BEFORE SMALL AFTER MORE SPACE

ADDED SEATING

CLIMBER! ADDED
 BEFORE (YELLOW)

AFTER PAINTING ROOM GRAY

 CATEGORY D DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE ENVIRONMENT

CHANGES MADE IN MY CLASSROOM BASED ON MY PROFESSIONAL

DEVELOPMENT
I loved taking the courses for my Infant and Toddler Credential because it taught me so much
about the environment in our classrooms and how we can change to meet the children where
they are at and enhance their experience at our center. Quality care is because the
environment is designed and planned to support safety, health, and learning for the child and
the caregiver.
“A well-designed environment…supports infants’ and toddler emotional well-being,
stimulates their senses and challenges their motor skills. A well designed group care
environment promotes children’s individual and social development.” ( Louis Torellii “Infants
and Toddlers, & Caregivers p272)
My work sample for Developmentally Appropriate Environments was changing my room to
meet the needs of my kiddos and add more soft spaces and chairs for adults and children to sit
comfortably, rearrange and add new equipment to allow for different kinds of movement and
more space, and finally change the aesthetics so the room is visually appealing with a color
calm and neutral and the lighting natural.
It fits this category because it shows that even the best designed and well thought out room
needs to be reevaluated periodically to keep meeting the needs of the children and after
careful observations realizing what the children need for their developmental and emotional
learning. We observed the children at the dramatic kitchen area and realized the space was
creating more conflict than play. We knew the children needed to parallel play and be safe and
secure in their spaces in our room so we took out the small kitchen and added the new wooden
spacious kitchen. There was only one couch in the reading area and it fit only two children at a
time. We added 3 more small yellow chairs and the “book club” was formed. We then added 3
blue bean bag chairs for additional seating on the other side of the room with a basket of books
there for individualized space and soft spaces for sitting with babies or animals after
acknowledging the “cues” they gave us that they needed space from the book area to read
alone or individually with a teacher. This helped balance the soft with the hard spaces better.
We changed the color of the room from yellow to a light neutral gray with only the children and
their work being the “color” needed for the room. We feel like we moved in to a new room. The
feel is so home like and comfortable. The climber was the best investment we could have made
after doing the diagram of my room for one of my assignments I noticed there was no elevated
space for climbing or movement. We added a climber with stairs and a slide to facilitate the
gross motor needs the children were showing us by climbing up on the chairs and tables. This
space is used for individual needs and for group meetings with dolls, phones, and books. We
call it the “employee meeting area” or the “book club”! It has changed the dynamic of our room
and created a protected and well defined space for activities. We created inclusion with
seclusion in our environment.
I chose it as the best example of my work because it created a whole different environment
when we made the changes. You could FEEL the change when you observed the children in the
room and how the changes created a better learning space for all. We were being RESPONSIVE
to the needs of our children. I used the STRENGTH BASED APPROACH of giving the children
what they can do vs what they can’t. A YES environment!
I learned about the FOUR DIMENSIONS OF ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING:
SCALE where a child feels big and capable for self-concept and the room is scaled for them by
adding smaller chairs and a bigger kitchen for more parallel play and space for movement
AESTHETICS by painting the room a light gray vs yellow so it is warm and more visually
appealing with a calm color and only the artwork of the children posted.
ACOUTSTICS the noise in the room was softened by the calm color
ORDER where the room arrangement was giving the children more “space” at the dramatic play
kitchen and room to parallel play without bumps and spills and the room became more
comfortable and spacious with bean bags and added seating. The teachers could sit with the
children more comfortably and be a part of their play. The children could then focus on
exploring and creating with more spaces available to them for play with the new climber and
utilize their gross motor skills in the room in a safe and appropriate way. We had a lot of
climbing on chairs, shelves, and tables. They showed us what they needed and we as
intentional teachers listened!
Our focus is always what the children need to foster their development and changing the rooms
environment is KEY. With a nurturing, supportive, secure, and predictable environment the
children feel safe and cared for. With a predictable, focused, encouraging, and EXPANSIVE
environment we see intellectual development. We met the children where they are at and we
observed and notated their need and want for changes in the room. We set up the room and
the materials to give their interests fuel and let them tailor it to what they need daily. A lot of
times we have to reevaluate the set-up of the room for certain behaviors we are building on or
bring in new equipment or take out some equipment to introduce new spaces so needs are
being met for the individual child.
My work sample shows my knowledge of how to provide a developmentally appropriate
environment to meet the needs of children in my room by showing that after reading and
viewing the material provided in my courses I learned and became reenergized to create and
change a new environment for my kiddos. It felt great to look at the things you should do to
create and keep the environment fresh and new. The room started to feel like an INVITING
HOME with all aspects of the room being relaxed and inviting. This room is filled with
individuals and we needed to uncover the needs of each child with what we were seeing in the
room and ADAPT to these needs. The room needed to be full of ACTIVE LEARNING with all of
those five senses stimulated and the whole body was getting that movement. I want my
children to feel
THIS IS A GOOD PLACE TO BE
YOU BELONG HERE
THIS IS A PLACE YOU CAN TRUST
YOU CAN DO MANY THINGS ON YOUR OWN AND BE INDEPENDENT
YOU CAN GET AWAY AND BE YOURSELF WHEN YOU NEED TO
THIS IS A PLACE YOU CAN EXPLORE AND TRY OUT YOUR IDEAS
In conclusion I feel the child is the “OWNER” of their spaces inside and outside and they need
to feel they impact the space and can feel an ownership in the space. The environment needs
to feel like a good place to be and learn! The 3 R’s need to be implemented with RESPECTFUL,
RESPONSIVE, AND RECIPROCAL interactions. Paying attention to what the child initiates and
reply to it.