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FULL REFERENCE: Song, J., Li, W. & He, X. (2026).  Teacher-child verbal interaction in kindergarten picture book teaching activities.  NZ International Research in Early Childhood Education Journal, 28(1), 39-52.  

ABSTRACT: Teacher-child verbal interaction is fundamental to children’s language development and cognitive growth. This mixed-methods study examines the patterns and quality of such interaction during picture book teaching activities in a Chinese kindergarten. Using improved Flanders Interaction Analysis System (iFLAS) and Teacher Scheme for Educational Dialogue Analysis (T-SEDA), 16 picture book sessions involving four teachers (two novices, two experienced) were analysed across six dimensions. Four key findings emerged. First, interaction remains teacher-dominated: teacher talk accounts for 64.45% of verbal exchanges, and the Initiation-Response-Feedback (IRF) pattern prevails. Second, teachers show positive emotional support and prefer open-ended questioning, yet higher-order dialogue is limited. Third, pedagogical silence is minimal (0.97%) and child-initiated turns are rare (11.09%). Fourth, four distinct teacher profiles emerged – from “open-exploratory” to “generative-responsive”- revealing significant individual variability in scaffolding practices. These findings suggest that picture book reading can foster children’s agency and cognitive engagement, but this potential is constrained by teacher-directed routines. The study offers recommendations for professional development, emphasising teachers’ role as dialogue facilitators and the need for conditions that support children’s active participation in co-constructing knowledge.

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KEY WORDS: Teacher-child interaction, picture books, teacher talk, oral language, language development, cognitive growth, educational dialogue, iFLAS, T-SEDA.

INTRODUCTION

Language is not merely a tool for cognitive construction but serves as the core medium for children’s social interaction. The World Bank (2021) emphasises that language is vital for children’s subsequent learning, development, and human capital accumulation. This macro-consensus is reflected in global early childhood curriculum frameworks. For instance, New Zealand’s Te Whāriki identifies “Communication” (Mana Reo) as a key pillar, emphasising children’s meaning-making through rich symbolic environments (New Zealand Ministry of Education, 2017). Against this backdrop, the picture book with its unique literary genre combining text and imagery provides an ideal vehicle for children to understand the world and experience aesthetic value. Building upon this, picture book reading and discussion activities are validated as a critical pedagogical approach for fostering children’s linguistic competencies in early childhood settings (Noble et al., 2019).

However, the educational value of picture book teaching is highly dependent on the quality of teacher-child verbal interaction. Recent empirical evidence underscores that the strategic use of storybooks as scaffolding tools can significantly enhance the depth of teacher-child dialogue and children’s cognitive engagement (Aktulun et al., 2024). Nevertheless, a persistent gap remains between these pedagogical ideals and actual classroom practice. The prevalent Initiation-Response-Feedback (IRF) pattern inherently reinforces teacher control by dominating conversational turns and evaluating responses, thereby restricting children’s opportunities for sustained dialogue (Houen et al., 2026). To address these challenges, it is essential to move beyond theoretical advocacy and scrutinise the specificity of classroom practice.