Respeitar e acolher na educação infantil: os bebês e seus direitos

Abstract

This paper presents a study on respect and welcoming of infants' rights in Early Childhood Education and how these actions manifest in daily practices within educational institutions. We aimed to identify, through a qualitative approach using bibliographical and documentary research procedures, principles and practices for welcoming implemented in daily actions at a daycare center. We focused on documentation and pedagogical records of three infants aged 3 months to 1 year attending full-time at an Early Childhood Education institution affiliated with the municipality of Erechim/RS, Brazil. The objective of this study was to investigate how pedagogical actions in Early Childhood Education demonstrate respect and welcoming towards infants and their rights, defining concepts such as child, Early Childhood Education, welcoming, and children's rights. Data analysis was conducted using Textual Discursive Analysis, resulting in three discussion categories: infants' integration into institutions, daily life in Early Childhood Education, and meeting infants' health and well-being needs, including sleep and nutrition. The findings reveal that welcoming, when conceived as a methodological approach, occurs throughout the academic year and every day of the children's journey in the institution. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that welcoming is recognized as a fundamental right of the child, organizing spaces, time, and materials that can meet the infants' needs in their initial experiences in Early Childhood Education institutions