Advice: Structure and Open-Ended Materials
isn't it ironic?
You are receiving this email because you are subscribed to the Early Childhood Playlist. New decade, new look, new attitude! For lack of a better descriptor and my love of zines in the 1990s, I’m calling these emails an early childhood zine. Let’s see where this iteration takes us! Thanks, as always, for coming along for the ride.
Hi Allie,
I'd love to know more about structures for open-ended materials. What are ways that a teacher might guide their use while also allowing for many different uses of the materials? I see sometimes teachers might provide a certain kind of mat or place to use the materials, or put certain materials together to invite particular kinds of storytelling. What do you think?
That’s the irony of open-ended materials, right? They need a bit of structure, too! I hear from so many people that kids just “won’t play” with open-ended materials they are offered. And, in a world filled with instructions on how to do things and an internet that allows us to look it up instead of trying and failing, perhaps futzing around just doesn’t come as naturally. I think you’re on the right track with thinking about structure and curating materials - and I suggest we also try and keep it simple.
I really believe that the aesthetics of offering children playful invitations are important - but not always in the way that dominates the “loose parts” visuals online. A pinterest search for loose parts is a mix of material suggestions and prompt suggestions - and many of the prompts show beautifully arranged materials that make us start thinking about clean up right from the get-go (and clean-up is an entirely different conversation that we may get into in the future!). Our focus should be simple: what objects are curious enough for children to feel drawn to explore? And how can we support that exploration?
Some of the more curated prompts (make a cake!) take interesting cues from open-ended possibilities and prompts, but have the panicked “what’s the point??” moment during planning or set up that ultimately makes it into a more structured opportunity. What those set ups often do well are: curating and choosing open-ended materials, and creating an interesting space and landscape to prompt the play.
That’s the core: in choosing some materials that spark curiosity and wonder, and offering them in an aesthetically pleasing, curious way. If this is a prompt for kids to approach on their own, I suggest choosing a few interesting, curious collections, and sorting them into small bowls or separated trays. You might put out a fabric square or a picture frame in front of each seat at a table with these items, and then choose one or two objects to put in each of those picture frames as a suggestion. That is a wordless invitation that simply says: this interesting stuff is meant to be moved around at this table!
You can always add more materials later, so err on the side of less: it also makes it easier to engage kids in clean up, which is essentially sorting. Off the top of my head, prompt I might offer:
a bowl of wooden cubes/blocks;
a bowl of popsicle sticks
some battery-powered tea lights.
A simple way to suggest manipulation and imaginative play with these objects is two wooden blocks with popsicle sticks between them like a bridge, and a candle underneath, or balanced on the popsicle sticks. It is a simple way to say: look at what these can do! And, as children will soon discover, it is far from the only thing they can do.
And, of course, remember that children do not always need us to do this for them in the world: they are constantly finding ways to interact with spaces and objects playfully and creatively. What are children using now? How can you support those explorations? Getting curious can take time. Keep at it, and notice the materials children gravitate towards: we’re doing this for them, so observation is key.
Have a follow up question? Ask away!
Tell Me More:
A provoking post on provocations.
Loose Parts: Inspiring Play in Young Children (Library / Amazon)
30 + Ways to Approach Loose Parts Play
Open-Ended Materials: Tuning Into Affordances
See you next Friday with more thoughts, ideas, and links!
Allie
