1. ENABLING ENVIRONMENTS IN THE EARLY YEARS

2. SESSION 1 WHAT IS AN ENABLING ENVIRONMENT?

3. An enabling environment is a physical indoor and outdoor environment which provides:  Space  High quality resources  Displays  Accessibility  Stability It is also an emotional environment providing warmth and acknowledgement of each child as unique. A truly enabling environment ought to support children’s learning across the 6 areas of learning and ensure the that each child is “ a competent learner from birth who can be resilient, capable, confident and self-assured” (EYFS (2007), Practice Guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage, DCSF, page 5).

4. WHY IS THE ENVIRONMENT SO IMPORTANT? The environment plays a key role in supporting and developing a child’s learning and development. Discuss with your group what you think the main features of an enabling environment will include/provide/support.

5. An enabling environment will:  Provide a child with stimulation and challenge.  Pick up on a child’s interests and enable them to explore and experiment.  Be flexible to allow for quiet, reflective and focussed learning, maybe in a comfortable book corner, as well as more boisterous and physical play.  Support children’s learning across all 6 aspects of learning, allowing them to practise their skills and develop new ones.  Help children to learn about rules and how to communicate with others.  Encourage children’s creativity and imagination and permit them to take risks and make mistakes.  Promote equality and support children to develop a greater understanding of others’ needs, cultures, religions and backgrounds.  Provide safety and emotional support.  Encourage independence and help children to develop a positive attitude towards learning. (Enabling environments in the Early Years (2011), Liz Hodgman)

6. EVERY CHILD MATTERS Providing an enabling environment also links to the five Every Child Matters outcomes.  Stay Safe-a safe and secure place to play and learn.  Be Healthy-the support to develop good personal hygiene practices.  Enjoy and Achieve-provide a wide range of activities and resources that are stimulating and encourage participation.  Make a positive contribution-encourage children and parents to make contributions.  Achieve Economic Well Being-offer challenges to develop skills to support them in later learning and eventually employment.

7. THE FOUR PRINCIPLES The EYFS Framework values the environment and this is seen by it’s four principle cards.  A Unique Child  Positive Relationships  Enabling Environments  Learning and Development Look at the cards and discuss how the other 3 principles of the EYFS link to the enabling environment.

8. SUMMARY-WHY THE ENVIRONMENT IS IMPORTANT IN SUPPORTING CHILDREN’S LEARNING  An enabling environment will provide space, high quality resources, displays, accessibility and stability for the children.  The environment supports children’s learning and development across all seven areas of learning, the five Every Child Matters Outcomes.  The Enabling Environment includes the indoor and outdoor spaces and the emotional environment.  The environment is one of the four key principles of the Early Years Foundation Stage, Enabling Environments.