• Include children’s words – they are more powerful than our own.
• Use good images. • Write about the actual event – do not surmise. • Date it. • Try not to interpret what you see or hear. • Include children in the documenting. • Take an active role when documenting – do not always be passive.
• Use different media to document and include the children – they are more creative than you think!
Setting up a project
• Nominate a named contact for enquiries. • Plan dates for the year. • Communicate! • Develop templates so that everyone involved is using the same format for planning and reporting.
How long?
Many of the activities in the book have taken place over an extended period of time, across a morning and afternoon session, or over a number of weeks. The activities are broken down into steps, but you may find that one step takes a lot longer than you think, and from the same starting points you may choose to take different directions.
Use of materials
While there has been a theme or a process to explore that has been thought about in advance, and suitable materials or resources brought into the setting to facilitate this, the materials are often introduced in stages, allowing for decisions to be made along the way and for the children to take time to develop their interest in the activity. It’s often a matter of having something up your sleeve, and judging whether or not to bring it out!