The 3rd Teacher

• How are we using our classrooms, indoors and out, to create safe emotional spaces for children to explore their world by taking risk?
• Emotional risk as well as physical risk.
• What do children need in all spaces to feel that they have control and are being cared for?
• Is there a high energy space as well as quiet space?
• Are we really using the spaces we have to its potential?
• What can we add?
• What can we take away?
• How is the equipment supporting the whole child?
• How is the light affecting the children?
• Is it natural light or artificial?
• Is it too bright/dark?
• What kinds of sounds are being heard in the environment?
• Are they sounds that can be controlled?
• What is the volume?
• Is it too loud and masking other sounds?
• What energy are we bringing to the room with our voices?
• Are we distracting children's flow of exploration?
• Is our emotion causing unwanted stress?
• What is the air quality?
• Is it fresh air?
• How is temperature affecting the activities?
• Is it too hot or too cold?
• Are there scents or smells that are overpowering? 

These are just some of the questions I think about when I am pondering how the environment can support the well being of the children in my care.

Environments are integral to well-being and learning

The importance of the early care and learning environment – sometimes referred to as the “third teacher” – cannot be underestimated in shaping the experiences of children and adults. Children and adults live and learn in relationships with the people around them but are also profoundly affected by their relationships with spaces and materials. 

-British Columbia early years framework 2019, page 22.