Children's Book Design: USER TESTING

User testing was a crucial part of this module. I needed to make sure that my work was on the right track, that children understood and liked it. I therefore showed my work to schoolchildren (the majority were aged 7, some were younger at 5/6). This was very close to the age of my target audience so was therefore valuable information.

I had them fill out an answer sheet. Here are their answers:

All of the children knew that eggs came from hens and milk came from cows. To include that information in my book would be deeming them less intelligent, I think. Instead this information would be suited to be given to a younger audience. However, none of them knew about seasonal foods! This would be a good way to educate children on such things.

A lot of the children cooked with family members.

I received very positive feedback. Many mentioned that the designs were bright and fun. I especially liked the answer that the child liked the front cover because as the teapot had a pattern (aww!) They also loved the game aspect! Getting the children involved with the book, able to write on it and play with it etc. went down very well.

The photographs were also greatly liked. Having photos for references is perhaps better than illustrations, for you can accurately measure your steps against the detailed photographs rather than guessing with an illustration.

Children understood the seasonal symbols.

The children weren't sure that the chef on the front cover was a boy or girl (I had also noticed this issues) however, they really liked this! They said it made the book for everyone. I therefore decided to leave it.

They particularly liked the bright red colours on the front page.

They also liked the arrows, as they said they represented to get cooking straight away. I think the arrows did their job by drawing in the audience.

A teacher and a teaching assistant also filled out the forms: