Áreas verdes urbanas de Quirinópolis e uso como espaço pedagógico para alfabetização ambiental infantil.

Abstract

Urban green spaces are public domain areas that perform ecological, landscaping, and recreational functions, featuring vegetation and permeable soil. These areas improve the physical and psychological health of the population, making the city a more pleasant environment. The creation and maintenance of green spaces are directly related to the quality of life, health, and well-being of the population. In view of this, the present research aimed to first assess the impacts of pedagogical practices in contact with nature and green areas on child development, through a literature review, which surveyed studies conducted on the responses of children's contact with nature, playing with natural elements, enabling faster and healthier development. Subsequently, the urban green areas of Quirinópolis, Goiás, Brazil were characterized, selected, and mapped, for the calculation of the Green Areas Index of the municipality, which shows the relationship between the green area in square meters and the number of inhabitants in the municipality. The next step was to analyze the perception of residents around the green area of the Botanical Garden of the State University of Goiás, Quirinópolis campus, through questionnaires. From the perspective of environmental education, a children's ecological trail was created in the Botanical Garden of the State University of Goiás, southwest campus, headquarters in Quirinópolis (Ipê-Branco Trail), with species of flora and fauna (some in fiberglass) native to the Cerrado, and a recreation area was also created, featuring a playground built with recycled materials and a picnic area, where children could learn more about the biome they live in, vegetation, and fauna, play, and relate to nature. The research with the children was conducted through a questionnaire applied to two groups of 4th-year elementary school students from two public schools, before and after the experience on the Ipê-Branco trail, demonstrating the need for teaching and learning to go beyond the walls of the school institution, requiring theory to connect with practice for environmental education to truly occur, with significant pedagogical practice creating individuals sensitive to environmental causes.