“If AI is to become part of the preschool environment, it must be used in ways that strengthen children’s curiosity and influence,” writes associate professor Susanne Kjällander, Stockholm University in an article in Förskoletidningen 1 2026.

There are many work tasks where AI can facilitate quality assurance and administrative duties, thereby freeing up time for the softer values: care, human presence, and interactions with the children – things AI cannot do.

She emphasizes that children should be active, creative producers rather than passive consumers, and when an educator chooses a digital learning tool, it should offer a clear added value and be able to accomplish something that analog tools cannot.

Kjällander also mentions two examples of how AI can be used. In one case, photos from a forest excursion were transformed by AI into an imaginative story with illustrations. In another, AI transformed an operational plan into an entertaining podcast conversation between two artificial voices.

Read the full feature article in Förskoletidningen 1–2026(in Swedish) (PDF, 405.7 kB).

Also read more about the research project “AI and Principals in Preschool.” Susanne Kjällander is the project leader and runs the project together with group members Regina Enedahl, Belinda Gyllenstig, and Stefan Osla.