Literacy news
A matter of opinion
17 Apr 2008
An article in Nursery World focused on the importance of consulting with young children, following the launch of the Children's Plan and the duty for local authorities and service providers to do this.
Key benefits were outlined such as citizenship, helping children to realise they are valued, inclusion, learning and service improvement. To plan a consultation the article outlined that listening must be integral to the consultation process. It described listening as a six-spoke wheel which includes listening, observing, documenting, reflecting, taking action and feeding back.
Understanding stages of child development was also highlighted as crucial, as younger children have shorter attention spans and their thinking is more egocentric. The pros and cons of giving children photographs were also explored, with the example of a child taking pictures of sparkly greeting cards. This wasn't because she liked the cards or because they meant something to her, but because she liked sparkly things. The article emphasises the need to cross check with children what the pictures mean to them, to ensure clarification and avoid drawing the wrong conclusions.
(Nursery World, 17 April 2008)
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