The Friendship Process in Preschool and the Children’s Voices through the Mosaic Approach

Abstract

Studies concerning children have commonly been carried out with the criteria and vision of adults, who explain their findings about children without having considered their opinion and points of view. This study aims to describe the process through which a group of children from a private preschool in the State of Mexico revealed the importance of friendship. Through the mosaic approach, they were able to participate not only as study subjects but as active co-researchers. This methodology became an accessible tool that takes up and respects the voice of those who participate, as well as their thoughts and feelings. Among the findings, it was found that children are interested in actively participating in research, and they are able to appropriate the use of a camera, a recorder, and some type of notebook to capture their drawings, diagrams, sociograms, or visual representations, without the need to know literacy, to communicate their ideas, interests, tastes, and preferences, thereby leaving evidence of the development of their investigative skills.