(as shared by YOU and hundreds of other early childhood educators)
Welcome to an MTA blog written by YOU. Yes, you, educators of Australia and New Zealand (AKA today’s glorious brains trust). Recently, we held a competition to win an amazing ‘look’ from our new furniture Lookbook. To enter, we invited educators to tell us how they create a warm, welcoming environment in their space. We were overwhelmed with the ideas and wanted to share some of this community expertise. We’ve assembled hundreds of your ideas into these top 10 themes which we LOVE. These were the big hitters that came up again and again in educator responses, as you’ll see when you read on! ❤️ We hope they inspire you too:
- Meet the children where they are
- Natural spaces, natural light
- Inclusive all the way
- Ownership of the space
- Open-ended resources
- Promote curiosity
- Home away from home
- Organisation, routines & rituals
- Cosy spaces & quiet corners
- Soft tones & warm hearts
Let’s dive deeper into how to create a welcoming centre environment – in your words! Kind and creative learning environments with a sprinkle of magic are everywhere…
Meet the children where they are
- Children always come first, and their views and interests shape my program.
- Meeting children where they are and embedding their interests within the environment while also considering their needs.
- Looking at the world from a child’s perspective.
- Remembering what I loved and found magical as a child. Trying to see it through the eyes of a child, not an adult.
- Thinking like a child: what does it look like from their perspective? How and what will they learn from?
- Integrating children’s interests and fostering open-ended play, allowing exploration and inquiry to evolve based on their choices and curiosity.
- Creating spaces and experiences based on children’s interests and areas of development using flexible and diverse resources.
- It must be at a child’s level, a splash of colour, challenging enough to stimulate their brain, but easy enough that they can actually engage with it.
Natural spaces, natural light
- Natural, light and calming spaces make for connection, imagination and happy faces.
- Natural elements: incorporate nature through plants, natural wood and displays of stones, shells or leaves to create a calming atmosphere.
- We choose natural colours complemented by beautiful wooden pieces.
- Natural light, clean and tidy, mix of colours, mix of visual stimuli (not too much all at once!), books/learning and play times at arm’s reach!
- Natural colours, different textures, cosy spaces and creating a homey feel to promote a sense of belonging.
- I love using natural materials that spark curiosity and exploration.
- We build a welcoming environment through natural resources and calming colours.
Inclusive all the way
- Create a warm, inclusive space with diverse activities and responsive teaching to foster curiosity, creativity and a sense of belonging.
- By greeting with a smile, encouraging open communication and providing a safe, inclusive space where all children feel valued and respected.
- Build relationships first & make sure children see their cultures/identities/contexts reflected in the space.
- Multicultural & inclusive materials: offer toys, books and activities that reflect different cultures and abilities.
- By being inclusive to all families, ensuring everyone is acknowledged and treated with kindness.
- We design our environments to be all inclusive, with areas set up for children where they can use their own ability and imagination.
- We make sure we have materials and learning tools to encourage all children.
- Inclusive play: ensure all children are included in activities, encouraging them to play and interact with one another.
- Ensure every family feels a sense of belonging. Our families are like our own, supporting each other whenever possible. We collaborate to create inclusive, empathetic environments. We are family ❤️
Ownership of the space
- Helping children create ownership of the space. The room is a blank space until they create art and put their mark on the space.
- Personal touches such as children’s artwork: showcase their work on walls or bulletin boards to foster pride and ownership.
- Welcome signs: have welcome signs with each child’s name, showing that they belong in the room.
- We greet each child, display their artwork on our walls, observe their interests, set up areas that provide opportunity for independent exploration, group and individual play and a balance of active and quiet spaces.
- Children’s handprints and artworks adorning the walls, creating a sense of agency, ownership over the space and safety paramount to learning.
- Evidence of children’s learning on the walls.
- Children have input into a play and learning environment allowing them to create a special place, giving them a sense of agency and belonging.
Open-ended resources
- Open-ended resources, input from the team, children’s ideas and inspirations, and a whole lot of passion and love ❤️
- Careful selection of high-quality resources designed to enhance children’s love of play and learning and evoke joy and laughter.
- Open-ended resources that support imaginative and sensory learning, a space designed just for the children.
- Using MTA resources (editor note: thank you – we appreciate you) enables us to provide a safe, inclusive and diverse environment using enquiry-based learning activities for exploration, creativity and discovery.
