Abstract

Most basic concepts are acquired during preschool period. There are studies indicating that the basic concept knowledge of children is related to language development, cognitive development, academic achievement and intelligence.  The relationship between learning behaviors (sometime called learning or cognitive styles) and a child academic success is widely recognized.  So, it is supposed that the learning styles can be also influential on the development of children’s basic concept knowledge. The purpose of this study is to analyze the relationship between the learning styles of kindergarten children and their level of basic concept knowledge. The sample of the study was selected by using simple random sampling method and it consists of 176 children (76 girls and 100 boys) in kindergarten in Istanbul, Turkey. Learning Styles Scale for 5-6 Year-Old Children (Uyanık et al.) and Boehm Test of Basic Concepts (Boehm) were used to collect data. The results indicate that there is a significant relationship between children’s learning styles and their basic concept knowledge. It has been also found that basic concept knowledge is significantly predicted by visual and auditory learning styles in young children.

Key words: Kindergarten, learning styles, basic concept knowledge.