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The purpose of this study was to investigate methods of enhancing kindergarteners' artistic creative thinking and expressive drawing through an activity that involved appreciation of picture books. The study was conducted in a public kindergarten in southern Taiwan, with 27 children aged between 4 and 5. The researcher conducted the study in 16 weeks; data were collected via digital recordings of participants' appreciation and art‐making activities, artwork assessment checklists and questionnaires. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used to process and analyse data. On the expression of and changes in children's artistic and creative thinking ability, findings suggest that ability is expressed through discussions that involve art vocabulary, including descriptive, analytical, interpretative and judgemental words. On‐site practice indicated significant use of descriptive and analytical art vocabularies. The results also showed that the collage series of picture books had more impact on children than did other picture books in terms of teaching efficacy by picture book appreciation. With regard to differences in children's reading and drawing behaviours between the beginning and the end of the study, findings indicate a significant and positive change in children's reading and drawing behaviours at home. The study also indicated that children's drawing behaviours could be cultivated by a series of art instruction activities. These findings should impact kindergarten educators’ instructional methods in visual art education in Taiwan, and may influence Taiwanese curriculum reform in early childhood art education.

The objectives of the study were to investigate the current status of applying picture books when teaching children and to also compare the differences in picture book teaching between teachers with different background variables and who are from Taiwan's outlying islands. The researcher distributed 179 questionnaires, and after eliminating invalid questionnaires, 177 valid questionnaires were obtained, achieving a questionnaire efficiency of 98.88%. The quantitative data were analyzed by a t-test, ANOVA, Pearson Product Moment Correlation and Multiple Regression. The results were: 1. The overall status for picture book selection by early childhood educators was considered moderate to high. 2. The primary considerations for picture book selection were 'theme' and 'adopting a child's viewpoint'. 3. The overall status for the application of picture book teaching strategies among early childhood educators was considered moderate to high. 4. The application of picture book teaching strategies was centered on 'strategies for the promotion of thinking and activities' and 'developing diverse abilities in children'. 5. There is a positive correlation and predictive power between selecting and using picture books by preschool educators.Keywords: using picture books, preschool educators, outlying islands of Taiwan Research BackgroundThe cultivation of interests and reading skills has become a trend in the contemporary world. Taiwan's former Minister of Education, Wu (2010), stated, 'reading is the soul of education.' To elevate the quality of national education, culture and creativity, and to increase competitiveness on an international scale, a sound foundation and interest in reading are critical and should be developed at a young age. In 2001, the Ministry of Education launched a number of reading strategies and policies. In 2002, 334 recommended children's books were selected by MOE to public and private preschools around Taiwan in anticipation that teachers would employ picture book teaching to guide and encourage children to read at a young age, and develop the habit of reading (Wu, 2005). As the primary material that introduces children to the world of reading, picture books are critical and can substantially influence a child's interest in reading. Selecting appropriate picture books and utilizing relevant teaching strategies are important aspects that teachers must consider in order to maximize the effectiveness of picture book teaching, thereby instilling and maintaining children's passion for learning (Lin, 2009;Su, 1998).Picture book resources on the outlying islands of Taiwan are quite limited compared to those of Taiwan's urban regions. In view of this, teachers employed by preschools on outlying islands were recruited as the research subjects for this study. In addition, some preschool teachers informed research that some obstacles of implementing picture books' curricula and instructional practice in the preschool on outlying islands; and so the objective of the present study was to explore the sta...

The aim of this study was to investigate preschool teachers' use of picture books for teaching environmental concepts and the conservation of resources. Using an action research approach, twelve children aged 5-6 years old were recruited for this eight-week study. Eight picture books with an environmental education theme were selected for use in these classes. The results revealed that the pupils' knowledge of environmental concepts was higher in the post-test than the pre-test. With regard to the conservation of resources, the children learned to bring their own cotton hankies, use less water when washing their hands and brushing their teeth, and reduce the amount of drawing papers on which they doodled. The children were also persuaded to continue saving energy at home, and demonstrated that they understood that turning off the TV and lights were practical steps they could take to achieve this. Nevertheless, they did not appear to grasp the idea of reusing plastic bags.

The research purpose was to investigate kindergarten parents' selection of after-school art education settings in Taiwan. A review of the literature and interviews with parents were conducted to identify several possible factors that would impact on parents' selection of after-school art education settings for their children. Then, the researcher self-compiled a survey and distributed 550 copies to parents and 515 copies were obtained. The effective return rate was 93.6%. The findings were as follows: 1. The majority of parents believed children can attend after-school art education settings at the age of four years, and parents also believed that art specialists have a great impact on children's drawings. 2. Type of kindergarten attended by children (public or private), mother's age, mother's occupation, and education level of mother and father have significant effects on decision making regarding the selection of after-school art education settings for their children. 3. The effects on learning: More than 85% of the parents believed that their children have achieved their expectation, which was to enrich creativity, patience, and attention. And, over 80% of the children discussed what they had learned with their parents. 4. The most popular way to teach is to combine teacher-directed and student-directed methods. 5. The most frequently used art materials are markers and crayons in after-school art education settings.