Spatial Practices in Early Childhood Education

Spatial practices in early childhood education encompass the design, organisation and lived experience of environments that support young children’s learning and development. This field examines how physical layouts, materials and pedagogical intentions intertwine with children’s movements, interactions and embodied engagements. Key themes include the role of space as both setting and co-agent in meaning-making, the sociomaterial assemblages that arise when educators, children and artefacts converge, and the ways in which policy and architectural norms shape possibilities for autonomy, exploration and social interaction. Researchers investigate indoor and outdoor environments—from classrooms and playgrounds to galleries and natural settings—highlighting how children actively appropriate, transform and negotiate spaces to construct identities, foster creativity and enact citizenship. Global studies underline the importance of culturally responsive design, inclusive layouts and flexible arrangements that accommodate diverse needs and promote agency. Practical applications range from modular furniture and strategic zoning to materials-rich corners and landscape features that invite multisensory engagement. By foregrounding the dynamic interplay of humans and environments, spatial practice research informs evidence-based guidelines for architects, policymakers and practitioners seeking to cultivate nurturing, stimulating and equitable learning contexts for the youngest learners.

Research from Nature Portfolio

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Spatial Practices in Early Childhood Education publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in spatial practices in early childhood education across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Sociomaterial assemblage: An entangled network of human actors, materials and spatial features that jointly shape experience and meaning in learning environments.

Place-making: The dynamic process by which children and educators create, transform and attribute meaning to spaces through embodied interactions.

Embodied engagement: Children’s sensorimotor participation in environments, emphasising how physical movement and perception co-construct learning.

Discourse of governance: The ways in which language and policy texts frame environments as tools for shaping behaviour and social norms.

Affordance: The possibilities for action offered by material and spatial features, as perceived and enacted by children.

References

1. Environment as mediator – a discourse analysis of policy advice on physical environment in early childhood education. Children's Geographies (2022).
2. Toddlers’ engagements with preschool playgrounds: ethnographic insights from Sweden. Children's Geographies (2024).
3. The Entangled Intersection of Children’s and Educators’ Engagement in the Educational Environment of a Preschool. Early Childhood Education Journal (2023).