Emotional Expression and Self‐Care: A Participatory Design Approach to Art Education with Left‐Behind Children in Rural China

Abstract This study explores the emotional support of ‘left‐behind children’ in rural China by integrating Participatory Design (PD) methods into art education to foster emotional expression and self‐care. Drawing on an eight‐year longitudinal case study involving questionnaires ( n = 189 children), multiple workshops, semi‐structured interviews and the development of pedagogical tools, this paper focuses on two PD practices: ‘A Cup of Story Time’ and ‘My Parents in My Mind’ and one collaborative art education toolkit. Findings indicate that PD‐based teaching can disrupt the traditional technique‐oriented paradigm of rural art education, transforming the classroom into a space for emotional exchange between children and their absent parents. Children were encouraged to express love in their creations, cultivating a sense of self‐care and peer support. Moreover, the art classroom functioned as a trust‐building environment that strengthened children's subjectivity and emotional identity. As a low‐cost, participatory, and emotionally restorative intervention, this model reshapes relational dynamics in rural education, positioning children as collaborators and active agents in teaching and learning.