The Voice of Early Childhood5 Jul 2024

Brain development & the environment: Astrea Academy Trust project

In this episode Sarah Mason from The Hill Primary School, Astrea Academy Trust, shares with us the journey she and her team have been on in developing their learning environment in line with understanding the way children's brain develops. This was part of the Brain-SET Learning Environments project which Astrea Academy Trust embarked on, looking at classroom design through the lens of children's brain development.

This year-long project focused on enabling children to feel emotionally secure and ready for learning, by looking at classroom design in terms of lighting, noise, the use of colour, furniture layout and more. The overall aim was to really bring calm into children's lives, which is particularly important for areas of disadvantage which Astrea Academy Trust schools work within.

To find out more about the project, see videos and photos of the environments and hear practitioner interviews, visit: https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/projects/astrea-academy-trust-project

Episode break down:

00:00 – Understanding the Brain-SET project
03:50 – The effect of lighting on the children
05:05 – Being in tune with the environment
06:20 – Aligning the environment with the needs of the brain
10:30 – Understanding the 'why' behind your practice
14:20 – Are we providing enough calming zones outdoors?
18:10 – What is 'way-finding'
21:00 – Sustained focused play
24:00 – Intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation
26:00 – The impact of the project on educators

For more episodes visit The Voice of Early Childhood website: https://www.thevoiceofearlychildhood.com

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