Establishing Learning Centers

There are two points to consider when planning a learning environment that includes learning centers.

1. How will it be customized to include the learning styles of each participant?

2. How will the planned activities and the child's environment compliment one another?

Typical learning centers to consider are blocks, housekeeping, art/writing, table toys (manipulatives), sensory table, library, music, science and computers. Life skills, social skills, risk taking, and responsibility with freedom are important lessons children are learning while using centers and interacting with each other. Children should feel that this is a place where they can trust and feel safe.

There are a number of points to consider when setting up learning centers.

1. Separate noisy areas from quiet areas.

2. Each area should be clearly defined. Children need to know where the boundaries are for the toys that belong in each learning center. Traffic patterns should naturally flow in a way that keeps children from interrupting each other and also discourage running.

3. There should be enough space in/at each learning center for more than one child to play comfortably.

4. Resources near each play area should be relevant to that area.

5. Ensure that caregivers can clearly see into each area.

6. Each learning center should be accessible to each child regardless of handicaps or disabilities.

7. There should be plenty of storage for the supplies needed in each learning center so that the children are able to keep things reasonably neat without too much difficulty.

When setting up learning centers remember that this does have to be expensive. Dividers can be created by hanging a curtain, or by putting up and office cubicle divider. Art shelves can be made from inexpensive materials or purchased second hand. Just remember to make sure surfaces are washable.

An organized and properly arranged environment makes it easier for children to choose constructive activities. An organized environment also makes it easier for the children to play in an orderly way and to keep their surroundings neater. Some things to remember are to makes sure all toys and materials have their own storage space. Make sure items are within easy reach of the children and are easy to put away again. Ensure that the learning centers are easy to get in and out of.

Pay attention to what children play with a lot and what they seem to be losing interest in. Often even minor changes to the learning center, such a slight rearranging, or a few inexpensive new toys or supplies can spark new interest.

Learning centers are a fun and creative way to give children a learning experience customized to their needs and interests. I hope this article has given you some inspiration in creating learning centers for the children in your care.

How the Curriculum and Environment Work Together

Understanding how children learn (How Children Learn) helps us to understand how to set up and develop the learning environment. Curriculum  and learning environment are most effective when they compliment each other. The learning environment should include both teacher directed and child directed activities.

When planning the learning environment the following areas should be considered

• Content
• Process 
• Product

CONTENT

Content of curriculum and environment should be connected and both should be connected to the individual learning styles of the children. 

 Learning centers are a great way to

• provide self-initiated and directed activities
• provide learning experiences that meet individual abilities
• provide learning activities that compliment individual learning styles

PROCESS

 The teacher's role is to create an environment that encourages the processes of discovery, problem solving and independent thinking. The environment should provide multiple methods of learning and take into account the learning styles of the individual children. Skilled teachers work hard to ensure that each day's experiences are interesting and exciting.

PRODUCT

When determining if a skill has been learned by the child, observation is key. Does the child understand how to use the material provided? What can the child complete or accomplish independently? Your observations provide information on how each child learns best so that you as teacher can ensure the best learning experiences for the child.

How Children Learn

Howard Gardner suggested that there are eight basic intelligences. 

1. Bodily - Kinesthetic: Movement and doing.

2. Interpersonal: Interaction with others.

3. Verbal - Linguistic: Words (spoken and written).

4. Logical - Mathematical: Logic, abstraction, inductive/deductive reasoning and numbers.

5. Naturalistic: Nature, nurture and relating information to one's natural surroundings.

6. Intrapersonal: Introspective and self-reflective capacities.

7. Visual-Spatial: Vision and spatial judgement.

8. Musical: Rhythm, music and hearing.

Some have proposed somewhat different classifications such as simply visual, auditory and kinesthetic. Others have proposed adding "spritiual" and "existential" to the list of intelligences.

However the learning styles are categorized it is clear that each person learns differently with a unique mix of strengths and weaknesses. The job of the caregiver is to provide each child with the learning experiences best suited to him or her. Lesson plans and activities provided for the children need to take into account the individual characteristics of the child/children planned for, with plenty of time allowed for each child to explore on his or her own in the ways most suitable to that individual.

Creative Learning Environments - Introduction

This is the first of a seven part series on creative learning environments for young children. I recently finished an online class by the same title and found it to be very interesting and helpful to me in my daily work with the children that I provide care for as well as for my own three year old. This series is based on some of the concepts and ideas I learned in this class

For a child to make the most of his or her environment it is important that the environment be safe, happy, enjoyable, and accommodating of the child's interests and needs. It is a major role of the caregiver - whether it be parent, teacher or childcare provider - to work to provide such an environment.

Play comes naturally for children and has a vital role in their development. The child's environment is very important to the child's learning through play. It is up to the caregiver to provide the child with an environment that encourages the child to discover new things, to be actively involved in their environment, to make choices, and to learn through experimentation.

Children enjoy having a variety of materials and activities to choose from that will be useful in learning more about the things that interest them. Learning is best accomplished when the material is tailored to the child's interests and own unique way of learning.

Children appreciate the chance to explore concepts and new ideas, or old ideas in new ways, with developmentally appropriate materials that are useful in their explorations of these ideas and concepts.