Comment
In-the-Picture was developed with two inter-linked paradigms; listening to children and a sociocultural view of learning. These are of course key components in the delivery of early years support which sees practice as being based on relevance and enjoyment for the child and family. If you have a sociocultural view of learning you recognise that knowledge emerges from collective ways of doing and being. Learning is a fundamental aspect of people participating in activity. It is relational. Even autonomy needs to be understood as being achieved by building relationships with others. So too do our tools for sharing information and knowledge: 

Reflecting upon a child’s interests and upon your own practice is a key part of the relational process of supporting that child and their family. This is why so much policy, literature and guidance around early years practice calls for reflective practitioners. 

We would suggest that exploring what is happening within the home visit or within other kinds of settings is also a form of research. It is about being alert to what is happening and finding some way of encapsulating this; and using what you have experienced to ask questions or propose a hypothesis; which will inform what you are doing; where you will be alert to what is happening. This is frequently modelled as action research. This is one of the reasons why In-the-Picture is not simply useful in an academic research context. It has proved to be of relevance to practitioners because it is a very easy to use tool for helping to frame better questions. It helps practitioners to act as researchers of their own practice.