales of different ethnicities and peoples, Varna: Bit i tehnika press. ISBN: 978-954-941266-6, 2016. [6] V. Anikin, Russian folk tale, Moscow: Children's Literature press, 1977. [7] V. Anikin, Russian folk tales, Moscow: Children's Literature press. , 1978. [8] N. Kovacheva, Questions of children's literature, Sofia: Narodna mladej press., 1982. [9] N. Kovacheva, Questions of children's literature, Sofia : Narodna Mladej press. , 1989. MRS Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Studies. Vol-2, Iss-11 (November): 36-39 39 [10] N. Ivanova, Children's Literature and the Formation of Reading Culture in Primary School Students, Sofia: University Publishing House "St. Kliment Ohridski". ISBN: 9789540745756, 2019.