I had a great day at the center today and it truly felt like a learning environment. One of the things that has led to this moment has been an effort to make the space itself more conducive to learning. I had received some feedback from some of the learners last month that when they come to the center they don’t feel like learning and they mostly feel like playing. We recognised that while the facilitators and children are doing their best to create a learning environment the space itself doesn’t have affordances for learning to happen. The space is typically chaotic and things aren’t always where they should be.  Over the last week, we have spent time arranging the furniture and making space for all the material. The children used to sit on the floor and struggled to sit for long. We decided to create common work desks where children can be more comfortable. Just the presence of a community desk to work really had a lot of children find some work to do and spend time there. We also re-organised the files and made stationery more easily accessible. It’s amazing what a small re-arrangement of furniture can do.  Now that I reflect on it I also feel that perhaps another important factor has come from what I initially suspected was a challenge. The NGO whose premises we rent recently decided to replant all their plants. As a result of this there isn’t much space for the children to run around and play within our premises. We have been taking them to a ground nearby to facilitate play and games. While it is far and has taken up time, I think the children now see the ground as a space to run and play and the indoor environment as more of a learning space.  Removing small barriers such as comfortable seating can go a long way and is something that we should probably start putting more attention too. Perhaps if we can make the space more predictable and organised the children too will feel more comfortable and happy in it.