In the Standard Slovene Dictionary (SSKJ 2000), participation is defined as a presence and cooperation. This means that initiatives, ideas and children`s opinions are of key importance to establish stimulating and creative kindergarten atmosphere. The adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) marked a significant step regarding children.
At Reggio Emilia pedagogic approach, the stress is set on the space. Within that it has been found out that the space diversity and project work are of vital importance. (Devjak, Batistič Zorec in sod. 2009). Everything listed above, contributes to children`s well-being and their feeling of acceptance, which is all the more important for children spend a lot of time in the kindergarten.
In the theoretical part, I focused on defining the participation and studied, in which documents it is mentioned and defined. I was interested in the role of a childcare worker in throughout the process of ensuring equal opportunities for children. I presented the participation at the Reggio Emilia approach. After that I focused on the project work process and child`s active participation in that process. The research findings in the field of participation are summarized.
In the empirical part, the project Our inquisitive learning centres is presented. It has been carried out as an open type project work, where the children played the key role. They planned and implemented their ideas, and recognized whether or not they are feasible. They co-created the children`s corners and realized their ideas while equipping them. We constructed and equipped four children`s corners. All their wishes were implemented, the only limitation were the space and the accessories. In the beginning, their thinking was restricted, as they are not used to this type of work.
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