To strengthen the validity of evaluation data and findings, teachers collect data through several sources such as close-ended questionnaires, open-ended worksheet (drawing on whiteboard) classroom observations. Collecting information from a variety of sources and with a variety of techniques can confirm findings.

Pretest Phase

The study involved a total of 208 children aged between 4 and 6 years. The age distribution was as follows: 4 years (35.6%), 5 years (59.6%), and 6 years (4.8%). 

Gender representation was relatively balanced with boys constituting 52.9% and girls 47.1%.

Participants were drawn from kindergartens across Greece, Turkey, Spain, and Romania.

You and Art 

A significant majority (84.1%) of the children expressed strong enthusiasm for drawing and crafting activities, demonstrating a high intrinsic motivation toward creative expression.

Preferences varied, with 50% favoring crafts and 35.6% drawing, reflecting diverse artistic interests. These findings substantiate the positive attitudes children hold toward creative processes, which form a vital foundation for project engagement.

When asked about creations to help the planet, 70.9% proposed ideas centered on planting trees and environmental care. Others suggested recycling, cleaning, and inventing supportive tools such as robots, indicating emerging environmental consciousness and imaginative problem-solving skills.

These responses align closely with the project’s aim to nurture ecological awareness through artistic activity.

Nature and You

In describing a natural scene, most children identified elements such as forests and trees and frequently expressed positive emotions like happiness and calmness. This emotional connection underscores the pedagogical principle of the environment as the “third teacher” within the Reggio Emilia framework, where nature fosters learning and well-being. 

Regarding concrete environmental actions, 70.9% endorsed planting trees, 48.5% emphasized avoiding littering, and 61.2% highlighted animal care.

Furthermore, 81.1% correctly identified watering plants as beneficial for the Earth, evidencing a clear understanding of responsible behaviors that support Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Children show awareness of concrete actions supporting SDG goals, reinforcing responsibility and agency.

Sustainable Development Goals

Children recognized clean water as a critical global priority (74.9%), reflecting their grasp of fundamental human and ecological needs.

Connecting Art with Nature  

Approximately half of the participants viewed flowers, paintings, and even crafts made from trash as valid forms of art, revealing openness to creative reuse and environmental art. 

The overwhelming majority (94.1%) expressed willingness to create art related to nature, endorsing the integration of creativity and environmental stewardship.

This motivates the pedagogical approach to use art as a tool for environmental education.

Creative Expression 

Children’s descriptions of what they love about Earth frequently included trees, the sea, the sun, flowers, and animals, indicating an emotional and aesthetic appreciation of the natural world foundational for fostering environmental stewardship.

Feelings About Art and Nature

Most children reported feeling happy when caring for the Earth, highlighting the critical role of positive emotional engagement in motivating sustainable behaviors.

Reinforces the importance of emotional engagement in environmental education.

The pretest findings reveal that children aged 4 to 6 exhibit considerable enthusiasm for creative activities alongside a meaningful awareness of environmental issues. Their positive emotional responses to nature, coupled with thoughtful ideas for planetary care, demonstrate an early internalization of sustainable values aligned with multiple SDGs.These results affirm the project’s pedagogical approach grounded in the Reggio Emilia philosophy, which emphasizes the importance of children’s voices, emotional engagement, and creative expression. The data provide a robust foundation for fostering children as active, joyful agents of change through artistic and collaborative exploration of sustainability themes.