Previous research has suggested that active engagement with the world drives children's remarkable learning capabilities. We investigated whether preschoolers are "ecological learners," that is, whether they are able to select those active learning strategies that are most informative in a given task. Children had to choose which of two exploratory actions (open vs. shake) to perform to find an egg shaker hidden in one of four small boxes, contained in two larger boxes. Prior to this game, children either learnt that the egg was equally likely to be found in any of the four small boxes (Uniform condition), or that it was most likely to be found in one particular small box (Skewed condition). Results of Study 1 show that 3- and 4-year-olds successfully tailored their exploratory actions to the different likelihood-distributions: They were more likely to shake first in the Uniform compared to the Skewed condition. Five-year-olds were equally likely to shake first, irrespective of condition, even when incentivized to shake only when needed (Study 2a). However, when the relevance of the frequency training for the hiding game was highlighted (Study 2b and Study 2c), the 5-year-olds showed the same behavioural pattern as the younger preschoolers in Study 1. We suggest that ecological learning may be a key mechanism underlying children's effectiveness in active learning.

Previous research suggests that children’s information search remains largely inefficient until age 4. Here, we investigate the early emergence of children’s information-search competence using a simplified version of Lindow’s (2021) finding-presents game. Children (n = 86, 24- to 59-months old) had to find a present hidden in one of three closed boxes. All boxes were identical but for one feature (e.g., all boxes were blue and had a flower icon on top, but one box was round, one heart-shaped, and one squared). To identify the target box, children received three information cards revealing one feature of the target box (i.e., its color, shape, or icon). As the boxes differed in only one feature (e.g., their shape), only one information card contained the relevant information to the decision (i.e., the information card indicating the correct shape). Children could flip one information card to learn about one particular feature before deciding which box to open. This was our dependent measure. Our findings indicate that children as young as 2 years can efficiently search for information to guide their decisions and underline the importance of using age-appropriate paradigms.

Previous research has shown that active engagement driveschildren’s remarkable learning capabilities. We investigatedwhether preschoolers are ecological learners, able to selectthose active learning strategies that are most informative in agiven task. Children (n = 114; 3 to 5 years old) chose betweentwo exploratory actions (opening vs. shaking) to find an eggshaker hidden in one of four small boxes, contained in twolarger boxes. Prior to this game, children learnt that the eggwas equally likely to be in any of the four small boxes(Uniform condition), or that it was most likely to be in oneparticular small box (Skewed condition). Results show that 3-and 4-year-olds, but not 5-year-olds, successfully tailored theirexploratory actions to these different likelihood distributions.We suggest that ecological learning may be a key mechanismexplaining how children can efficiently learn about the worldaround them.