Where We Live - Environmental Guidance

Imagine a world of giant chairs, high shelves, and tall people who could pick you up and move you like a sack of potatoes.  That's the world of a toddler, pre-schooler, kindergartner and even early elemtary school age child.  Now, imagine that you have no say, no control, and nothing in that world designed, set up, or created for you, your needs, your size, or your desires.  How would you feel?  Young children often feel frustrated by having to live in rooms created by, and for, adults.  Look around the living room on your knees and wonder what they see.  Are there bookshelves two feet off the ground with books that the child can access?  Are there toy drawers, or a toy box, in the "common" area of the house, like a living or family room?  Is the furniture arranged in a way that prevents a child from, say, running full speed from the kitchen, down the hall, and straight out the door that was accidentally left open?  One way to guide children without words is to arrange the environment to guide them.  Put a chair or table in the middle of a "runway" to prevent the child from running through the house.  Low shelves can provide access to their own items.  Around 3 yrs of age, depending on the child's personal developmental levels, a bottom shelf of the refrigerator can be filled with small containers containing snacks that the child can access without the help of an adult.  Cut up carrots, celery, red and yellow bellpeppers, grapes, apples, and other things can be easily grabbed and eaten up by the child and we parents don't have to lift a finger, stop what we're doing, or get out the cutting board to satisfy our "baby".  Provide places for toys in common areas because children will develop faster when they feel included and when adults interact with them on their level - which is usually the floor.  What does your house look like to a child?