The Registry Preschool Credential

Self-Assessment: Developmentally Appropriate Preschool Environments

Be concise in answering the statements/questions in each box. The NAEYC criteria for National Accreditation is the basis of this
self-assessment to demonstrate alignment with the Standards and to familiarize students with this national accreditation process.

Give examples of how the environment provides for children’s safety while being appropriately
challenging – in good repair, age appropriate, addresses the range of abilities of children in room, no
safety hazards, etc.
A developmentally appropriate room should include a role play area, literacy and numeracy area,
reading area, and a messy play area. It needs material objects that are used for children to be suitable
for their age and stage of development. Toys and resources should be organized according to the height
of the children to access and explore. If a younger age there must be stuff like no sharp edges or
objects, cables, outlet plugs, no higher shelfs with heavy items etc.

Give examples of how the environment is rich in variety to encourage exploration, experimentation,
and discovery – mix of open-ended and self-correcting, cause & effect, sensory appeal, construction,
dramatic play, etc. Give examples of situations that show you are attentive to children during
outdoor and indoor time and promote their exploration and discovery.
For outdoor equipment you want enough space and agility to let kids have places to work on gross
motor and fine motor skills such as slides, climbers, and swings. Also, with many toys like balls, bikes,
and a sandbox. For indoors you must have different types of areas based on interests such as art, home
life, games, and music. Situations that I am attentive to children when promoting their exploring and
discovery I will usually talk about an activity with a child and ask them what their doing when playing
with certain items.

Give examples of how you and the environment provide varied opportunities to promote sensory
exploration, creative expression, and fine motor learning – varying textures and materials (not all
plastic), sand, water, art materials, writing implements, and opportunities to practice a range of
manipulative skills. Are a variety of art tools accessible to children? List the tools that are regularly
available to the children.
Examples of all those types of learning would be a whole area dedicated to art and sensory such as a
sensory playbox or an arts and crafts table for kids to color, paint, and create their own piece of art.
Yes, I would make sure that all types of safe tools are accessible for young children to use at their own
pace. Examples of tools that are available would be scissors, paints, paper, all types of coloring
utensils, paintbrushes, glue etc.

Give examples of how the indoor and outdoor environment promotes gross motor skill practice –
space and equipment to stimulate a variety of skills, enhance sensory-motor integration, and develop
controlled movement (balance, strength, coordination). How is the YoungStar criteria for a minimum
of 60 minutes of physical activity met daily?
For both indoor and outdoor the children can walk, run, jump, stand, and go upstairs. There are plenty
of space to play outside in order to climb, run, and play. Indoors their must be enough space to walk
and move around when the children go from one area to another. The Youngstar criteria is met by
having 2 recess times during the day, one in the morning, and one in the late afternoon. Each is 45
minutes which is plenty more than 60 minutes.

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 The Registry Preschool Credential
Self-Assessment: Developmentally Appropriate Preschool Environments
Give examples of how the environment promotes pretend play and interaction between children -
promotes communication (toy phone) and cooperation to operate (see-saw), and a variety of pretend
play props, spaces divided by low shelves for partner play, etc.
In every classroom there should be a area where it looks like it would be a house with a whole bucket
or cubbies with pretend play props for the children to use. When attending pretend play, you can use
anything to boost your imagination and make up your own world with props to make it seem real. It
can promote great interactions between children by joining in a game or imaginary world to make it
more fun and real to the kids. A great example of pretend play is house which is a great way for kids to
be together and make a pretend family (mommy, daddy, baby, dog).

Give examples of how the environment is arranged to support independent use – low, open shelves,
bins or baskets, etc. Are there picture/word labels so children know where to find and put away
materials?
For independent use, kids can get items and put them away by seeing labels and pictures around the
classroom for them to help themselves. It also helps them remember where different toys and items go
so that way they know where they go to help teachers when needed.

Give examples of how materials can be rotated to reflect changing curriculum and to accommodate
new interests and skill levels. Is there storage space in the center with materials to rotate into and out
of room? Give examples of how the materials are in sufficient quantities to occupy every child in
activities that meet his or her needs.
You can make rotating centers to give children a chance to experience different items and activities to
gain interest and expand their creative skills. It also can help them develop their different skills and
emotions when they need to use thinking during activities and being with teachers and classmates. At
each center or with each item their should be a few of that item in order for each child to experience
and have to connect with others when having said item, or learning to share when their isn’t enough.

