Decisions may take longer but the results are likely to be enjoyed more by the children and practitioners may learn unexpected things about their children's views, interests and skills.
The 'Spaces to Play' project gathers the views of three-and four-year-olds about their outdoor environment and linked up with the LTL Kent project.
Over six months children at Happy Faces Pre-school, Tonbridge, were given participatory tools, including cameras, map-making and slide shows, to convey their understanding of their outdoor area.
The methods of consulting built on Listening to young children: the Mosaic approach (2001), devised by Alison Clark and Peter Moss (available from the National Children's Bureau, tel: 020 7843 6029).
Hidden views
One of the most successful elements of the project was the child-led tours.
Participants Colin and Robert took the researcher on a tour, choosing the route and documenting it by disposable camera and tape recorder. Their tour included a grassy slope, topped by an imposing vandal-proof fence. The bikes, some of the boys' favourite toys, were not on display so they mimed riding round and round.
Among the things that they photographed were: the large play equipment, soft-play surface, decking, logs, a patch of mud, natural features including the sky, puddles and a leaf, and a plastic caterpillar tunnel, with the boys inside - a cavernous space from which to spy on the outside world.
The children made circular maps of the outdoor space with photographs from the tours, drawings and the children's 'writing'. The maps revealed a complex range of knowledge about the site.
Talking and listening
Additional information was gathered through short interviews with the children, using a toy dog to act as an intermediary. The interviews took place, where possible, outside, including 'on and under the caterpillar' and 'on the bench'.
The children articulated a range of imaginative uses for the playhouse, including playing vets and cooking.
A small group of parents and staff were interviewed to gather views about their children's preferences. This led to the second stage of the project where areas were identified for development.
Surprises
Practitioners and parents were surprised at how competent the children were in using the cameras and articulating their uses of the space. The fence and the playhouse emerged as areas for development.
Staff were shocked at how intrusive the fence appeared from a child's perspective. However, changes to the fence needed to heed other factors raised by the children, such as the importance of seeing through it. A group of parents have now made large caterpillar and butterfly shapes to liven up the fence and for the children to use as paint boards and for chalking.
Adults felt the playhouse was too small for the large number of children.
However, discussions with the children revealed its importance to them and the imaginative uses they made of the limited space.
A piece of spare ground has now been cleared for children to build their own temporary houses using flexible materials.