why do we need Enhancements in Early ChildhoodEducation?

I can't believe that it has been a week since I have returned from my conference and trip to Atlanta, but have yet to post anything since there were so many things I want to post and discuss.  I will start with post because for some reason it continues to be something I think about following our trip.  While I spent the majority of my day in sessions (of which I also hope to share), my last day following my sessions I was able to accompany my family to the Atlanta Aquarium.  I always struggle when I go to a zoo, aquarium or such because it calls me to question whether this is a better environment for them than their natural habitats.  As you can see this is similar to my questions about quality practices in early childhood.  This will become more explicit as you read the followign.
While we were looking at the Beluga Whales, one of them began to play with and pull to the surface of the water an object connected to an according type band.   While we were watching this, the woman from the aquarium discussed how they provide "enhancements" so the whales don't get board and are challenged.  I found myself thinking that if they were in their natural environment there would be no need for "enhancements", they would just naturally occur within their daily encounters within their habitat.  Having come from numerous sessions, I immediately began to consider how we do the same thing to children.  We put them in such artificial environments that we then have to provide "enhancements" to support their engagement in the classroom.  And yet, if we just allowed them to engage with their world in meaningful ways, there would be no need for ehancements or what are often called "specials" because children would naturally engage in meaningful ways with the knowledge, content and skills of the world.  This whole idea of artificially engaging students when there is such a context for natural, meaningful and authentic means of interacting with the world proves so meaningless and wasteful.  Projects provide the context for meaningfully embedding quality learning and teaching experiences through what Slyvia Chard defines as "local" topics.  By engaging children in things of their world, we don't need enhancements, we merely need to face the world with the same inquisitiveness as that of young children as they take a simple walk around the block.