Hi my name is Elaine Haughton and I am an Early Years Pedagogue with a particular focus on children’s rights and participation.

This year I have been given the opportunity to further develop and embed Falkirk ELC’s ‘What Matters to Me’ approach.

As part of a universal approach, I am providing all ELC settings across our authority with the opportunity for a support visit where we can engage in discussion around personal planning, what matters to children and families and how to embed children’s rights into everyday experiences.

Initially What Matters to Me was something that was only really considered during times of transition. For What Matters to Me to be valued as a rights-based approach it has to be a document that is shared between staff, children, and families throughout a child’s time at nursery. It should capture and respond to children’s perceptions, showing children and families that we have listened.

Child participation is one of the core principles of the UN Convention of the rights of the child. It is important for teams to reflect on how they encourage and provide opportunities for children to participate in the everyday life of the setting. Are we embedding children’s rights in our everyday practice in a holistic and meaningful way?

“Rights are not an add on, they are woven through every aspect of the ethos and provision of the service. Staff interactions with children are loving and caring and support children to understand their rights, not as an activity to be planned but as an everyday experience.”                    Doreen Watson (Care Inspectorate)

As practitioners we need to explore why we seek children’s voices and what we do with the things they’ve shared. How do we ensure we are not being tokenistic? Do we take the time for quality and meaningful conversations? It’s about slowing down and listening with our eyes and ears, observing how children express their thoughts and ideas both verbal and non-verbal.

For children that are non-verbal how do we enable them to participate? By providing children with a range of tools and methods for sharing with us what’s important to them, what matters to them, we can capture and respond to children’s perceptions.

Adapted illustration Listening to young children, Third edition. 2017. Alison Clark.

Wherever you are on your journey to ensuring a rights-based approach to ‘What Matters to Me’ it is important that you reflect back on the Image of the child.

• • What thoughts do you hold, on children and childhood?
  • How do you talk to, listen to, and observe children?
  • Does your environment positively reflect the image of the child? An effective children’s rights-based approach should be embedded in a setting’s vision, values and aims, ethos, routines, and when implementing change.

It should not be ‘another thing to do’ but already underpin the setting’s pedagogy and be part of everyday practice.

Contact details for any further support – elaine.haughton@falkirk.gov.uk