Rooms with Gender: Physical Environment and Play Culture in Kindergarten

This article focuses on the impact of the physical environment and construction of play culture in kindergartens. Based on a case study, we explore employees' perception of indoor physical environment and children's play. The findings revealed that gender is interwoven in the physical environments and materials. Children's play practices are associated with gender and perceived as setting different requirements for physical design. These play practices are anchored to different rooms and create a connection between rooms, zones, and gender. In additional, play practices produce and reproduce the employees' ideas of gender. The physical environment has a structural power on children's play practices. The impact of the environment on the construction of play practices makes visible the importance of reflecting on the construction of the indoor environment and gender meaning in order to contribute to using the kindergarten in an equal manner.