The provision of a safe and comfortable classroom environment is one of the most important factors toward enhancing teachers’ effectiveness with regards to achieving the desired learning goals and objectives. Such a classroom environment contributes to achievement of learning goals/objectives through enhancing student learning. However, for teachers to create such an environment, they need to understand the differences in classroom environments based on the age group of the students. Classroom environments should be designed based on the principle of age appropriateness and a developmentally appropriate curriculum. The design of the classroom also has significant impacts on the educational philosophy utilized by teachers. This paper compares and contrasts a preschool classroom and a classroom for children aged five years or more in relation to age appropriateness. This is followed by a discussion of my personal educational philosophy and how I will implement it. Part 1

A Preschool Classroom

A preschool classroom is a learning environment for children aged between 3-5 years, which is a stage where children are developing more socially as they learn real friendships and understand the causes of feelings. This environment incorporates a block area, an arts area, a science area, a play area, and a library (McCabe, 2015). Children decide which area to play in in this classroom environment at the beginning of each day. Since the classroom is divided into different segments, teachers examine the children’s creative impulses during the day and identify creative opportunities for the children’s strengths and weaknesses. The normal schooling hours for a preschool classroom is 7 hours and incorporates different learning activities.

One of the most important dimensions of appropriateness in a preschool environment is age appropriateness. Preschool classroom environments utilize the principle age appropriateness to determine learning activities, learning materials, classroom routines, play equipment/material, and furniture. While the physical space of a preschool classroom is similar to that of the toddler classroom, the learning environment differs in terms of learning activities and materials and play equipment. Teachers use this principle to determine what kind of activities, materials and routines are essential to meet the learning and developmental needs of the children. Therefore, this principle provides guidelines on developmentally appropriate practice in the classroom.

The materials in a preschool environment are divided into two major categories i.e. learning materials and play equipment/materials. The learning materials that are likely to be found in a preschool classroom include age-appropriate books, pictures of men and women in different careers, clothes, and items that represent...

On the other hand, some playing materials in this environment include dolls, puppets, and blocks. Additionally, some materials are used for both learning and playing such as dice, calendars, maps, and toys. These materials are used for different purposes including to teach social skills and scientific knowledge.
One of the activities that are likely to be found in a preschool classroom is block play, which provides gives children an opportunity for imaginative and creative play (Knopf & Welsh, 2010). Secondly, the environment incorporates music activities in which children actively participate in dancing, singing, and playing instruments. Third, children are engaged in formal learning, particularly reading and writing. Fourth, a preschool classroom is likely to be characterized with messy activities as children play with different learning materials and others like water. Finally, drawing activities are also common in a preschool classroom environment.

The first routine in a preschool classroom is play as children choose different areas to play in at the beginning of each day. The second routine is bathroom and clean up time in which children are taught on cleanliness. Third, children in a preschool classroom participate in story time, which helps them to improve on their reading and writing skills. The fourth activity in a preschool routine is snack time to help boost their energy levels. The other activity in this learning environment’s routine is nap time, which is essential for these children to rest.

An example of a suitable theme for this age group is language development, which focuses on improving their reading and writing skills. Some of the developmentally appropriate lessons for this age group include recognizing letters, learning the alphabet, and communicating using symbols or drawing. To meet the needs of advanced and special needs children, these lessons will be taught using different learning materials and activities.

A Five-Year-Old (Kindergarten Classroom)

A kindergarten classroom is a learning environment for children aged 5 years or more and is slightly different from a preschool classroom. This classroom environment is less about playing and focuses on formal learning. In this regard, the classroom environment is designed in a manner that ensures children sit still as they listen to the teacher and complete their learning activities and assignments. During this process, teachers in a kindergarten classroom use different teaching techniques for children to learn what they need to know. While the main focus of this classroom is formal learning, it also includes playing activities.

Similar to the preschool classroom, a classroom for children aged 5 and more uses the principle of age appropriateness. The use of this principle in the kindergarten classroom is to help determine developmentally appropriate learning content. Kindergarten teachers use age appropriateness principle to determine what lessons to teach children. Additionally, the principle helps to guide actions that are taken by teachers to help students embrace the concept of a formal classroom. This is primarily because this learning environment is the first formal classroom…