27.2: The Impact of Our Environment

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Amanda Taintor

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Environment Effect

Are there certain places you like to visit? A favorite restaurant, a sporting arena, or a good friend’s home? What qualities of those places make you feel welcome or secure? What makes you want to go back? Thinking about these places, you might remember the people around you, the room's color, the presence of sunlight, sounds and smells, furniture, accessories, or temperature.

Now consider places you don’t like to spend time. Maybe the dentist’s office, the airport or a noisy restaurant. What makes these environments less pleasant for you? In some settings, we feel relaxed and comfortable. In others, we feel tense, overwhelmed, and confused. The environment has a powerful effect on us. It influences how we feel, what we do, and the ways we respond. Some of us dislike places where we feel we cannot control or predict our experiences. In some spaces, we may feel we don’t belong or are not appreciated.

Just like adults, infants and toddlers are affected by their environments, even if they cannot tell us directly how they feel. It is our job as caregivers to ensure learning spaces make infants and toddlers feel welcome, secure, and ready to learn. (The Ohio State University for the US Department of Defense’s Office of Family Policy/Children and Youth, 2021)

A childcare environment is one of the child's most valuable teachers and impacts every facet of a program. Research conducted with the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS) (Sylva et al. 2010) and the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) (Howes et al. 2008; Mashburn et al. 2008) indicates physical environment, social-emotional climate, and social interactions all influence a program's overall quality: high-quality physical environments enhance young children's well-being and development. All environments communicate messages. In childcare programs, these messages may convey caregivers' beliefs and values about young children, how children learn, the role of families, and the importance of community. A program’s environment should convey to all children that they belong and are safe. [1]

[1] California Department of Education. (2019). Infant/Toddler Learning and Development Program Guidelines, Second Edition. Sacramento: California Department of Education. Is used with permission.