Glen Education Fern Street 

Scaffolding a Love of Learning

By Glen Fern Street Educational Team

The Glen Fern Street kindergarten is an ever-evolving, flexible learning environment that creates a space which promotes play and learning. 

The new building incorporates lots of wood and views outside- trees, houses, parklands and the local community passing by. Each room is full of natural light and a kaleidoscope of colour from books, artwork, reflections, toys and learning materials which have been intentionally constructed and arranged in a variety of areas for the children to explore.  

Play spaces and interest areas have been constructed to scaffold various play-partner dynamics through the provision of resources and seats, so educators can encourage a wide range of play arrangements for the children and creating opportunities for them to practice social-skills, interactions and conventions.  

For example, by providing 2 – 3 chairs at a play station determines how many children can participate at one time.  Children learn to wait their turn and divide their attention between two play partners.  Also, by providing limited resources at a play station, children learn to share resources and seek support from adults and peers.

The team at Glen Fern St Kindergarten work together with families to create an environment that welcomes every child and provides them with opportunities to build on their skills and explore their own interests. With observations and reflections of individuals and groups, we can adapt the activities and space to reflect the children. 

We encourage the children to start their day independently by placing their picture on the board near the front door which lets their family and friends know they’ve arrived and they’re ready to start the day. To continue the morning routine the children are encouraged to unpack their own bags and pop them away in their lockers. They are then ready to investigate and explore. 

The inside and outside areas are set up with activities and materials which encourage sensory play, fine and gross motor skills, communications and social and emotional development. There are several interest areas in each room, enough that the children can choose to go individually or as groups and move around at their own pace.  This fosters independence and scaffolds children’s emerging love of learning through providing a wide range of interests and activities. 

Some of the experiences include the art corner which provides arts and craft materials all accessible to the children to source themselves. They can experiment, make their mark and create. There are books around the room with comfy cushions to read and explore stories. The wooden kitchen, home corner and dress up area allows the children to connect their experiences from home and the community and apply these to play. Puzzles and games for problem solving.  Various building blocks are around the room used to create houses, shops, space stations and forts. The mat area is a space to sit and chat as a group, share stories, ideas and interests, or lay down and relax during rest time. 

The doors open out to the outside area where the children can dig and build and create in the sandpit, cook and experiment in the outside kitchen, climb and hang from the trees, ride and scoot on the bikes, watch the birds and the trees and tackle the obstacle course. 

Our learning environment reflects the relationships we have with the children at our kindergarten and the interests and experiences they share with us.