I have written many times that children aged 3 to 6 do not need room zoning – although this is exactly what all designers usually advise, and it is widely discussed in the media. In my opinion, this is one of the biggest mistakes. I will now explain why.
From morning till night, a child is engaged in the most important activity: play. It occupies their full attention: through play, they learn, acquire skills, and develop. And for play, a child needs maximum space – the entire room, without exception. Because absolutely everything can be involved in play: the bed, table, chair, any pieces of furniture the child can imagine. The bed transforms into a ship or a train, the chair into a horse, and a house or cave is set up under the table.
This is why zoning is meaningless. What should be done instead? You need to create a child's behavioral scenario in the room and select the necessary furniture for it, removing everything superfluous.
What does it mean to "create a scenario"? It means considering what the child loves and wants to do. Let's look at an example.
Let's imagine a four-year-old girl, Masha. What she loves:
- drawing, sculpting, doing creative activities;
- sewing doll clothes with her grandmother, and then playing with these dolls;
- reading books with her grandmother, and then "reading" them to her dolls;
- looking out the window and drawing everything that happens there.
This is the scenario – what Masha loves and can do in the room if the space is organized correctly. Now, based on this scenario, we compile a list of furniture.
Bed. Masha sleeps in it at night and during the day, so we place it where there are no drafts. You can create a niche and put the bed there – and use the niche walls to attach a canopy, which will make it cozy and interesting. Nearby, you can place a tiny bed for her favorite doll or teddy bear, with whom Masha is inseparable.
Doll corner. Since Masha loves to play with dolls, behind the bed we organize not a tiny, but a full-fledged corner: a dollhouse with a toy kitchen and doll furniture.
Small sofa by the window. We make a small sofa along the entire length of the window (you can use a wide windowsill). From it, it's convenient to look out the window, read with grandmother, and "read" to dolls – there's good lighting there. We definitely secure the window and remember about key locks so that Masha cannot open it herself. Nearby – low shelves with books that the girl can reach herself.
Creativity zone. Masha loves to draw – we place a child's easel and a craft table not far from the window so that daylight falls on the work surface (and we don't forget about artificial lighting for the evening). Nearby, we organize storage for paints, pencils, and albums. Part of the wall can be covered with graphite paint – then Masha can draw on the wall as much as she wants, and also learn letters with her grandmother.
Wardrobe. In the corner – a small wardrobe with a mirrored door. It's important that Masha can reach the hangers and shelves herself: hanging and putting away dresses without adult help.
And in the center of the room, there remains a huge free space – for any games, with or without dolls.
By organizing a children's room according to a scenario, you can create a space tailored individually to any child. And this always works better than standard zoning.
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