Hands on! : Materialbaserte og kunstneriske utforskinger og uttrykk gjennom stop-motion animasjon

This article examines an educational animation project involving Early Childhood Education students through an art-based research methodology. The project focuses on exploratory and creative digital practices using material-based stop-motion animation. Both the 2017 Framework Plan for Kindergartens and the 2020 National Curriculum for primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary education emphasize the importance of children and pupils working exploratively and creatively with and through digital technologies. Consequently, there is a need to develop and discuss how such practices can be designed and implemented. The article explores the connections between materials and digital technologies in creative work with stop-motion animation, promoting an exploratory practice that is in line with children's and pupils' bodily ways of learning. The theoretical framework is rooted in theories of embodiment, highlighting how cognition is deeply intertwined with the materialities of our environment. Our cognition is shaped through interactions with our surroundings and by shaping materials with our hands.