‘They Are So Tall They Almost Reach the Sun’: Children's Experiences, Perceptions and Agency in Early Childhood School Spaces Through Participatory Research

ABSTRACT This article studies how children between the ages of three and five perceive, inhabit, and assign meaning to school environments through a collaborative qualitative research design that emphasises children's agency and diverse forms of expression. Positioned within an interpretative participatory framework, the study employs a qualitative multiple‐case methodology across three Early Childhood Education centres located in the province of Huelva (Andalusia, Spain). Using the mosaic approach, data were collected through dialogues, drawings, and participatory photovoice, enabling children to communicate their experiences through verbal, visual, bodily, and symbolic forms of expression. The findings reveal that young children can generate insightful, emotionally grounded interpretations of their school surroundings when supported by ethical, flexible, and developmentally suitable qualitative methods. Children consistently appreciated natural, open, and adaptable spaces that encourage exploration, physical movement, creativity, and social interaction. In contrast, more structured environments associated with adult‐directed activities were often perceived as limiting participation, autonomy, and exploration. Beyond expressing preferences, children also proposed ideas for improving school spaces, demonstrating their capacity to critically reflect on their everyday environments. Methodologically, the study shows that participatory visual techniques can be successfully adapted for very young children. Beyond its methodological contribution, the study advances understanding of children's geographies by illuminating how young children experience, value, and reimagine school spaces they inhabit and of which they are part. The findings highlight the importance of recognising young children as active interpreters of educational environments and incorporating their perspectives into the design and transformation of educational spaces.