Loose Parts

 

Loose parts create such rich learning opportunities and engaging learning environments for children. They have the capacity to provoke thinking, stir creativity and arouse curiosity. Playing with loose parts, children use so many Approaches to Learning - communicating in different ways, socialising, thinking critically and creatively, researching as they observe and find things out for themselves and developing self-management skills such as organisation.  

In The Art of Awareness, Curtis and Carter write, "Open-ended materials offered in abundance...are the perfect tools for children to use in exercising their abilities to think flexibly, imagine many possibilities, generate hypotheses and solve problems. They are simple materials, yet they invite children to use them in complex ways. (Olivia and Jake) remind us to observe the details of children's intellectual pursuits and remain open to seeing the value of their ideas. If we observe closely, many rich learning experiences will unfold before our eyes."

More theory and background to the use of loose parts can be found here in this Wakelet collection I have been curating. 

I have been interested in the connections between loose parts and play schemas. Schemas are patterns of repeated behaviour through which children play. They transcend any one "type" of play. 

Examples of types of schema seen in Kindergarten:

Trajectory - moving things, dropping them...




Positioning - lining things up and organising them in groups



Enveloping - covering objects; wrapping items up, hiding or placing them in containers

Rotating - spinning items around 

Enclosing - adding boundaries and borders

Transporting - carrying or moving items from one place to another 



Connecting - constructing, joining items together with tape, glue or parts




Transforming - experimenting with materials changing from one state to another

Orienteering - putting things in different places or positions






Beyond the schemas, the children have been engaged in role play, construction, design, problem solving, classification, experimenting, observation and so much more as they have used loose parts. 

Reflection:

What loose parts are part of your learning environments?

What benefits do you see to using loose parts?

What are some untapped benefits that could be explored further?







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