engleski

Correlation between the Stimulating Spatial Environment and Children’s Movement in Institutions for Early Education

The aim of research is to determine the differences between the stimulating spatial environment which offers possibilities for movement, stimulates children’s movement in everyday activities especially conceived by preschool teachers and the currently standardized spaces in early education institutions. The spatial-material environment and its adequacy for the stimulation of children’s movement will be studied. Two kindergartens from the city of Rijeka were part of the research, one of them the experimental, the other the control kindergarten. The research was conducted in a mixed nursery group in the experimental kindergarten with the aim to monitor and create a stimulating environment which is an incentive to children’s movement. This work has been fully supported by the University of Rijeka under the project number uniri-drustv-18-268. The research lasted for 10 weeks and the observed spaces were: the group’s living room, hall, gym, and the external or open spaces. The spatial- material environment was photographed, while the observation method was used to determine differences among various space environments. Each variable was monitored in real time during direct work and afterwards by checking photographs which were in the function of documentation and data collection. The quality of the newly arranged spatially stimulating environment was estimated by the interview method and the persons interviewed were preschool teachers in the experimental kindergarten. Results show that it is possible and necessary to use all the spaces in the early education institutions to create a stimulating environment which encourages children to move. Such a spatial environment has a significant role in stimulating children for physical activity, and consequently in affecting their positive growth and development. It is significantly different than the standardised spaces in early education institutions. Movement cannot be separated from learning other contents in children’s everyday life. Children’s potential for self-initiated activities, as well as their learning independence and autonomy is being encouraged and it is of extreme importance in the educational process. Children are ensured with various sources to achieve that, which requires the creation of a rich and stimulating environment in which children must have the freedom to acquire different knowledge in their own specific way.

spatial environment, child, movement

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