Loose parts are everywhere. In my previous post I specified loose parts that are easy to get a hold of. Most of the 15 people already have in their home and can easily start a great collection.
Now we dig deeper. Isn’t that what we always want for our kids no matter the age? This is how we can create “rigorous” (a word my district LOVES) learning even in a Pre-K classroom. Making learning very open-ended with varying entry points and unlimited directions to go in, I believe, is the epitome of best practice. This is exactly what loose parts do.
They are so interesting and fun for EVERYONE. When I do back to school nights, I have the children play with loose parts at the very end of the day and leave them. Then I have the parents come in and continue the play. Then I have the parents leave their work for the kids to come in the next day. It’s always a fun little exercise. This list and post will be about learning to see how they work so you can learn to see pretty much any as a loose part to add to your collection. The best about these materials is they can be in the classroom or at home and are a FANTASTIC & EFFECTIVE way to teach remotely for young children. If that is what you have to do I highly recommend helping your parents start a collection. This is at the top of my list for this new school year.
Again, the easy 15 are here, now lets list more to make the BEST list:
- Pom poms
- Popsicle sticks
- Tree cookies
- Can 6 pack covers
- Seashells
- Carpet squares
- Fake grass samples
- ANY sample of anything
- Buttons
- Beads 1
- Wooden rings
- Feathers
- Scarves
- Pipe cleaners
- Yarn
- Sequins
- Wooden spools
- Garden wire
- PVC pipes
- Beaded necklaces
- Cardboard tubing
- Cardboard pieces
- Foam Curlers
- bottle tops
- Tape inside rolls
- Mini bricks
- Fake flower petals
- Tiles balls/marbles
- Any pieces of nature you can pick up
Items that complement and help enhance exploration:
- Egg cartons and similar
- Cans Bags Any and
- Every safe kitchen utensil – ladles, spatulas, spoons, tea strainers, tongs
- Cups
- Buckets
- Small glass containers
- Trays
- Magnifying glasses
When collecting loose parts some things to think about are texture, size, use, and softness/hardness. There are so many variations of one item, try not to limit yourself to one variety. You want to ask yourself: How will light interact with this? How will water interact with this? Can you color/paint it? Can you build with it? Can you decorate with it? Will the kids want to glue it? Art collage? Will they want to pocket this? Almost anything will meet these criteria, but this will help you focus and decide if it will be a good fit for your collection.
While almost everything can be a loose part, you also do not want to collect just to collect – you want to think about where this will fit into your collection and how it might get used. Of course your idea for use can be completely different from someone else’s, but as long as you have one idea or some direction you can organize and fit it into your assembly of materials.
Of course there are so many more things that can constitute loose parts. REMEMBER the material needs to be open ended. While something like a truck can lend itself to wonderful imaginative play scenarios – the truck itself has a direction and a way it “should” be played with. If you give a child wheels, sticks, and cardboard you have the makings of a car, but it doesn’t have to be.
A Note: Again just because it is glass does not mean it’s unsafe for children. I know there are many regulations out there, but if you can use I suggest you try. So many lessons in being safe. Make sure all items you collect are child safe and clean for your age group. Since we are now in the time of COVID it is important to think about how to wash the items. Many of these items are easily washed in warm soapy water. If not sanitizing spray comes in handy.
Check out my previous post for ideas on how to store loose parts.
Many of these items can be found, but also bought. I have included links if you do not have access to some things. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure. Happy Collecting!
This list contains affiliate links. For information see my disclosures here.
List with links for items to buy if needed:
Pom Poms, Popsicle sticks, Tree cookies, Seashells, Buttons, Beads, Wooden rings, Feathers, Scarves, Pipe cleaners, Yarn, Sequins, Wooden spools, Garden wire, PVC pipes, Beaded necklaces, Cardboard tubing, Foam, Curlers, Bottle tops, Tape inside rolls , Mini bricks, Fake flower petals, Tiles, Balls/marbles, kitchen utensil, Tea strainers, Cups, Buckets, Small glass containers, Trays, Magnifying glasses
