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reggio inspired playdough exploration

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reggio inspired playdough exploration - wildflower ramblingsWe have been enjoying child led playdough exploration around here lately.  Mirrors, objects from nature, and small parts can make play dough an inviting time of open ended learning and creation for little ones.

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We shared 5 ways to make letters using playdough, and now we wanted to share our play time!!  I set out our playdough, along with leaves, lavender, rocks, craft sticks, tiny colorful pony beads.  And I let my children play on the floor, on our large wood board, next to the mirror in their Reggio-inspired play space.  My son was ecstatic — “I can play with it on the floor?!”  I don’t know why I hadn’t thought about this before — that he never really enjoyed playing with play dough.  Well, I had been confining his play to the kitchen table.  And who wants to sit in the place they have to sit during meal times?

Simple change the location of play and add inviting objects to play with — namely, don’t tell him he has to “make” anything — and he is a whole new boy!  He loves playdough now, and has been excelling with his imagination, mathematics learning, and spatial awareness.DSC00267 There was a quick time of sibling collaboration, which I love and encourage.  Allowing the children to guide their learning and play time has really been wonderful for John and May’s relationship.DSC00269Next, we took the playdough play time outside.  I set up two tiles, so each child had their own space.  I also set out little craft sticks, straws, little Schleich animals, little paper flowers, rocks, and flowers cut from the garden.DSC00871John loved tearing apart the playdough, so I showed him how to create shapes.DSC00904May played with the animals — and she began feeding her little bunny!DSC00875 Creating shapes with tiny balls of playdough and the mini straws, cut to different sizes.DSC00874 DSC00873DSC00876John began cutting the playdough with his craft sticks and discovered that he’d made an alligator!  Here is the alligator chomping on a stick.DSC00890 Making playdough snakes.DSC00884DSC00885A little playdough sculpture by May.  She will often play for over an hour!DSC01092

We have loved this time of creating in our home.  The children are challenged to use their imaginations when given open-ended learning and play opportunities.  Check out more of our Reggio Emilia inspired posts :

 

You can follow my Reggio Emilia Pinterest Board for more inspiration :

Follow Amy @ Wildflower Ramblings’s board Reggio-Inspired on Pinterest.


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