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Material and Supply Inventory Example.docx

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Material and Supply Inventory Blank.docx

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Material and Supply Inventory Template_Excel Spreadsheet

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Material and Supply Inventory Template_Excel Spreadsheet

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Material and Supply Inventory_ Working.xlsx

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Open Ended Materials and Loose Parts 101

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Open Ended Materials and Loose Parts 101

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Open Ended Materials and Loose Parts.pdf

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Emergency Plan Video Series for Child Care Providers

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Emergency Plan Video Series for Child Care Providers

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Written Emergency Plan Video Series for Child Care Providers

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Improve your child care program's emergency readiness by implementing a written emergency plan. Watch these videos to outline your plan today.

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MT Child Care Property Self Evaluation for Future Providers

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MT Child Care Property Self Evaluation for Future Providers

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Water Flushing Guidance for Child Care Programs

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Water Flushing Guidance for Child Care Programs

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Daycare Setup Ideas to Optimize Your Space 

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Daycare Setup Ideas to Optimize Your Space 

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One of the aspects of starting a home child care or preschool that can be the most intimidating is transforming your home into a nurturing and enriching learning environment. From home child care setup and design to materials to keeping it all within a budget, it can be a challenge to successfully convert your home into a learning space.

We often hear concerns like...
"I live in a small apartment and can't visualize how it could be a classroom" "I don't understand how I could make my living room function as both a living space for my family and a classroom"
and
"I want to do most of my program outside but I'm not sure how"
So in this post, we'll address all of these concerns. You'll also get to peek inside three Wonderschool partners' homes for setup inspiration.

Preschool setup ideas for homes of all shapes and sizes

You can turn your home into a preschool or child care no matter the shape or size. Whether you live in an apartment or single family home, there are options for your space.

Separate the space into interest areas

You'll want to start by separating your space into different interest areas. For example, we recommend starting with a block construction corner, dramatic/symbolic play corner, manipulative corner, and child sanctuary/literacy library.

You can use rugs and shelving or storage units to separate the spaces.

Storage

Storage is key to saving space and staying organized in your in-home child care. Many teachers choose to invest in movable furniture, like shelving with baskets.

Baskets give children easy access to toys and materials. They also make cleanup easy. Baskets can be placed in hidden areas like under a side table, but are still accessible when you need them.

Karen, the Owner and Head Teacher of Creative Journeys Wonderschool in Tustin, California spent her entire career working in large center-based preschools before deciding to start her own Reggio-inspired in-home program.

Karen lives in a two-bedroom apartment. Her space is smaller than any space she has ever had for a classroom before but she has done an incredible job of creating an enriching environment in her home.

She converted her living room into a learning environment using storage units with removable baskets:
Before: After:
Ottomans with built-in storage are also a great item of furniture for an in-home child care program. You can store materials inside and use the ottoman for kicking back on the sofa during off-hours.

Lastly, you can keep the space uncluttered by storing extra toys and art materials in a separate closet and switching materials out every week or two. This tactic also keeps classroom projects exciting for the kids, as they will be inspired by new materials every week or so.

Create a flexible space for teaching AND living

While some in-home preschool teachers have an extra unused space in their home to completely dedicate to their program, many use a space that doubles as their own living area.

So how can you incorporate both into one space?

Take care of your body and your needs

It's important to be sure you have a comfortable adult-sized chair for yourself. Even if you need to replace a large couch with something smaller to conserve space, make sure you bring in something for you so you aren't sitting in a low chair all day.

Linda, the Owner and Head Teacher of Little Scholars Preschool in Pleasanton, California, is an experienced educator but was unsure about starting her own program because she lives in an apartment.

When she converted her living room into a classroom, she switched out a large sectional sofa for a smaller couch she and her family can still use during off-hours.

Her family is also able to use the activity table as a coffee table when school isn't in session:
Before After: Before: After:
Maintain your personal or home's style with muted colors and natural textures

You don't have to sacrifice your personal style just because you're using the space as a child care. You don't have to use bright colors when you start an in-home preschool; you can keep your living space muted in color with natural textures that match the rest of your home.

If you decorate with neutral colors, the color in the room will come from the children and their movement instead of from the room itself.

