Over the past few weeks we have spent countless hours preparing the classroom environment for our PK students who we eagerly welcomed on Monday. After each piece of furniture was moved, each material placed, we found ourselves coming back to the same question, “Is the space inviting?” This required time, reflection, and getting down on our knees to walk around the classroom and observe through the eyes of a child. In our work with Educational Consultant, Ashley Cadwell last summer, he encouraged us to design a space that brought rich normality to the environment. While one can interpret this in many ways, we understood this to mean a classroom that feels like home. While some standard classroom furniture (a shelf for blocks, cubbies, tables and chairs) is present, these are not the pieces that should draw the child in. A wicker table and chair set, passed down over the years, provides a space to taste the delicious cake that a friend made in the kitchen. A netted curtain sectioning off a cozy nook with soft chairs invites a child to grab a storybook and travel to a new land. Mirrors are placed throughout the classroom, allowing children to watch their creations and investigations unfold. Viewing your tower from multiple angles as you build provides important perspective to the building process. Soft lighting from table lamps in addition to natural sunlight cascading in through northerly windows imparts an uplifting mood for classroom dwellers. Large letters flank the wall overhanging the construction materials. Each letter represents a first initial of a PK student. As our children grow into their 4th year, each child will design and adorn their letter to their choosing on their 4th birthday, breathing life and color into this wall installation. Two cork panels wrap the walls in the classroom, eagerly awaiting documentation of the learning process. Finally, a large bicycle wheel hangs flat from the ceiling over a round table near the art easel. As a base for a chandelier, the wheel will serve as a provocation for creating beautiful materials and design to hang down from the spokes.
This is all just the beginning. We are ready for the children to act on this environment and watch as our classroom evolves.
This is all just the beginning. We are ready for the children to act on this environment and watch as our classroom evolves.