This study investigates the process of praxiological transformation developed in an early childhood education institution, in Portugal, within four activity rooms. It is a single case study using action research, context-based staff development and participatory childhood pedagogy as means to change educational practices. It undertakes thorough dialogues with the Childhood Association pedagogical approach for children learning and teachers' development, as well as with Effective Early Learning Project as reference for monitoring and evaluating quality co-construction. This has been a long and complex process that has had positive effects in the transformation of practices (staff development) and on children learning and participation. The reconceptualization of the image of the child has been a key for their right to participate and a professional motivation for educators to change practices.

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This study started from a collaborative work developed with a group of educators, who work in an institution that welcomes children from 0 to 6 years. The educators, after participating in a seminar on documentation and evaluation in early childhood education, showed enthusiasm to learn how to document the children's voice and experiences. This study analyses the processes of awareness that occurred over a two-year period of action and that revealed how pedagogical documentation can support educators to reconstruct the image they have of children and the reconfiguration of their practices, substantiating the invisible. The staff-based learning and development is conceptualized from an ecological socio-constructivist following the Pedagogy-in-Participation approach. This piece of research assumes that pedagogical documentation is a process that values the children's voice and enables educators to reflect, favoring the reconstruction of their practices.

Promoting children’s rights in early childhood education is internationally recognised as a priority, yet its practical implementation remains challenging. This qualitative study explored the perceptions of three early childhood educators in northern Portugal regarding children’s rights and how these are reflected in their practices. Guided by an interpretive paradigm, the study sought to understand participants’ beliefs through semi-structured interviews, conducted with full ethical compliance, including informed consent, withdrawal rights, and anonymity. Data were analysed using MAXQDA, through an inductively generated coding system. Findings indicate that educators acknowledge their vital role in upholding children’s rights and in fostering respectful learning environments. However, significant gaps were found in the realisation of the right to participation, with tensions between educators’ stated values and their described practices—particularly regarding children’s involvement in decision-making. A prevailing emphasis on protection often limited children’s autonomy and agency. The study highlights the complexities of translating policy frameworks, such as Portuguese legislation and the UNCRC, into consistent pedagogical action. Despite its small sample size, the study offers valuable insights into the barriers to implementing a rights-based pedagogy and underscores the need for enhanced educator training, active listening practices, and the recognition of play as a fundamental right.

A comprehensive understanding of human sociality needs to embrace the coevolution of genes and culture. Recent advances in biological research about niche construction by organisms, and the development of the concepts of social niche and ethodiversity, can be integrated into a common approach to understand this coevolution, which implies the interaction between sociology and ecology in an integrative framework of knowledge. In this paper the authors propose such inclusive biosociological and heuristic framework to improve the understanding of the evolution of social niche construction. In addition, it allows a better understanding of the concept of sociotype in non-human organisms and explains some aspects of the social or presocial behavior through the concept of ethodiversity.