- Sprinkling MTA’s bold statement pieces (editor’s note: loving this!) into spaces, then watch the magic happen!
- Using loose parts, nature, sustainable items for play, presented in a beautiful way.
- Provide a range of activities that are open-ended. Home corner is a big favourite.
- Curate a flexible, resource-rich space that invites exploration and interaction.
- Home corner is the perfect way to inspire dramatic play. It can be a science lab, bear cave, farmer’s market or anything their big imaginations think up.
Promote curiosity
- An area that lets their imaginations grow, everything being at their level.
- Hands and hearts open wide, curiosity our guide.
- Things to see, hear, taste, smell and touch, as well as spaces to hide, play, imagine, rest and learn.
- Mixing curiosity with hands-on chaos, ensuring every child feels like a VIP in the world’s most entertaining learning circus!
- Immerse ourselves in the children’s imaginative worlds and bring them to life with carefully curated objects to spark wonder and joy.
- Dance, explore and let curiosity lead the way!
- Ensuring the children can freely explore in a variety of ways that include curiosity and creativity but also engage in messy play.
- Provide various play areas like art, building, sensory tables and pretend play zones.
- Creating separate spaces for self-initiated learning – reading, drawing, building, imaginative play and quiet spaces. Taking the time to set up and join in on various activities and always looking for new and engaging ways to learn and interact.
Home away from home
- We focus on recreating spaces similar to home to create a sense of belonging.
- Homelike, child-centred, interest based, beautiful furnishings and light, individual spaces, group spaces.
- Use feedback from families so we can include their home life in our learning and environment.
- Family photos: display photos of the children and families to create a sense of familiarity and connection.
- The environment needs to feel as much like walking into your own home as possible.
- Create a home away from home environment: family photos, lamps, photos of children’s bedrooms.
- Enchanting, dazzling, homelike look, lots of adventure and tiny nooks, learning should be inviting and fun.
Organisation, routines and rituals
- Lots of storage that lets you rotate the toys and activities; space to create, space to move.
- Ensuring that the environment is well organised, with resources easily accessible for children.
- Organised and decluttered: tidy and well-organised space with child-friendly storage so children can easily access toys and materials.
- Consistent schedules: a predictable routine helps children feel secure and know what to expect each day.
- Morning welcoming ritual! Greet each child warmly at the door with a smile, eye contact and perhaps a special greeting they choose (like a high-five or handshake).
- Well-ordered, beautiful environments stir children’s interest, identity, culture, imagination and wonder, enriching their development.
- We love to change our areas around once in a while to help challenge those little brains!
- We create a welcoming and engaging learning environment through routines and rituals, cosy and warm spaces, special interest items, flexible seating, a friendly smile and quality interactions.
Cosy spaces & quiet corners
- Creating comfortable and inviting spaces that promote collaboration and interaction.
- Comfy chairs, books to read, using their imagination is the key!
- Craft a cosy learning nook with whimsical toys, fun routines, playful activities and lots of giggles.
- Adding cosy corners, natural nooks, creative crannies and spaces that ignite the senses.
- Comfortable furnishings: provide cosy reading corners with soft cushions, bean bags or a rug.
- Sensory and play areas, quiet corners: spaces where children can retreat if they need a break or quiet time.
Soft tones & warm hearts
- Soft tones that also feel warm and inviting; active listening.
- Show genuine interest in what children say and give them your full attention during conversations.
- Soft tones that also feel warm and inviting, lots of resources, surfaces for them to create as well as floor space for them to connect to one another.
- Use warm, soft lighting and calming colours on the walls and furnishings.
- Open spaces, smiling faces, invitations to play and plenty of love and laughter ❤️
- Warm tone and gentle language: a kind, gentle voice and positive language to encourage children.
- Soft music, an area to relax and a non-rushed atmosphere for children to explore.
- A focus on using textures/colours to bring warmth and a sense of belonging.
- Warmth and laughter… we believe a safe, warm and happy environment creates a place of exploration and creativity.
We love these ten ways to create a warm, welcoming environment in your early childhood setting. Thank you! 🙏
Feeling inspired to dial up a zone or re-do your home corner? Shop for your early childhood learning space and resources right here.
Love the looks throughout? ❤️ Download the new Lookbook here.
Want help deciding what might suit your space? Doing a bigger refurb or even opening a new centre? Unlock inspiration with our talented new projects team in your FREE discovery session. It’s a fun, free way to create magic in your learning space. Lock it in.