The Environment as the Third Teacher

At North Wheatley C of E Primary, we believe the environment is more than just the backdrop to learning — it is the “third teacher.” The spaces we create influence how children learn, how they feel, and how they grow as confident, capable individuals.

This idea comes from the Reggio Emilia approach, which values the learning environment as a central part of education. While its roots are in the early years, we have adapted it to benefit children across the whole primary phase.

“We place enormous value on the role of the environment as a motivating and animating force in creating spaces for relations, options and emotional and cognitive situations that produce a sense of well-being and security.”
– Loris Malaguzzi, Reggio Emilia

For us, this is about more than arranging classrooms — it’s about creating calm, purposeful, and inspiring spaces where children feel safe, valued, and ready to take on challenges. We want every child to experience an environment that supports them to “be the best me I can be.”

What This Looks Like at North Wheatley

We design and care for our learning environments by:

• Being purposeful – every decision about our classrooms and shared spaces has a clear reason behind it.

• Looking through children’s eyes – designing spaces that meet their needs and spark their curiosity.

• Reviewing regularly – making sure our environments continue to support learning and well-being.

• Creating calm spaces – every classroom includes areas for reading, reflection, and collaboration.

• Encouraging respect and responsibility – keeping our school tidy, organised, and free from clutter.

• Promoting independence – providing accessible resources so children can make choices in their learning.

• Choosing calming colours – using a muted palette to avoid sensory overload and help learning shine.

• Listening to pupils – involving children in the design and decision-making so they feel ownership and pride.

• Embedding the ethos across school – ensuring the same care and thought is applied to all areas, not just classrooms.

Why It Matters

We see daily how a calm, well-organised environment helps children thrive — and this is supported by research. The Clever Classrooms report by the University of Salford found that:

“The physical characteristics of primary schools do impact on pupils’ learning progress in reading, writing and mathematics. This impact is significant, explaining 16% of the variation in overall progress over a year.”

This evidence highlights what we believe at North Wheatley: when children learn in spaces that are nurturing, purposeful, and inspiring, they achieve more — academically, socially, and emotionally.