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Fiona: Let’s go back to the purpose of why calm corners are set up in the first place. It’s part of the classroom environment and it’s a very important feature of the classroom that the children would know of and they would want to go to naturally. The original intent would be to help children to manage and regulate their big emotions. When they feel big emotions, and they need that space to get away from their class, their big group of the rest of their peers, it’s a space set up for them. 

There are so many suggestions coming from our participants of what would be placed in the calm corners, mentioning various sensory-related tools and visual charts to help the children identify the emotions that they may be feeling and how these tools can be used correspondingly to help manage and regulate that emotion. However, if the concern is that children would just go to the calm corner themselves and then not follow the class activities — then the educator needs to first learn about the children. They need to understand the children’s needs, be able to identify and figure out the dynamic of the class of the children. With that, you can then decide on the rules for the children. Make it clear to the children when they are allowed to go, and if the space is tight, then you can also tell the children the number of children that are allowed to use that calm corner at one time.

Abhi: That’s a great question, and sometimes that’s a real concern. What strategies work in a small group may not be applicable or cannot be easily translated into a large group. My advice would be to first have the conversation with the EIPIC teacher to try to understand the why and the what. Ask questions like, “Why are these suggestions coming through?” “What is the purpose and the intent?” 

Then, take things that are applicable to your context and have those discussions with the EIPIC teacher. There is sometimes no right answer or one simple solution. A solution is something that is collaboratively formed could be the answer. What the EIPIC teacher knows to work is one strategy, but early childhood educators have different strengths in classroom management in a large group setting. Instead of just applying what is given to you, try to marry these two ideas together and collaborate to form a solution.

Fiona: I would assume that the children who are really active in your class behave this way because they really have a lot of energy in them, and so they require a lot of movement. 

Consider the activities that you have in a day for your class of children and look at routines that would include certain movement type or movement-related activities. For example, would going out for a playground activity be one of them? Would there be outdoor or movement-related activities embedded in your lessons and activities that you have set up for the day? That would help a lot in terms of spending the children’s energy. Once they have spent their energy, you would see that they would calm down a bit more. It’s offering an outlet for them to spend their energy so that when there are activities that require them to settle down, they may be more ready to do so. 

Abhi: One other consideration is to start with outdoor play first if it’s possible. Talk to your principal and your centre leaders to arrange a schedule where before learning there is an outdoor playtime, for children to go and expend that energy. When the body is ready, the mind is ready. You will have lesser reinforcement struggles when you come back into the classroom. They have expended that energy, there’s the blood flowing to the brain, and they are more open and eager to learn when you come back inside the classroom. 

Fiona: It is commendable that as an educator, you have attempted various strategies to support a child who seems to require additional support, in your class. 

Some questions to ask/ reflect: What are you looking for in terms of the child’s progression? Are the expectations within the child’s zone of proximal development? What are the scaffolding methods/ strategies you have used and how have they helped or not helped in the child’s acquiring of new skills? 

Application of strategies require trial and error to identify which are effective and most importantly, consistency in its application. A child requires many opportunities to practice working on attaining new skills over time (e.g. across different routines), place (e.g. centre and home) and with different people (e.g. educators, peers and family members). 

Speak to a fellow colleague/ mentor who knows the child and have a discussion of the above so you will not have to feel alone in your quest to support this child. All the best! 

Abhi: The first step is to understand what the child may be communicating through this behaviour. We can use the Antecedent-Behaviour-Consequence (ABC) strategy to reflect on what happened before, during, and after the incident. It would also be helpful to speak with the family to understand how the child responds when overstimulated or upset at home. If going under a table or hiding in a quiet space is a familiar calming strategy for the child, the centre and family can work together to introduce safer and more appropriate alternatives over time.  

The next step is to review the calm corner itself. Does it provide the kind of calm space the child is seeking? Is it too close to a busy area? Is it overcrowded, too visible, or located along a pathway? Sometimes children avoid the calm corner because it does not feel calm or private enough for them. A small environmental adjustment may help.

Abhi: Yes, it can be appropriate to give the child some space to calm down, as long as the child is safe and an adult is monitoring from a suitable distance. However, it is not advisable to leave the child alone for a prolonged period without adult support. Some children may need quiet space first, but they may still need an adult nearby to co-regulate, reassure them, or help them return to the group when they are ready. If the child has already been taught calming strategies and you can observe that they are using them independently, giving some space can be appropriate. The educator can check in gently after 5-10 minutes and support the child’s return to the classroom routine in a calm and non-pressuring way. 

The goal is not to force the child to use the calm corner, but to understand what kind of calming space the child is seeking, ensure safety, and gradually teach regulation strategies that the child can use more independently. 

Abhi: Experienced educators can continue to grow by sharing their practice with others and taking on a mentoring or coaching role within the centre. One of the best ways to deepen our own practice is to support others in developing their own skills. For example, experienced educators could mentor colleagues who are newer to inclusive practice, model strategies in the classroom, or lead short sharing sessions on what has worked for them. Through this process, they are not only supporting others but also reflecting more deeply on their own decisions, language, and strategies. 

This also helps to build a stronger culture of inclusion within the centre. Over time, experienced educators can become advocates or champions for inclusive practice, helping inclusion become part of the centre’s everyday routines rather than something carried by only one or two people. 

*Click here to explore NIEC’s CPD courses on Special Needs and Inclusive Practice.