Classrooms that are child-led have long been seen as the gold standard in preschool education. However, as I’ve interacted with loads of educators over the years, I’ve learned that the term “child-led” can mean very different things to different people. For some, it means the teacher chooses the activities and provides the materials, but allows the children to complete those activities independently. For others, it means children are allowed and encouraged to do whatever they want within the classroom. For many, it probably falls somewhere in between.
When I started contemplating opening a program of my own, I really had to take some time to reflect about what child-led meant to me and what I wanted it to look like in my classroom. Here’s what I came up with:
3 Things a Child-led Classroom IS:
#1 It is designed to encourage exploration
It is a space where children feel comfortable exercising their curiosity in interesting and novel ways. They feel at ease using the materials at their disposal to explore and experiment and they don’t feel restricted to use them only as intended (ie, blocks are only for building). Children can get creative and find themselves wondering “what will happen if…”
#2 It is full of materials that match the children’s interests
A classroom full of toys that the children aren’t interested in might as well be empty. Close-ended toys often fall into this category. In the most recent classroom I worked in, many of the toy choices are action figures from children’s television programming or movies. For children who are into those things, the toys hold some interest, but for those who don’t, the toys are never engaged with.
Choosing open-ended toys and materials that change and evolve the same way that the interests of the children change and evolve will provide kids with endless possibilities for use that will draw in all students.
#3 It is flexible in its schedule
Timelines are largely determined by the children and their engagement level in the activity they are participating in. Interrupting play in order to stick to a rigid schedule shortchanges kids and the learning they could otherwise be getting.
3 Things a Child-led Classroom IS NOT:
#1 It is not an anything-goes free-for-all
Setting boundaries is OK: “You may not hurt people or property”. Preschool classrooms should be noisy and messy, but the noise and mess should serve a purpose. There is a difference between organized chaos and kids just running wild.
#2 It is not a place where play is contingent upon completion of work
Play *IS* the work!
#3 It is not without a plan
Rigid lesson plans don’t go hand-in-hand with child-led classrooms, but teachers are still attuned to where the children need support and come to class with a plan to provide it.
Have you even taken the time to analyze what child-led means to you and consider whether your classroom practices actually reflect that? What would you add or take away from the list?