Creating Affirming Environments

If I were to open my own Family Child Care Home, I would want to first and foremost focus on the children/families in which I serve meaning I would want to make sure that when families walk into the home, they feel as if this is their own home; it is a safe haven, a home away from home rather than a child care center. As Derman-Sparks and Edwards explain, “more than half of the materials in the environment should reflect the identities of the specific children in that classroom” (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010 p.44). I would rely heavily on the staff members to also bring their culture and family traditions into the classrooms. Together with staff, we would use photography heavily in our program and would make sure there were plenty of photographs of the families in the center as well as of the children engaging in daily activities throughout their day. We would also encourage the families to bring in their own photographs to display around the room, as we would do the same to share the make-up of my own family. We would be mindful to include photographs of families, children, religions, and cultures from around the world even if they were not represented in the program, as this would encourage conversations about diversity and encourage tolerance, respect and acceptance.

We would use the playground as the drop off spot in the morning for the children, similar to the way Adriana explained in the media segment. I think this is a great distractor for children and a great way to get some of the morning wiggles out of their systems as well as a way for some children to get much needed exercise and a way to stimulate their minds for their day of learning. The playground is also a great tool that can be used to create a supportive environment; encouraging children to problem solve, use their imagination, exercise, as well as develop conflict management and resolution skills that are developmentally appropriate.

A parent room would be located in the home, so that parents could gather during the morning drop off times, perhaps have a cup of coffee, and gain information about the daily/weekly lessons and any important updates as well as to share best practices on parenting and focusing on an anti-bias education from a staff member that would be assigned to this area from a specific period of time.

We would have traditional and non-traditional centers set up throughout the program. Toys/materials would be rotated out on a weekly basis so that children would continued to be engaged, surprised and interested in the environment of the classroom. There would be several “cozy corners” for children to have ample opportunities to retreat from the larger group and enjoy their own space. In the cozy corner there would be numerous books and magazines that would share a global view of the world, we would include a lot of National Geographic for Children magazines in addition to traditional and nontraditional children’s books. In each cozy corner, there would be books that we created by each child on their own families and cultures.

A photography/music/creative art center where children would learn daily about the world of arts in depth is another learning center. I personally believe this is an area that has been cut out of a lot of programs and would put much emphasis in this area to create an anti-bias education and learn about diversity through imagination, discovery, experience and creativity. We would encourage families to bring CD’s of their favorite music, as well as artwork from their families or other locations that they have discovered that would enhance the anti-bias education environment.

Another major area would be the science area, where we would have actual live animals, such as fish, hamsters, turtles, etc. The science area would be hands on and would represent the animal world on a global scale as much as possible. This is a very important area in that children can be encouraged to use animals to help them better understand diversity and how we all must live together in the world regardless of our differences.  

I would definitely have a “nap room” (taken from Adriana in the media segment) that the children would transition to after lunch. The room would have dim lights, soft music; the air would also be a little cooler in this room. I would encourage the families to bring in personal bedding to include sheets, comforters, blankets, pillows, etc. Instead of the typical cots that are often used in center, I would look for beds that were similar to those that are in a home.

There are several other ideas that I could continue to go on and on about based off of Derman-Sparks, Edwards and the media segment, however these are the main areas of focus that I feel would greatly enhance the holistic development of families, staff and most importantly the children served in the program. 

Reference

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).