Enriching with enabling environments

This article is part of an ongoing series about inclusivity, focusing on the ways in which early years settings can help children feel seen and represented among their peers.

“Every child is different and unique” is the widely-held concept within the early years – and education as a whole – that forms the basis of much of the EYFS. It’s the concept that all early years experiences are hinged upon and, as such, requires every educator to not only fully embrace it, but to ensure that it’s woven throughout daily practice.

At its core, it signals the way in which educators craft an environment that recognises, celebrates and encourages individuality in little ones, which arises from their differing lives and experiences (or ‘cultural capital’) – also referred to as an ‘enabling environment’. Enabling environments help children to feel safe and supported as well as recognised and understood, encouraging them to explore and take risks.

Think of children like plants: they all have the base requirements for survival, but to thrive, they have different needs based on their individuality. Some grow better in rocky terrain or need soil with a certain PH level, while others need lots of direct sunlight. Every type of plant is unique and to help it grow the best it can, it needs nurturing in a way that’s also unique – as do children.

• Children thrive within environments that support their individual and diverse development needs.
• Enabling environments offer children security, comfort, choice, engagement and opportunity.
  
• Children’s learning is best supported when they have opportunities that allow for movement and action, creativity and imagination, independence and collaboration.
  
• Time outdoors benefits children by offering unique opportunities.
  
• Open-ended resources enable children to access and combine processes of development and learning.
  
• Inclusive spaces are nurturing and supportive of all children.
  
• Within an enabling environment, knowledgeable practitioners optimise the development and learning potential of every child.
  

Children are unique and holistic learners, thriving within environments that support their individual and diverse motivations, interests and needs. They require a wealth of possibilities within varied contexts, and this is best supported within stimulating and challenging environments that value exploration and play.

Enabling environments offer children security, comfort, engagement and opportunity. Children benefit from the opportunity to choose their own learning and enquiries through play when settings embrace free flow and choice as children move between activities and experiences, not simply from inside to outside.

To help ensure your environment is enabling, follow this Alliance checklist:

• Create an environment that’s warm, welcoming and nurturing, facilitating a sense of belonging.
• Offer a range of resources that are familiar to all, as well as activities that are new to them.
  
• Ensure that the activities and environment offer room for both outdoor and indoor play, sufficient space for children to move and collaborate, and encourage exploration and risk-taking.
  
• Provide a range of activities that serve different purposes: inspire imagination and role play; exploration of personal relationships and feelings; problem solving; quiet time and reflection. Consider having a construction area, an evolving home corner that reflects the variety of cultures in your setting, various toys and books, storytelling times, music and art. Ask yourself if the resources you do have represent the UK’s cultural variety – for example, with building blocks and bricks, are there bricks to represent churches, mosques, synagogues etc?
  
• Ensure positive gender roles and language are emphasised using stories, images and small world figures.
  
• Ensure the activities and environment meet the needs of all the children who attend, from very young babies to older children, including the health and safety needs of children with SEND.
  
• Consider how you can ensure all children feel welcomed and valued. Some ideas include fostering close collaboration with families by including family photos on display boards, singing songs sung in the family home, and providing a comfortable welcoming area with places for a parent to sit with staff and their child.
  
• Ensure staff understand the importance of building warm, supportive relationships and the importance of nurturing a child’s development.
  
• Pay close attention to individual children. Consider: what are they interested in, and how you could incorporate this into your play environment? How can you help them communicate better? When are they ready to play and ready for rest? When are they intrinsically motivated to learn? How can they have choice and control? Is the environment meeting their individual needs? What’s their home language? How do you ensure you can communicate with children and families who speak English as an additional language?
  
• Ensure activities and resources are at child height and accessible, using resources that can be moved and wielded in a variety of ways.
  
• Allow children the time and space to focus, while reducing noise distractions.
  
• Engage children in activities to build their emotional resilience and social skills.
  
• Reflect on your practice regularly. What does the environment aim to achieve? Is it supporting all children at all times and, if not, how can you ensure that it is?
  

Creating an enabling environment may seem daunting when you think of applying it to the little ones in your care and education, especially if you have a larger setting, but there are plenty of steps you can take to make sure you’re enriching the environment for the benefit of all children. Just make sure that it’s something you frequently assess and alter as needs and circumstances evolve!

One way to do this is to ensure that you’re regularly encouraging colleagues to attend training on topics around enabling environments. Visit our training page on EYA Central to see what we have coming up: bit.ly/U5-EYA-Central.