The classroom learning environment is the physical space that supports and shapes the curriculum. It can have a profound effect on individual children and the group. Our classrooms are designed to be safe, warm, and inviting to help children engage in learning activities and to support their development.
Physical
The classroom should be divided into different areas to give children opportunities to explore, make things, experiment, and pursue their interests. There should be spaces for large and small-group activities. Science and art activities should take place in specific areas set up for wet and messy play. Other areas should include dramatic play, block building, large-muscle activities, and a quiet area that is inviting to the children, visible to staff, and easily accessible to a child who seeks or needs time alone.
Designing effective classroom environments includes arranging the physical structure of the classroom to increase appropriate behaviors, such as engagement, and decrease the probability of challenging behaviors. Strategies for structuring the classroom include:
Arrange the classroom to ensure visual monitoring of children, support children’s appropriate behaviors (e.g., limit the number of children in a center), and facilitate smooth transitions between activities (e.g., organize the location of materials on shelves). Arrange materials to promote engagement, mastery, and independence.
Make sure toys and materials are accessible, appropriate, and available to facilitate children’s independence (which decreases the likelihood of challenging behaviors).
Attend to details such as the lighting, temperature, and noise levels to reduce problem behaviors from children who are sensitive to these environmental factors.
Manage traffic patterns. Minimize large open spaces and obstacles. Fences help organize the physical environment.
Universal design
Universal Design is an approach to creating environments that are usable and accessible to the widest possible range of people, including those with disabilities. In an early childhood classroom, Universal Design can be used to ensure all children have equal access to learning opportunities and resources. Here are some ways you can use Universal Design:
Provide a variety of learning materials that appeal to different learning styles, including visual, auditory, and tactile. This can include books, posters, videos, music, and manipulatives.
Use multiple strategies to present information, including visual aids, pictures, and real-life examples. This can help children who have difficulty with traditional methods of learning.
Offer different seating options, such as cushions, beanbags, and chairs, to accommodate different needs and preferences.
Encourage children to work together in groups and pairs. Provide opportunities for peer teaching and support.
Consider the diverse needs and abilities of all children in the classroom and adapt activities and materials as needed.
Learning centers
Learning centers are interest-based areas within the classroom where children learn by playing and engaging in activities. Subdividing the classroom into spaces that accommodate a few children at a time addresses some children’s preference for small-group settings.
Children need time to think and to manipulate materials for deep learning to occur. Every classroom schedule should include time at learning centers, with open-ended activities and hands-on materials that promote the development of emerging skills for each child.
Type
Learning centers should include:
music and movement center, with instruments
engineering center with blocks and building materials
manipulative/math center where children can sort, classify, and count
science center to carry out scientific inquiry
dramatic arts center with pretend household items and dress-up
literacy center with books and listening library
art center with paints and easels
sensory center with plenty to touch
an outdoor classroom
Guidelines
When designing learning centers:
Have clear boundaries so that children know where the center begins/ends, and they are not crowded together.
Make sure all children are visible to adults and adults are visible to children.
Indicate a closed center by using visual prompts such as sheets or blankets, circles with a slash through them, etc.
Have enough centers for the number of children in your care and enough materials for each center so children are engaged and not arguing over materials.
Consider the size and location of centers. Avoid locating a high-action center (block center, dramatic play) close to one with quieter activities (listening centers, etc.).
Use developmentally appropriate and creative ways to limit the number of children in centers if necessary (for example, laminated cards containing children’s names that can be moved into pockets at the center as opposed to a sign saying “2 children only”).
Organize materials and keep them in appropriate places. Consider children’s independence skill level when choosing locations.
Have centers organized and ready to go when children arrive.