Karen from Creative Journeys Wonderschool kept her living space neutral in decor. She used natural textures like wood throughout the space.
Before: After:
Create clear boundaries

Lastly, when thinking about the room set up for your in-home preschool or child care, remember you can keep certain areas of your home off-limits. This will allow you to have some privacy and space for yourself and your family.

If you don't have doors you can close, try hanging a curtain or using a baby gate to mark off-limits areas from the main play spaces.

You can use a different entrance from the front door as your family child care entryway. This allows for privacy for your family or other visitors who come by during non-school hours.

Have a look at the Creative Journey's entryway:
Before: After:
Design an outdoor-based environment for your in-home program

If you want to run most of your program outdoors, you can either take the kids to a nearby park or use your own back or front yard.

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Daycare Setup Ideas to Optimize Your Space | Wonderschool

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Discover practical and creative daycare room set up ideas at Wonderschool that captivate children's interest and facilitate smooth daily routines.

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Curriculum Basics DAP Curriculum and Curriculum for Specific Age Groups

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Curriculum Basics DAP Curriculum and Curriculum for Specific Age Groups

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Curriculum Basics DAP Curriculum and Curriculum for Specific Age Groups.pdf

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Creating a Child Care Environment for Success

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Creating a Child Care Environment for Success

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Creating a Child Care Environment for Success.pdf

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Many early childhood educators are likely to encounter young children who have experienced trauma on a daily basis.

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Indian Education for All Curriculum Resources 

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Indian Education for All Curriculum Resources 

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Helping Children Cope with Natural Disasters

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Helping Children Cope with Natural Disasters

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Vroom Tips™ help you do more with your shared moments. Add learning to mealtime, bathtime, bedtime, or anytime with 1,000+ fun, free activities.

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Science-backed early learning for children from birth to age 5.

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Vroom helps you add science-backed early learning moments to mealtime, bathtime, bedtime or anytime. By helping your child learn now, you get them ready for school, friends and life.

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Resources, strategies, and support for community providers.

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Your care and support can make a huge impact in the life of a young child. Sesame Street is here to provide you with resources to help bring joyful moments.

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Brain Building Tips for Early Childhood Environments 

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Brain Building Tips for Early Childhood Environments 

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A guide to evaluating ideal learning environments for young children The new publication from Trust for Learning, Measuring the Quality...

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Let's Clear the Air: Creating Eco-Friendly, Healthy Learning Environments

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Let's Clear the Air: Creating Eco-Friendly, Healthy Learning Environments

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Let's Clear the Air: Creating Eco-Friendly, Healthy Learning Environments

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Learn how to gather realistic, cost-effective strategies for reducing environmental hazards in your early learning facility and improving children's health.

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ELLO has the overarching goal of increasing the number of quality, language-rich interactions between caregivers and young children. ELLO connects with home routines and community spaces routinely accessed by families such as the grocery store, laundry mats, public transit, libraries, and outdoor spaces. Resources encourage caregivers to talk with their children and are thematically tailored to familiar routines and community settings. Intentionally embedding opportunities for conversations throughout everyday routines can empower all caregivers to realize how much they have the ability to benefit their child's life through something completely free, talking!

Download our four transportable conversation sets for embedding math language opportunities into four familiar routines.

Download our Everyday Moments to Helping Young Children Learn guide. Available as a standard PDF and printable booklet.

Laundry duties are filled with everyday language and math learning opportunities. Download our coloring page.

Featured Resources

Check out some of our newest featured resources, available by visiting the everyday resources portion of our site.

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ELLO has the overarching goal of increasing the number of quality, language-rich interactions between caregivers and young children. ELLO connects with home routines and community spaces routinely accessed by families such as the grocery store, laundry mats, public transit, libraries, and outdoor spaces.

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Indirect and Direct Transmissions: The Culprit of Disease

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Indirect and Direct Transmissions: The Culprit of Disease

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Indirect and Direct Transmissions: The Culprit of Disease

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Child Care Resources Montana

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Child Care Resources Montana

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PBS LearningMedia | Teaching Resources For Students And Teachers

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Inspire your students with thousands of free teaching resources including videos, lesson plans, and games aligned to state and national standards.