CULTURE AND IDENTITY IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION: A PERSPECTIVE FROM THE CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK FOR THE MUNICIPAL EDUCATION SYSTEM OF TOLEDO

Abstract

This article discusses the relationship between culture, identity, and integral development in Early Childhood Education, understanding the child as a historical, social, and cultural subject who produces meanings from lived experiences. The aim of the study was to analyze how official documents and theoretical frameworks guide pedagogical practices that value cultural diversity and the construction of children’s identities. This is a qualitative research study, of a bibliographical and documentary nature, based on authors such as Vygotsky and Hall, as well as the Brazilian National Common Curricular Base (BNCC) and the Early Childhood Education Curriculum Guidelines of the municipality of Toledo – PR (2024). The results and discussion highlight the centrality of the child’s integral development in educational public policies and indicate that identity is constructed through social interactions mediated by language and culture. It was found that the Curriculum Guidelines of Toledo value diversity, respect for differences, and the connection between school, family, and community, contributing to the formation of critical and participatory subjects. Integrating culture, identity, and integral development constitutes an ethical and pedagogical commitment in contemporary Early Childhood Education, demanding practices that recognize children as protagonists of their own histories and as producers of culture.