Teaching Peace in Times of War. Exploring Ukrainian Children’s Literature through Shared Reading

The study addresses the challenge of developing dialogic pedagogical practices for educational and youth work settings during an ongoing war. It presents a qualitative pilot phase of the DaR:UA project, which explores shared reading of contemporary Ukrainian children’s and youth literature as a mediated form of dialogue. The pilot involved 47 adult professionals working with war-affected young people and was conducted as an ethical preparatory step prior to research with minors. Data were generated through guided shared reading sessions and online focus group discussions and were analysed thematically. The findings indicate recurring patterns of mediated personal engagement, symbolic interpretation, hope-oriented reflection, and regulated emotional expression, demonstrating the methodological and pedagogical feasibility of shared reading in wartime contexts.