Having thoroughly enjoyed the one-off documentary, ‘The Secret Life of 4 Year Olds’, that was first aired on Channel 4 last February, I was delighted when the faces of yet more adorable infants returned to our screens, this time for a full series comprising of six episodes and a Nativity Christmas special.
The unique experiment focuses on three sets of children aged 4, 5 and 6. Placed in a school rigged with cameras and each wired with an individual microphone, the children’s every conversation, behaviour and interaction is observed by scientists who offer an expert commentary on the activity.
Whilst labelled an “uncensored drama of life”, the infants on the programme are indeed supervised by teachers however the adults clearly refrain from interfering unnecessarily, allowing for the organic growth of relationships and development of scenarios between the children. Despite this, the moments of delayed intervention are somewhat too frequent when tantrums and confrontation between big personalities (more on those shortly) begin to simmer. This left me questioning whether certain sequences were orchestrated for dramatic effect, or dare I say good entertainment…
Take feisty Tia for example, whose abundance of attitude leads to plenty of tension, tantrums and tears. When she clashes with boisterous Jack (who plans to “save the planet” when he grows up), she relentlessly chases him around the playground demanding “I want to talk to you this instant!” – just one of the gems uttered by the children, who repeatedly attempt to imitate their parents with priceless outcomes. Admittedly, at times we resent Tia’s dominating personality but she is arguably the most intelligent of the children and eventually pulls at our heartstrings when a rejection from her playmates reduces her to tears and what follows is a remarkably clear, honest and articulate expression of emotion for such a little girl.
As you might expect, the ultimate “If you tell the teacher, I won’t be your friend” weapon is fired on multiple occasions. During one notable incident, Tia goes one step further warning demure little Charlotte (bright blue eyes, gorgeous ginger ringlets – you’ll know who I mean): “I’m going to tell my Mummy and Daddy and my sister and my aunt Germaine and also my grandad and my two nannies” to which Charlotte responds with upmost sincerity: “And I’m going to tell even Father Christmas and the tooth fairy” to which even vocal Tia cannot reply.
An hour of eavesdropping on 4 year olds certainly illuminates parallels with the ‘adult’ world, with the nursery mirroring – in essence – the same experiences, challenges and moral dilemmas that we face in society. The difference, however, is that with beautiful simplicity, the children’s reactions are entirely transparent (hence the mass of tears shed throughout the programme) and their means of resolution is singular (who knows: maybe all conflict really can be solved by ‘telling the teacher’).
For television that’s effortless yet meaningful, watch this. In three words: endearing, hilarious and poignant.
Grace Ellerby
Image: The Independent.