What are the Benefits of Block Play?

1. Imagination – Through block play children are free to follow their own ideas as they embark on a voyage of discovery or share in the development of their friends’ creations.

2. Self-expression – Children are able to express themselves through their play, creations and discoveries, a form of communication that’s particularly valuable for bilingual or non-verbal children.

3. Problem-solving – Blocks offer a great platform to develop problem-solving and reasoning skills. This can be deliberate, with children consciously working to develop a solution, or as a natural consequence of play, as they learn first-hand what does and what doesn’t work.

4. Mathematics – Due to the many shapes, sizes and colours on offer, blocks offer ample opportunity for children to practise important maths skills, covering measurement, number, symmetry, balance and estimation. By comparing shapes and sizes, creating patterns or providing measuring and weighing tools, we can can extend play and exploration.

5. physical development – Block play promotes the development of spatial awareness and develops hand-eye coordination as children reach for, lift, move and build with blocks, strengthening their fingers, hands and arms.

6. Creativity – Blocks are loose parts, meaning children are free to combine and recombine them in countless ways. Practitioners can add alternative resources such as dough, small world characters or paint and pencils to further extend opportunities for creativity.

7. Science – Through the exploration of cause and effect and experimentation, children are able to develop their problem-solving skills, test hypotheses and practise scientific reasoning. Blocks help them to become familiar with balance, weight, spatial awareness and gravity.

8. Self-esteem – Children can take risks in their block play, helping them to discover that they have independent ideas. Children experience a sense of achievement as they ‘have a go’, creating and developing something new and unique.

9. Personal, Social and Emotional Development – Block play allows children to co-construct and negotiate. They take turns, share materials and cooperate with others, forging new friendships. It also encourages self-reliance, increases attention span and develops their sense of self.

10. Communication & literacy – As children encounter new experiences through block play, there are countless opportunities for discussion and the development of new vocabulary. Social interaction with adults and peers unlocks further benefits, while using blocks can support story creation and collaborative storytelling.

Information taken from – https://www.teachearlyyears.com/learning-and-development/view/the-benefits-of-block-play

What are Loose Parts?

‘Loose Parts’ is the term, coined by architect Simon Nicholson, for open-ended materials that can be manipulated in different ways: moved, combined, taken apart or reassembled. Cardboard, bottle caps, rocks, wire, and spools are just a few examples: the possibilities are endless. By offering children loose parts to manipulate, they have an opportunity to create, work, and play on their own terms, exploring what is most interesting to them. Loose parts can be big or small, but what matters most is that they draw users in, to interact and play.

Loose parts create richer environments for children to play, giving them the resources they need to do what they need to do.

Loose parts aren’t prescriptive and offer limitless possibilities. A stick, for example, may become a fishing rod near real or imaginary water, a spurtle in a mud kitchen, a tool to nudge a football that is stuck in a tree; it can be thrown, floated, snapped, pinged, bent, hidden, added to a pile, burnt, tied to something else, split, catapulted or discarded. Static, unchanging play spaces do little for children whereas environments which can be manipulated, where things move and can be moved open worlds of possibility. At a beach, for example, there is an abundance of water, sand, stones, rocks, smells, sights, vistas and textures which enable children to be highly inventive and creative in their play.

To find out more about loose parts play and its benefits for children click on the links below.