The recognition of children with voice and vote requires real actions in search of participatory scenarios which can transform reality. In this sense, the objective of this article was to characterize the conceptions of participation that students, teachers and parents of the first grade have in the educational institutions of the municipality of Garzon (H). The study was made from a qualitative approach (Korblint, 2011), with some ethnographic elements, since I construct the conceptions of participation from the voice of students, teachers and parents of first grade families. The instruments applied were the interview and surveys (Torres, 2008). The results reveal that the participation of first g rade boys and girls in educational settings is passive, decorative, symbolic and manipulated by their teachers or caregivers, this being an adult-centrist vision. The study concludes by reflecting on the need to - collectively build pedagogical practices by the actors of educational institutions, with the protagonism of boys and girls, in such a way that participation is a real and not a symbolic fact.