READING MEDIATION THROUGH PLAY: PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES FOR FOSTERING READERS IN CHILDHOOD

Abstract

Fostering reading habits in childhood is one of the major challenges of contemporary education, requiring pedagogical practices that spark children's interest in reading from their earliest years of schooling. In this context, reading mediation through play emerges as a significant strategy, capable of integrating playfulness, imagination, and learning into educational experiences that foster the child's holistic development. This study aims to analyze the importance of playful pedagogical practices in reading mediation and their contribution to shaping readers during childhood, highlighting the teacher's role as a mediator in this process. It seeks to understand how play can enhance children's engagement with literary texts, promoting the enjoyment of reading, the expansion of cultural repertoires, and the development of linguistic, cognitive, and socio-emotional skills. Methodologically, this is a qualitative study, characterized as descriptive and bibliographic. Data collection involved surveying and analyzing scientific publications available in databases such as SciELO, Redalyc, the CAPES Journal Portal, and Google Scholar, as well as classic and contemporary works related to children's literature, play, and reader development. The results indicate that integrating reading with play fosters children's active engagement with narratives, making the learning process more meaningful and enjoyable. The study concludes that the use of play-based pedagogical practices contributes to building positive reading experiences, strengthening the development of reading habits and fostering critical, autonomous, and participatory readers from childhood onwards.