This thesis examines preschool teachers’ experiences of play and teaching in preschool. The aim is to explore how preschool teachers reflect on children’s opportunities for play and how they balance play and teaching in their daily practice. The study also investigates how teaching is integrated into children's play and how this process is perceived across different levels of professional experience.

The study adopts a hermeneutic approach to interpret how two generations of preschool teachers perceive the relationship between play and teaching in preschool. A thematic analysis was used to analyze the collected interview data. The analysis involved coding the data, identifying recurring patterns, and developing overarching themes that were interpreted in relation to the study’s purpose. The theoretical perspective addresses the intrinsic value of play as well as critical perspectives on the concept of teaching, with a particular focus on play-based teaching and play-responsive teaching. The study is based on qualitative, semi-structured interviews with six preschool teachers from two generations with varying levels of professional experience. The interviews were conducted in sex municipalities and several preschools, which contributed to a broader range of perspectives. The participants were divided into two categories based on their professional experience: an older generation with extensive experience and a younger generation with less experience. This division allows for a comparison of their descriptions of play and teaching. 

The results show that both groups view play and teaching as closely intertwined, but differ in their approaches: experienced preschool teachers emphasize spontaneity and flexibility, while less experienced teachers focus more on planning and structure. Professional experience thus influences how play and teaching are understood and implemented.