Give examples of how you have or might add or adapt materials to accommodate a child’s special
needs.
With some items or activities based on what they are can always be modified or made simpler for those
who have special needs in order to join the class and feel like they are the same as other kids and to not
feel left out. It truly all depends on what the activity is and how easy it can be to modify the game or
project for any child with special needs. A great example would be an activity with music and dancing
but for some kids with special needs that activity may be to much for them and overwhelming if too
loud or nearby their classmates. Instead you can let them have headphones on or be a few steps away
from the group, so they have their own space.
Give examples of how the environment has sufficient soft elements to provide comfort and
responsiveness – pillows, mats, couch, etc. Give examples of how the indoor environment has
protected places for children to play individually- defensible spaces to be alone.
A good example of an environment with soft elements is a calm down center or reading center. With
those you can add blankets, pillows, a couch, or anything to make the children comfortable when in the
area. Those areas are for children when wanting to do something quiet or want to be alone if
overwhelmed or don’t like to be in loud areas.

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 The Registry Preschool Credential
Self-Assessment: Developmentally Appropriate Preschool Environments
Give examples of some play/learning materials that you created – made from variety of “found”
natural, or “real” materials, or created to support curriculum topics.
Materials for kids to play with that I created are stress balls that are made from sand and balloons. I
also make calm down jars which is nice for kids to look at with items or water and glitter.

Give examples of individual space for each child’s belongings in the indoor environment – individual
hooks for each child’s coat/backpack, a separate area to store extra clothing, children's things are
individually stored to support organized access and independence.
Examples of individual space are cubbies, hooks, closet with shelves, separate cots, individual shelves
to store projects.

Give examples of how the indoor environment has places for children to be all together – large open
rug area, tables and chairs to sit together for meals, etc.
There is a big area with a rug for everybody to sit at with others during group time or there are the
tables for meals.

Give examples of how you could support multiple and varied opportunities to write for children. Are
writing materials and activities readily available in art, dramatic play, and other learning centers? Do
children have access to the alphabet (e.g., displayed at eye level or on laminated cards) and to printed
words about topics of current interest?
To help support writing for children their can be activities of writing fun stories or journals what they
did during the week or weekend for fun. Or they can use it for learning the alphabet and how to write.
In many learning centers I would make sure there are enough of writing materials of many types for a
variety of learning opportunities. There are also activities that kids can use when learning to write the
alphabet and work on during learning time in centers.

Give examples of space that is divided into areas in the indoor environment. How could you better
supply and organize areas to support play and learning? Describe what pathways are between areas
for children to move around without disturbing other children. Describe how you can see children in
all areas of room.
In each area there are shelves and drawers to store items in each center where items and toys can be
stored. Plus, plenty of bins and shelves with hooks to hang up stuff for the house area. There is enough
space to get through and back from one area to the next. Then there are bigger areas for more space
when a big group of kids gather for games or lessons. The room is wide with no big obstructions or
walls for you to see the whole room and where everyone is during the day.

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 The Registry Preschool Credential
Self-Assessment: Developmentally Appropriate Preschool Environments
Give examples of ways to moderate or minimize visual and auditory stimulation in the indoor
environment – window shades, curtains, dimmers, sound absorbing materials, etc.
Ways to moderate visual and auditory stimulation is music that can be played while kids are sleeping.
Having shades or blinds on the windows to block out light and other people and kids outside. Also, to
have soundproof windows and walls from the hallways and other classrooms.

Give examples of places for displaying children’s work in the indoor environment – artwork on walls
or shelves, photos of activities, work samples, etc.
In a classroom their can be a huge billboard or a few of them to showcase all types of projects and
drawings. Their can also be hooks around the room to show other types of items and crafts that the
children made. Shelves can also be a great place to put other arts and crafts that were made.

Give examples of how the indoor environment has defined spaces for families to sign in and out,
gather information about child’s day – parent info board with schedule posted, curriculum activities,
parent pockets or bins for notes, daily care sheets, clipboards, child notebooks, place to sit and write
or for child to dress/undress, etc.
In each classroom there is a sign in/out sheet for each child when they come in and go home to keep
track of who appears for the day. Their can also be a sign in sheet for parents who come and volunteer
or is a visitor for certain activities and field trips. There are also many folders and mini shelves to store
artworks and worksheets for parents to take home with work reports on how the child is doing.

Does the room have comfortable adult sized places to sit while interacting with children during play,
routines and teacher guided activities? Describe them. Give examples of how the indoor environment
has equipment such as tables and chairs that are sized to the children using them – children’s feet
touch floor and table top is about mid chest height, climbers not too big or too small for children.
The room will have regular and smaller chairs at every table to fit children and adults when interacting
for activities. Their will also be a couch in the reading area for interactive reading and story time.

Give examples of how the outdoor play space has equipment that is designed for age and abilities of
children using it.
The outdoor playground and space provided is designed for the appropriate ages based on their abilities
and how well developed they are. A climber for kids is a great way to build strength and help kids
develop fine motor skills as well as grabbing many items to play with. They also develop many gross
motor skills when outside to run, walk, and go up stairs of a playground.