Identifying Early Learning In the Daily Lives of Children: Reading the Environment

As many of you know, I travel a great deal consulting, delivering trainings and addressing large groups of Early Childhood Education teachers all over the country. I find myself in many airports, restaurants, and hotels and no matter where I go, there are always young children close by. Late one evening a few weeks ago I dragged my suitcase full of ramps into the lobby of a hotel, parked it against a wall and got in line to check in. A family of wedding party guests was in front of me , the mother with heels in hand and a bit of lace trailing from her gown, the father was holding a wee tot who was playing with his loosened tie. “Down, down”, the toddler squealed as she peered behind her father and me. The lobby had a large wheelchair ramp to serve as a means of getting from the street level down to the garden level dining space. As soon as her feet hit the floor, she was off! She ran up and down the ramp, repeatedly. Her mother called out a warning for her to stop because she was in her “fancy clothes”. I chuckled to myself as I thought, when have clothes ever stopped a toddler from exploring? Then I heard the child add sound to her movement. As she went up the ramp her pitch ascended with her. “Weeeeee”, she sang. Running back down, she added, “Woooooo”, with a matching descending pitch. The happy wee’s and woo’s resounded through the lobby. The mother and father looked at me apologetically, “Sorry she’s so noisy”, said the dad. “She always finds places to run”, added the mom. I smiled and offered, “She’s doing exactly what the space is telling her do. She’s reading the environment and it doesn’t bother me at all, in fact, I’m delighted to see it.” Space does inform us. It tells what to do and in some cases how to behave. For example, children and adults are usually very animated and loud in a gymnasium because the space encourages big actions and big voices. The park tells us to run and climb and yell, while the dentist office waiting room says be calm and patient,. Space design, colors, materials, lighting, traffic noise and air quality all impact the learning process. Space “speaks” to us. What does your space say to you and to your children?