Abstract The construction of “the competent child” and early childhood care Values education among the youngest children in a nursery school The phenomenon I focus on in this article is the construction of “the competent child”. This discourse, that has developed from both psychology and later the sociology of childhood, has influenced the Swedish Childhood Education. One purpose of this paper is to investigate the pedagogical signs in this construction of “the competent child” and to investigate the influence of a new understanding of children in a child care practice. I have chosen a Reggio Emilia-inspired nursery, with its emphasis on democracy and view of the child as competent and active, to shed light on the connections between this view and a values education. I also aim to problematise this paradigm of childhood. The theoretical discussions concerning the view of the competent child are illustrated by empirical material from a limited case study at one child care centre. The methods used in the present study are field notes and video recordings. Empirical material from my case study illustrates how values education is expressed in a child care practice. The children in the nursery observed can be seen as both “being” with access to adult nursing and care, and also as being competent.