Reused and natural materials for supporting children´s creativity

Litter and waste are the topics of Eco-Schools programme at TIS during this academic year. In our learning environment for 3-4 years old students, we also started to pay more attention to reusing and natural materials to supports children´s creativity and play skills. 

There are many resources that were once meant for somethings else but can now be used for playing. We recommend to keep an eye on the secondhand market as children love playing with real life items and there are also many toys that look like new. For example, old (mobile) phones are very popular toys in our group. Although nowadays the phone on the photo is not familiar for the children from their homes anymore, they often “make" phone calls with mommies, daddies and each other. This cool phone is bought from the secondhand store Sõbralt Sõbrale. Our lovely wooden doll bed is also from the same store.

Our “shop” and “kitchen” contain the leftovers from our homes - from the store it is possible to buy milk, juice, ketchup, salt, coffee etc. 

                                     

 
 
 

 Such items encourage children in their imaginative play (which is a very important type of play during kindergarten age) and there is no need to buy them from the toy store. Some children have also brought the stuff from their homes (e.g bottles) and it carries the message that all toys do not need to be bought from the store newly.

As far as the field of science in kindergarten is concerned, it is often said that children should have the access for sand and water play both in- and outdoors. From a second hand shop, I found a wooden table that we turned into a water play station. There are many versions of plastic water stations on the market but at the same time, it is possible to make one of yourself using a table that is no longer used as a table. Making it by yourself also gives you the opportunity to choose the size and the shape of the containers.

 
At some point I drew a control line inside the bowls with a water-proof marker to mark the maximum level of water what is wise to pour into the bowl (as children fill the bowls with water by themselves).  
 


Playing with the water might seem just like a random splashing but actually it plays a very important role in forming children´s scientific concepts and understandings. In addition to natural materials, various types of equipment such as measuring cans, funnels, sponges, tweezers, different containers can be used there. We also have one bucket with holes in it and that is a hit as it acts like a fountain when you pour water in it.

Once I read a list about the items that support children´s development in science and help to create a science-rick environment in the kindergarten (see Tu, 2006). Every now and then I go back to that list and take a look at the items we have in our room. In addition to the above-mentioned equipment (which should also the part of a science-rich environment) we have natural materials such as seaweed, seashells, stones in different colors, sizes and shapes in our indoor classroom. Trays with lichen and different types of moss are for playing with small realistic animals. Of course, we have cones, some bird feathers, animal skull, a piece of a bee comb and some droppings of a bird. 


For arts and crafts, we have a box for storing and taking different reusable and recycle materials, such as different boxes, dried flowers, carpentry leftovers and toilet paper tubes. 

 


We also have several green plants (some of these brought by our lovely parents) that children are daily taking care of. 


 Thanks to Lasita Maja OÜ, our children now have various pieces of wood - carpentry leftovers - for building and outdoor play. Children have used these for building houses, huts and garages for their cars and toys, also for making tracks when playing a game where you cannot step on the ground. We have witnessed some very nice moments of creation and cooperation. While building, children practice and develop collaboration and problem solving skills as well as their creativity and these are all important 21st century skills that need to be paying attention to from the early age.




 


References:

Tu, T. (2006). Preschool Science Environment: what is available in a preschool classroom. Early Childhood Education Journal (33), 245–251. doi: 10.1007/s10643-005-0049-8

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