I had walked by the campus of West Chester Friends School many times before, admiring the vast, old buildings, wrought-iron fences, and open spaces for play. Recently, I had the opportunity to enter that space to share some books with a preschool class. My first stop was the office. It was a welcoming space, bright and airy and full of the light. Tall windows on every outside wall welcomed the sun. Picture books lined the wide windowsills and still more books were nestled in a magazine box next to a comfy couch. Many were titles I knew like Storm Angels, and What Is a Flower, so I felt at home. On the shelf under a low table was a basket filled with small toys – action figures, Legos, finger puppets. The walls were filled with pictures of former students on graduation day, the girls proudly holding yellow roses that matched the boys’ boutonnieres. There were pamphlets describing the school, along with books and magazines about Quaker education and philosophy, in other areas throughout the room. I took it all in and realized that this space and everything in it signified what was held to be most important here – books, play, place, peace.
As I sat on one of the comfortable upholstered couches waiting until the class was ready for me, my thoughts turned to the countless parents entering this space for the first time, like me, except that they were most likely in the process of determining a future school for their little one. This first impression, this welcoming space, certainly would have contributed to their making a positive decision.
We know how important space is in a classroom. It says so much about the way things will go and the opportunities our students will have. Every once in a while I think it is important to look around and think about what messages spaces convey to us and others whether it be at home, at school, or in the world.
As I sat on one of the comfortable upholstered couches waiting until the class was ready for me, my thoughts turned to the countless parents entering this space for the first time, like me, except that they were most likely in the process of determining a future school for their little one. This first impression, this welcoming space, certainly would have contributed to their making a positive decision.
We know how important space is in a classroom. It says so much about the way things will go and the opportunities our students will have. Every once in a while I think it is important to look around and think about what messages spaces convey to us and others whether it be at home, at school, or in the world.
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