Nursery World - Seeing the right to sunny ducks

By Kathleen Marshall, Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People My job is about making sure our Government and our country keep the promises made to children in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. One of those promises is that children of all ages will be listened to about important things in their lives. A major part of my role is to give children a voice. This means that 'my view' often involves trying to see things from the perspective of children of different ages and backgrounds. At 5ft 4in tall, I am not exactly a giant, but I must seem like that to a three-year-old. You can deal with the height issue by crouching down to their level, but it takes more commitment and creativity to get on a level with their ideas. If I am to do my job properly, I have to keep regular contact with young children and the parents, carers and teachers who have the greatest insight into their lives.

At 5ft 4in tall, I am not exactly a giant, but I must seem like that to a three-year-old. You can deal with the height issue by crouching down to their level, but it takes more commitment and creativity to get on a level with their ideas. If I am to do my job properly, I have to keep regular contact with young children and the parents, carers and teachers who have the greatest insight into their lives.

Young children tend to be concerned with their immediate environment, but there are general lessons to be learned from even their more personal insights. Some recent research with young children showed that one of the things they really hated was not being allowed to finish things - a real challenge for a busy nursery school with a schedule and lots of children working at different rates. I enjoyed the comment by a four-year-old that I should focus on the right of every child 'to see a duck on a sunny day'. I have used that delightful insight to ponder on what that meant for the care and nurture of children, their need for natural, joyful experiences, and caring people to help them access them.

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