Playful System Design to Facilitate Storytelling in Children
Case Study at Fundación Lazos de Amor, Soacha
Causes
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​Factors associated to the family context
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Environmental factors
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Personality of parents or caretakers
Types of abuse:
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Psychological
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Physical
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Neglect
Justification
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Kids: Children in vulnerable conditions need tools to express and externalize their emotions. Each child is the creator and owner of their own destiny.
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Narrative: Storytelling helps children develop empathy by putting themselves in a character’s shoes. It also allows them to create future scenarios where they can prevent critical situations through the appropriation of social values.
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Social values:
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Tolerance – recognizing others as human beings, with the right to be accepted as individuals and respected in their differences.
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Respect – being considerate and thoughtful; a fundamental basis for healthy and peaceful coexistence within society.
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Solidarity – unconditional support for the causes or interests of others.
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Methodology
Participatory Design
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Concept: Collaboration between producers, designers, and end-users in the design process.
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Scenario: Products · Services · Spaces · Systems.
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Character: Development of collaborative sessions · Creation of models together · Contextual research.
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Philosophy: Group ideas · Communication · Collaboration.
Problem Statement
The children at the Foundation face difficulties when telling stories and expressing their emotions, due to the lack of pedagogical and didactic tools that strengthen their narrative skills.
Context
Altos de la Florida, Soacha
More than 1,800 families live in a situation of forced displacement.
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Its population is a result of invasion processes and informal settlements without planning criteria. It lacks urban planning licenses, legalization, and/or official recognition.
General objective
To design and implement playful pedagogical tools that strengthen children’s narrative skills, enabling them to express emotions, improve communication, and foster resilience in vulnerable contexts.
Specific objectives
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Create a system that, through progressive stages, fosters the understanding and appropriation of social values.
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Encourage children aged 8–10 to use epic storytelling to imagine new worlds, characters, and situations framed within social values, helping them understand—through reality and fiction—the importance of these values for harmonious living.
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Promote active participation and feedback from children in the design process by applying participatory design methodology, ensuring outcomes that meet their needs and expectations.