Well-organized early childhood environments help children (and teachers!) feel grounded, peaceful, and attentive. These resources can help teachers organize and declutter classrooms to display only essential learning materials.
Resource List
Students with autism may struggle with focus and planning. An organized classroom with routines can help. This article gives teachers some tips about physical structure, visual structure, and visual schedules in a classroom.
This article explains how the physical space of the classroom can convey a feeling of peace, calm, and belonging to a young child through options like bringing nature into the classroom and having free access to creative, interesting play materials.
This blog uses reflection questions as a tool for teachers in decluttering their classrooms. Considering important things like, “Does this encourage thinking?” can help when making a keep or discard decision for educational materials.
This Head Start tip sheet gives directors and educators strategies and resources to plan for the design of developmentally-appropriate learning spaces for infants and toddlers. Attention is given to accessibility for young children with disabilities as well as safety and sleep.
This blog gives teachers great tips on what to keep and what donate or throw away when decluttering a classroom, workspace, or to-do list.
This article helps teachers stay organized and tidy in the classroom using a decision-making culling process designed by Marie Kondo. By keeping only important items that “spark joy” and that are useful, teachers can successfully declutter and downsize their collections.
This free open-access online learning module is focused on the design and organization of the indoor early childhood learning environment, considering aesthetics, children’s independence, and the easy use of materials. This self-paced module allows users to explore videos, photos of various model environments, readings, and resources.
This article explains the purpose of visual supports for young students with autism as an important part of the classroom physical and visual environment. The article gives six strategies that an early childhood educator could use in a preschool classroom to try out visual supports.
This article provides research-based lineup of smart, effective classroom design tips that support deep learning, reduce distraction, and build belonging.
