The question of limits in preschool education has been considered difficult for both parents and teachers. In this study mothers and teachers’ social representations of limits in children’s development were investigated. Fourteen mothers and eight preschool teachers of private schools of Porto Alegre participated in the study. The narrative interview and content analysis were used as procedures of data collection and analysis. The results indicated the representation of limits as frontiers to be respected for the sake of morality. The use of dialogue as a resource was cited by mothers and teachers in their narratives, as well as the need for tolerance. However, both also expressed many doubts, guilt and insecurity which reflect in the development of children’s limits. While teachers attribute the responsibility of a lack of limits to the families mothers do not perceive the school as an ally in the process of limits construction.
Childrearing practices; limit; narrative
