An enabling environment is a place where children are able to play, learn and explore in a setting where they are loved, cared for and supported in any way.
Although children are biologically disposed to play, they will not be able to develop their play unless they get to spend time with people and have the chance to experience different situations which will encourage the development of the child’s play.
A setting which provides an enabling environment plays a vital role when it comes to supporting both children’s learning and development. It is commonly know that most children tend to learn best when they are in a supportive environment which will respond to their individual needs, as well as being surrounded by people who are loving and caring. An enabling environment is a “rich and varied space where risks are minimised and well managed, and children are protected from harm and abuse.” (Pre-school learning alliance).
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Enabling environments help young children to play more. This is because they feel more relaxed and safe in that environment. “Settings should provide a ‘challenging’ and ‘developmentally appropriate’ environment ‘based on children’s interests” (EYFS, 2017). The child’s EYP should know the child well enough to know when something has changed in their personality, good or bad, and then should be able to successfully safeguard the child if they felt as if they were in danger for whatever reason.
It is important that the environment within the setting is something that the practitioners are passionate about. This is so that the practitioners can help to inspire the children and can share their knowledge on a certain area, which will in turn enhance the enabling environment and can then have the opportunity to offer children with even more in-depth learning and development
All children and young people need support within the play space, this can be to help children manage risk for themselves and encourage them to full fill their potential.
As an early years practitioner it is your job to ensure that you meet children’s learning needs and understand and work with all children’s learning needs. It is important that you provide different kinds of opportunities also focus on individual children’s learning needs each and every child is unique and all learn at different rates. When in a setting it is important that you plan an enabling environment that children will find challenging but will allow them to learn in different areas.
The key to attain this solid foundation is through communicating effectively and clearly with the adults associated with the play setting. For example, it is important that parents and carers are aware of any issues that may have arisen during the session, any difficulties their child is encountering, or if their child has behaved or responded particularly well to a certain situation. Essentially, this involves being ‘updated’ on their child’s general behaviour and well-being. The importance of clear communication can be evidenced here. Being vague in ones communications can lead to problems such as misunderstanding, the child being reprimanded for something they didn’t do by parents, or by parents not grasping the full extent of the problem. Not only would this affect the support the child would receive, but many could argue that such misinterpretations or misunderstandings could result in conflict between play setting and parent.
“Current theories about inclusive play revolve around the idea that play is important for life and that all play workers should be committed to creating play environments that are inclusive and that offer multi-sensory experiences for all children. Play environments should ensure children and young people can become involved in imaginary play and can help develop motor activity. They should also allow interaction in a safe environment. Play is seen as the language that can bring children of all different abilities together. All children and young people have the same basic needs and go through the same development stages, even though they may not all go through them at the same pace: some go through some stages more quickly than most, while others may become static in their development for a while. None of this should prevent access to any setting. Through play with other children they develop social skills and learn about behaviour, communication and friendship. Play is the tool for practical learning
The current framework is relation to inclusive play for 0 to 5 years is The Early Years Foundation Stage. The EYFS framework and guidance states that every children can join in play and learning activities at the level that they are able to do so. A good way for early year’s settings to develop inclusive play is to consider the entitlements and needs for each child in their early years setting and to work with practitioners to build up resources to meet those
*Enabling environment- children learn best in positive surroundings when the activities are set out for their personal requirements and there is a good relationship between practitioner and parents of the children.
It supports a child’s development and learning, giving them confidence to explore and learn in the environment. An enabling environment also helps with transitioning as it has a homely feel about it, making the child feel more comfortable during the settling in period. An enabling environment should be inviting, flexible, fun, secure, and stimulating for all children no matter gender, race and if they are able bodied or not. The early years practitioner should provide activities and opportunities that are both age and stage appropriate to the child within the environment. The environment should make it easier for the practitioner to do so, and it should be tied in with the child’s individual needs, e.g. a ramp for a child in a
I believe that each child is unique individual who needs a secure, caring, and stimulating atmosphere in which to grow and mature emotionally, intellectually, physically, and socially. It is my desire as an educator to help students meet their fullest potential in these areas by providing an environment that is safe, supports risk-taking, and invite a sharing of ideas. There are three elements that I believe are conducive to establishing such an environment namely, the teacher acting guide, allowing the child’s natural curiosity to direct his/her learning, promoting respect for all the things and all the people.
Play is inevitable when it comes to children. Given the right environment and objects (of any sort), children will find a way to play. Jarvis, et al state that educators must offer inspiring, playful environments which include hands-on activities and interesting resources. This will empower children to educate themselves (2009). Along the same line, Wood and Attfield consider that an environment inclusive of varied resources will provide room for growth in their learning and will support the child’s “creativity, inventiveness and originally” (2005, p.231).
Research has proven that the debate of “nature vs nurture” is obsolete, with development being the product of both a unique genetic endowment as well as the influence of the environment (Shonkoff, 2003), and that the first five years of a child are crucial to learning and behaviour modification (Blakemore & Frith, 2008). It is therefore incumbent on families and teachers to provide an environment conducive and stimulating for children to grow and learn within. In response to these crucial findings, guidelines and frameworks like the Early Years Learning Framework (“EYLF”) and the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (“VEYLDF”) have been developed to incorporate play-based learning and teaching.
And He also highlights on the children’s environment and social environment indicating the importance of all adults playing an crucial role in supporting the child 's learning not just through
“An enabling environment plays a key role in supporting children's learning and development. It is well recognised that children learn and develop best in caring, supportive environments which respond to their individual needs, allowing them to play and explore.” (Anon,2018) To provide an enabling environment settings could have labels on each area, so that children can read what they are and can go to them. Settings have mark making areas, which help children with their writing, speaking etc. mark making areas provide enabling environments as the children will have all the equipment they need to help them with their literacy skills.
In addition to play promoting pleasure as well as physical activity, play forms the holistic growth in children’s development, or to put it in another way using Brown (2003) acronym, acknowledged as ‘SPICE’; play represents the ‘social interaction’; ‘physical activity’; ‘intellectual stimulation’; creative achievement and emotional stability, (with the addition of “compound flexibility”) in a child’s development. Compound flexibility is the idea that a child’s psychological development occurs using the relationship between his/her environment with the adaptability of the child himself. Thus the flexibility of surroundings and his/her adaptableness can provide children the means to explore; experiment and investigate (Brown, 2003, pp. 53-4). On the contrary, the absence of social interaction and physical activity through the means of play can inhibit children’s overall development and without the consistency of play children suffer a “chronic lack of sensory interaction with the world, [which leads to] a form of sensory deprivation” (Hughes, 2001, p.217 in Lester and Maudsley 2006).
The interaction a preschooler has with the surrounding environment, whether it be physical or social, has a significant impact on the child’s development. Ramani (2012), had taken a look at playful environment versus a structured environment to see which one benefited children more when it came to social interaction and joint problem solving. The interaction shown in the experiment showed that a playful environment benefits children more because they are free to communicate and interact with other children, they were more observant of their environment, would imitate more to get their point across, and were overall more positive. Denham, Bassett, Zisser, and Wyatt (2014) evaluated the child’s engagement with the surrounding physical and social environment, along with taking a look at the ways social-emotional learning can predict how academically ready the children are.
Educators can facilitate the children with different materials and environments in the classrooms that are in the early learning centres. The children need to develop their minds cognitively. “Children actively construct knowledge as they manipulate and explore their world” (Berk 2007). Children are needing to develop their abilities through their play experiences, and also through their play experiences, they can develop appropriately. Early childhood education plays a large part in a child's early development.