Abstract
The purpose of this study was to clarify the roles and functions of "object in early childhood setting" to support the cooperative experience among children. We analyzed a class of three-year-olds and four-year-olds in a kindergarten attached to a Kagawa University. As a result, the following two points showed. First, characteristic of objects may restrict the cooperative experience of children. If children always imagine a fixed pattern from the toy, it is difficult for them to investigate and create in that cooperative play. Second, we confirmed the process of cooperative experience in a class of three-year-olds and four-year-olds. However, there are some differences in the functions of the object between the two. Therefore, the teacher needs to consider its roles and functions to facilitate the cooperative experience among children.
