Kindergarten is a place that provides children with upbringing and education, and in this way takes care of the overall development of the child. As such, the institution must take care of the realization of children's rights, which are very important for them, as well as for the whole society. A key role in direct work with children is played by the educator who creates a stimulating environment and shapes the conditions in which the child best realizes his potential. The role of the educator is to monitor the development of each individual child and, accordingly, create the necessary conditions for learning and complete development of each child. The institutional system of early and preschool upbringing and education in the Republic of Croatia is available to children from 6 months of age until they start elementary school. This paper presents the most important dimensions of the environment of institutions for early and preschool education and connects them with nurseries. The first nurseries developed in the form of nurseries that only cared for health care. With the development of pedagogy and other sciences, nurseries are gaining importance as institutions that not only take care of the child's health, but also upbringing and education. From the previous nurseries to today's nurseries, the difference is not only in the visible dimensions, but in the overall approach to the learning process and the image of the child. What is very important to emphasize is that a child who goes to nursery school explores the world around him with all his senses, so it is extremely important that educators recognize everything that the child experiences, as well as the way in which they try to communicate with their peers and the way in which they react in general. In this entire process, parents are also essential as the child's first educators, who should communicate very well with nursery educators and create quality collaborative and partnership relationships, as well as develop trust.