Pandemic play experiences: practices, activities, objects, texts
The ESRC funded project ‘A National Observatory of Children’s Play Experiences During COVID-19’ hosts an end-of-project symposium to share emergent findings and bring together those interested in young people’s play experiences during the pandemic.

Registrants will be sent a Zoom link to the event nearer the time and Padlet link for displaying project work from guests.
The Play Observatory project team and guest speakers will share work on play in the pandemic in relation to:
- Children’s social, emotional and mental wellbeing;
- Places and spaces in the home, in the community, in the local environment, school and care settings;
- Family dynamics, friends and relationships;
- Creative, cultural and media engagements (online/offline);
- Design and ethics in research with children in a pandemic, and listening to children’s voices;
- International, global and temporal perspectives.
Join presentations and discussions across the two days from members of the project team:
IOE:
- Professor John Potter, Dr Kate Cowan, Dr Michelle Cannon, and Dr Valerio Signorelli.
University of Sheffield:
- Dr Yinka Olusoga, Dr Julia Bishop, and Dr Cath Bannister.
Young V&A:
- Catherine Ritman-Smith, Katy Canales and Sophie Sage.
With Professor Andrew Burn and Dr Rebekah Willett as discussants.
Guest speakers (with more to be added):
Kelsey Graber (Cambridge University), Alison Stenning (Newcastle University), Helen Lomax (Huddersfield University) Thomas Lundtofte, (University of Southern Denmark, Odense) Leah Dungay (National Videogame Museum Sheffield), Helen Dodd (Exeter University), Judy McKinty / Ruth Hasleton (Pandemic Play Australia) Tatyana Tsyrlina-Spady (Seattle Pacific University).
This event will be particularly useful for those interested in the fields of play, education, children and young people.
Submissions
We welcome posters about your own work related to children’s experiences of the pandemic, which will be hosted on a symposium Padlet. When you sign up please indicate whether you would like to submit a poster, e.g. a few slides or a film or an image, by emailing e.samuelsson@ucl.ac.uk.
Related links
Further information
Ticketing
Pre-booking essential
Cost
Free
Open to
All
Availability
Yes