Here in Hawaii, there are many different ethnicities. One homes decor may look completely different than another. From different wall hangings and art, to various designs of furniture. For many families, living in Hawaii comes with the expense of barely making it by. Many homes are furnished with the bare necessities, and not much more. With this is mind, how does a program design their classroom environment to meet the childrens' comfort of their home environment without making them feel "out of place"?
A strategy from the text suggests incorporating elements from home-design magazines. I would not neccesarily agree with this because the look of homes in magazines are often very different than the homes of the children in our programs here in Hawaii. The strategies from the text which I feel could be put to use are: adding a variety of elements, cozy lighting, and displaying children's art work and photo's of their families. These here are simple things that can be done in any center.
Because of Hawaii's diverse ethnicities and economic challenges, how might a program go about making their center feel like "home" to every child involved? Should we have a different set of strategies specialezed to our world here in Hawaii?
Hi Elena!
ReplyDeleteI agree that Hawaii is so diverse. At the program that I work at, we have our children's family pictures displayed all around the room (even pictures of our family!). This allows the children to be able to visit their picture whenever they want too and it gives the children a sense of comfort, because something so personal is being displayed and valued. Family pictures also promotes conversation (similarities and differences in families) among the children and staff. We also have different artifacts from the different cultures of our children and try to incorporate words and phrases from our children's different cultures as well. But I am always asking myself, how can we make our environment more comfortable for our children as well as our families?
I find it interesting that you posed the question about Hawaii having specialized strategies. If these strategies were created, do you think that it only applies to Hawaii? Are there other countries that are just as diverse as ours?
Hi Elena,
ReplyDeleteCreating spaces that welcome and inspire children to think as well as develop relationship with the environment can be quite a challenge. Although the text suggests looking at home decorator magazines, is the intent to copy the space or be inspired? Could there be something cautionary here that applies to anything expected to take from one context and bring into a completely different context? How often is curriculum or a checklist placed into a classroom without any regard for the culture or context?
I also wonder about the relationship children might develop with the environment and how this relates to the design and use of the materials. In the schools in Reggio Emilia, Italy (these are the schools depicted in the exhibit at UHWO), environment is viewed as the third teacher. One section of the exhibit focuses on the Dialogue with Places -- I am going to try and post some these sections this week in Laulima -- as I believe there is much connection between the experiences in this section and how directors might view creating a space. The teachers (who also function as the directors at each site) offer an old, empty factory to the children as a provocation. Through this experience the children develop a variety of relationships with the space, constantly questioning and challenging the many pre-conceived notions about what/how children may respond. Hopefully I will have this up by the beginning of this week.
Jeanne
Hi! I like how you talked about Hawaii and the diversity we have. I honestly feel so blessed to be given the access to learn about many different cultures even in just a classroom. I do agree that with the different cultures mixed here, everyone's home is different. I do feel that the classrooms I've been in all have a homey feel, but I do understand your question. I like how Jenna uses family portraits in their classroom so the children feel comforted when missing home. It's a good way to understand pictures and feelings are ok to have.
ReplyDeleteMy question is how do we know children feel comfortable in the classroom environment at the start? I think that we start creating our home like any other family and then the children help to decorate it to make it comfortable for everyone. Listening carefully to what the children like and dislike about their classroom is something to really observe because it is all about them.
Elena,
ReplyDeleteAdding to your question about how educators can create a classroom that feels like home for every child, I think the key word is ‘feel’. I agree that schools should not simulate a home in the traditional sense because there is no clear cut definition of what a home should be. More specifically it is the atmosphere of comfort that should be the main goal of most programs. Reflecting on that idea, what is it about a home that generates comfort; The ease of access to your things?; Something to truly call your own? Using our own personal notions of what makes a home, how can we do the same for children?
Hi Elena,
ReplyDeleteDoes the classroom need to look like a home to get the homey feeling? I think it is important to have elements from the home yet having the feel of safe and comfy. Does it also mean each personal home, or home as the community? Maybe the home feeling can be a reflection of the community. Where you are located, it may have a cowboy feel and a lot of natural elements as you are on the slopes of Haleakala. You also expressed how many home have the bare necessities, this is very common. Some homes have beds as their living room furniture. Can we provide that cozy comfy essence of our homes into the classroom?
Elena,
ReplyDeleteWhat you said about our diverse ethnicities of children here in Hawaii, their life styles are different, so that it is really hard for us to make “a comfortable place” to all, I realized that what makes me comfortable might not fit to all. You think really deep and consider about it. I was just thinking about asking questions to myself and think what will make me feel relaxed, comfortable and secure about the place. But by reading your thoughts made me realized that some might feel comfortable to sit on the couch, some feel home when they see a tatami mat and so on... but what do you think about comfortable texture of materials that anybody can feel good? How about the smell, odor, or scent of the classroom? How about the things that when most of the people consider as bad taste, makes a scrawling face?
Miwa ;)