<b>Indigenous children: the role of games, amusement and imitation in learning and development

Abstract

Current text, the result of research conducted by the project Observatório da Educação Escolar Indígena/UEM-PR, funded by CAPES / SECADI / INEP, deals with topics on indigenous childhood and education with reference to historical aspects. Games, their importance and their roles in family and community experiences as learning and development topics are underscored. Reports by ethnographers who had contact with indigenous groups in southern Brazil in the mid-nineteenth century and early twentieth century, and their records on indigenous childhood among families groups are provided. Recent studies on indigenous childhood, especially among the Kaingang,Guarani and Xetá ethnic groups, are also registered.