Our Environment

Creating a rich, playful learning environment for our littles is a top priority for us.  For babies and toddlers the environment is as much a teacher as are the people in the environment.  However, we are limited on space.  As a result, we have integrated playful learning spaces into nearly every nook and cranny of our home.  While at times I'll admit it can feel like our whole house is a play room, we have found that the benefits of havinga rich, playful learning environment integrated into our space far out weigh the draw backs associated with not having a dedicated classroom.

Click on the links below to take a peek around our environment:

• Art Center
• Activity Table
• Puzzle Play
• Magnet Board
• Activity Wall
• Snack Center
• Outside

The Activity Wall

What I call our activity wall houses a great precentage of our most popular activities. It is located on the longest wall in our space.  Spindle Box, Montesorri Inspired Cubies, Toy Box Cubies, Book Shelves, Magnet Board, and our Circle Time and Music Spot, Few ... that's alot of stuff!

The Montesorrie Inspired Cubies are completely open cubies with complete activities in them.  Sometimes, they are true montesorrie activites like the sand paper letters/numbers, golden bars, or the pink tower.  But they also have other all in one activities, like lacing beads, counting and pantern blocks, etc. 

The Toy Box Cubbies house our canvas toy bins.  While each one is labeled to help with sorting and such the activities are not necessarily all in one.  For example, some of our bins are cars, planes, balls.  You could easily take one out and play with it or the ever popular dump and play with them all.

The book shelf on the activity wall is one of our many homes for books.  It is in the center of the toy box cubbies.  The middle cubby is simple left open and we put a selection of books there.  We also have a bookshelf library in the hallway, and a book case in every other room of the house excluding the dining room.  Can you tell we like books?

The Spindle Box sits just a top an old chest at the end of the montesorri cubbies.  The kiddos often play with them right there.  Sometimes, they choose to get a montesorri mat and play with them in our circle time spot or move them over to the activity table.  No matter where they end up playing with them we make sure that they make there way back to the chest.

The Magnet Board is located just beyond the toy cubbies. It is a magnetic dry earase board with a shelf above that hold various types of mangets.  It is a very popular spot in our house.  Great for self guided or mommy guided play.  :)

The Circle Time and Music Spot is located smack dab in the middle of the madness.  It has a fun mirror at standing hat of the tots and exersaucer height for my littles sprout.  We have some pillows our drums and other musical instruments lining the wall and a cozy foam floor.  We gather their for story times, singing and making music, and doing activities on our mats.