Qualification: NCFE CACHE Level 3 Diploma for the Early Years Educator
Unit: Unit 3.4: Contribute to enabling play environments
Learning outcome: Understand the play environment
Assessment criteria: Explain what is meant by environment
The Oxford dictionary defines the word ‘environment’ as:
the conditions that affect the behavior and development of someone or something; the physical conditions that someone or something exists in
With respect to Early Years, the environment can be described as the setting itself, both indoor and outdoor areas. It can also include the cultural (e.g. the underpinning tenets of the nursery) and social (how adults and children interact) aspects of the setting, which we will explore in more depth in the next section.