The First Five Years

The first five years of a child's life are, quite literally, irreplaceable. This is when a person's brain is the MOST plastic, the most malleable. 90% of brain development happens before the age of five. 90%!!!!! One million new synapses, or neural connections, are formed every single second in the first five years (read more about that here). So, it's really not an exaggeration to say that what children experience during this period lays a foundation for the rest of their lives.

There are many factors that contribute to the creation of this healthy foundation- attitudes and behaviors of caregivers, diet and nutrition, sleep schedules. All of these are SO IMPORTANT, but our favorite to talk about as playroom designers is an engaging environment with stimulating play materials. Maybe you're stumped as a parent trying to figure out what an “engaging environment” looks like or what makes a toy cognitively stimulating. The good news? We know those things. 

Environment as the Third Teacher

Lily here! Before designing residential playrooms, I was a preschool teacher in Reggio Emilia-Inspired schools. This approach to early childhood education places enormous value on environment, so much so, I took a whole class on it. Yep, EDHD 6420 - Environment as the Third Teacher set the stage for what we’re doing now. My teaching teams and I would set up our classrooms and select materials to support our unique students. At Little Kingdoms, we take into consideration children's ages, developmental stages, interests, strengths and areas for growth as we design a playroom that will spur them on in their play and learning

Everything’s new

During these early years, children are learning new information, things like colors, shapes, and letters. But they’re also learning how to learn and exist in the world. They’re learning what to do with curiosity and questions, how to collaborate with siblings and peers, and they’re acquiring skills for pushing past frustration and solving problems. All of this happens during play. When children have unstructured time for play and access to open-ended materials with no prescribed activity and purpose, magic happens. This is where children learn resilience and how to think creatively, it’s where they process and make sense of the world around them, it’s where they begin learning who they are.

If you need support setting up your playroom, or have one that’s ~totally~ chaotic, schedule a complimentary call below!