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All about ... The Built Environment
A short extract from an eight page feature which appeared in the Nursery World magazine, February 2005
Introduction
When we consider using the environment with young children we often focus on the natural world and neglect the wealth of opportunities presented by the built environment. We all encounter the built environment on a day to day basis wherever we live, be it a village, a town or a large city. A large town or city may spring to mind when we are thinking about the built environment, but you can find many of the same features in even the smallest hamlet or rural locality. The built environment all around you is a fantastic free resource to use with young children to enrich their first hand experiences of the world around them.
The built environment is made up of a wide range of places, services and people for you to explore with the children. These might include:
- buildings of many different types
- networks of roads and railways
- services and utilities such as water, sewers, telephones and electricity
- green spaces
- signs and symbols
- sounds, smells and textures
- the lives of the people who inhabit the built environment.
In this article we will explore these different aspects in more detail and look at ways of making the most of the resources on your doorstep to broaden children's knowledge and understanding of the world.
Why is the built environment so useful?
Investigating the local environment provides many opportunities for developing the Early Learning Goals in the Foundation Stage and for addressing the requirements of Birth to Three Matters.
You can:
- build directly on the children's everyday experiences- everyone can contribute observations, thoughts and ideas from the earliest age;
- plan activities which involve families;
- help children build their self-confidence and sense of belonging to a community;
- draw on the rich and varied cultures which exist around you;
- promote a positive attitude to children being physically active in the open air;
- plan journeys and visits at different times of the year to look at seasonal changes and build children's learning over time;
- encourage children to develop an awareness of danger and a sense of safety in the outdoor environment.
Taking the children out to explore the local environment on a regular basis increases your visibility and raises the profile of your setting within your community. Don't ignore this rich resource for developing personal, social and emotional development; communication, language and literacy; mathematical development, knowledge and understanding of the world, creative development and physical development.
