Creating Affirming Environments

Creating an anti-bias environment where children and families feel welcome and appreciated is important to the environment I would be creating if I had the opportunity to have my own family child care in my home.

The first thing I would do is make sure that I had a house that had enough room to designate enough space for the child care center to be its own entity so that children and families could feel like it was their space and not necessarily my living space.  I've been in quite a few home child care centers and the ones I really gravitate towards are the ones that have separate space for the children and families.  Of course the kitchen might become shared space but if I could swing it, I would try to have cooking and refrigeration in the family child care space.

 

I definitely like the idea of having a bookshelf dedicated to family's pictures and the idea of having the pictures in frames to create a warm feeling when children and their families come in.  It is important for children to see their families daily but also to see other's families to help them begin to understand how families can be different (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010).  The use of the children's pictures is authentic and real to them and not simply a representation of them (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010).

 

 

 

Having an art environment where children can create and not worry about duplicating someone else's art is also important.  When children work with a variety of materials, their creativity is sparked and their creation becomes their own.

 

 

Creating an environment that is natural helps children and families feel like they are at home.  When children and families feel comfortable in the environment they are going to, transitions become easier and relaxed and children feel a sense of comfort when their families leave for the day (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011).



 

 

Having cozy places to read and relax and musical instruments are also important to a child's social and emotional development and also exposing children to different cultures through literature and music (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010).

 



 

 

 

Creating an anti-bias environment involves careful reflection and consideration of the children and families in your care and should reflect them in your learning environment.  Having this attitude creates an atmosphere of respect for the children and their families.

 

References

 

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010).  Anti-bias education for young children and

 

     ourselves.  Washington, DC:  NAEYC.

 

Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Welcome to an Anti-Bias Learning Community.  (Course Media).

      Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp? tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_4197532_1%26url%3D