Listening to children’s voices is more important than ever during challenging times. Educators need to know how children are perceiving and understanding issues that affect them in order to inform programming and practice. One area that is vital to children’s wellbeing and inclusion is belonging.

As educators your role is to create an environment where all children feel welcome and secure. Facilitating trusting relationships encourages children to express their thoughts and feelings in an empowered way. Listening to children and hearing what ‘belonging’ means to them, helps us to develop a curriculum that is responsive to individual needs and nurtures a sense of belonging.

As part of the NSW/ACT Inclusion Agency Children’s Voices project, we asked children some questions relating to the concept of ‘belonging’.