“It's like you are in the jungle”: Using the draw‐and‐tell method to explore preschool children's play preferences and factors that shape their active play

Abstract

Issue addressed A child's preference for active or sedentary play is a key proximal indicator of a child's physical activity behaviour. There is a need to understand children's physical activity preferences in order to make physical play more enjoyable to them, and this may encourage participation and a more positive relationship with physical activity. To date, little research has incorporated the perspectives of young children on this topic. This study specifically examines (a) what activities preschool children prefer; and (b) what children consider to be barriers and facilitators to participating in their preferred activity. Methods The authors employed visual methodologies to explore the activity preferences of 29 preschool children. Children were asked to draw their preferred activities and answer a series of open and closed questions about their drawing and what they think are the barriers and facilitators to participating in this activity. Results Participants expressed a desire to play unstructured activities with friends or family, to engage in imaginative, challenging play, as well as the opportunity to have control over the activity they engage in. Children reported that rules at home and at preschool, the availability of toys, friends and family and having access to a natural environment served as both barriers and facilitators to participating in their favourite activity. Conclusions Listening to children's voices about their play preferences and the barriers and facilitators to engaging in these activities provides important insight into children's play behaviour and the promotion of active play in early childhood. Participants’ desire for more natural features within their play environment and for challenging, unstructured and imaginative play may be considered as facilitators of their engagement in physical activity. So what? The current findings suggest the incorporation of unstructured playtime within natural environments could support young children's participation in and increased enjoyment of physical activity.

Examining The Plays That Preschool Children Prefer and The Characteristics Shaping Them Using Draw and Tell Technique

“…Pre-school children's play preferences and the characteristics of these plays provide educators with important information. The findings will help to support children's participation in entertaining and creative activities in natural settings (Wiseman et al, 2018). Children prefer open-ended plays, which shows their desire for unconfigured plays.…”

“…Given the positive impact of outdoor plays on children's development, teachers are recommended to provide children with play opportunities in natural settings (Bento & Dias, 2017;Kemple et al, 2016;Miranda et al, 2017). In this context, placing more outdoor play materials and natural materials such as water and sand that children can use, will allow children to prefer outdoor plays more and participate in them (Miranda et al, 2017;Wiseman et al, 2018;Zamani, 2016)…”

“…As the drawings are easier to interpret, the drawings of five-year-old children were evaluated in the study. It is recommended position children in a large table, at a distance to prevent them from affecting the others and cheating (Wiseman et al, 2018).…”

Mapping Children’s Life-Worlds: A Content-Analytical Study of Drawings of Favourite Gifts

“…Numerous studies (for example Livingstone 2011;Hjarvard 2014) have continuously demonstrated the trend that children in urban Western societies are currently growing up in media-rich households where they are surrounded by a wide range of digital tools and devices. Previous studies using the draw-and-write/tell method (Marshall and Aitken 2006;Wiseman et al 2019) on studying children's favourite possessions and activities have described the rise of technology: for example, nearly one third of young New Zealanders aged 8-11 (n=84) drew electronic equipment (for example games console, TV, X-box, mobile phone, etc.) as their favourite possessions (Marshall and Aitken 2006).…”

Prescribing physical activity and nutrition

“…The studies adopt various methodologies exploring knowledge and behaviours with diverse populations in a range of settings. Nicola Wiseman, Christin Rossmann, Jessica Lee and Neil Harris explore the world of the pre‐school child through the innovative approach of drawing to determine their physical activity preferences. Judith Myers and colleagues report on the findings of a pilot intervention to improve nutrition and active play in young children (0‐4 years).…”