SPACE MATTERS: There is substantial research on the importance of the physical environment on children’s social, emotional and cognitive development.

ACCESSIBILITY: The physical environment is often a significant barrier to full participation in education for children with special needs. If children with special needs cannot enroll in ECE or OST programs, they cannot benefit from the learning, development, and enrichment opportunities that these programs offer.

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ACOUSTICS: Noisy conditions are stressful for all occupants of the space and interfere with language development and reading skills and children’s concentration. School age children need quiet spaces for homework and small group activities. 

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NATURAL PLAY SPACE MATTERS: There is growing interest in natural outdoor play spaces for children.  Some of it was started by Richard Louv’s book, Last Child in the Woods, published in 2005. He coined the term “nature deficit disorder” – a phrase that resonated with parents and educators across the country.  

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  The Room To Grow: Improving Infant
  and Toddler Environments Webinars are now available online!
See how other infant-toddler educators have created high quality, interesting environments for their infants and toddlers. The webinars will share eight key characteristics of high quality indoor and outdoor infant toddler spaces.
Click here!

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 Why Quality Space Matters -
 See for Yourself!
Click here to see and hear from three programs.
Click here to view these videos on CIF's new YouTube Channel!

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The Barr Foundation explores the Massachusetts Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) and what it actually means for young children and their families.
Click here to read the article entitled "A Big Leap for Quality in Early Education" by the Barr Foundation.
Click here for more information about QRIS on the MA Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) website.

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CIF ANNOUNCES THE RELEASE OF THE FACILITIES INVENTORY REPORTS
The "Building an Infrastructure for Quality An Inventory of Early Childhood Education and Out-of-School Time Facilities in Massachusetts" report is the first-ever inventory of early childhood education and out-of-school time facilities in Massachusetts or anywhere in the country. CLICK HERE for the full report, the Executive Summary, the Program Facility Standards, The Facilities Inventory Project Data Report and The Facilities Inventory Project Boston Data Report.   

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