Support your child's natural curiosity and exploration through heuristic play

Children are natural born explorers. Their curiosity about everything around them and their need to touch, smell and taste everything they come across contributes to their learning and development in a big way. Heuristic play is a great tool to aid in this exploration.

We have covered the term 'heuristic play' in more detail in an earlier post. Here we will focus on easy tips for supporting heuristic play at home.

"Objects lead to exploration of weight, size, shape, textures, sound and smell provides an experience enabling them to make sense of their world and how things work." - Goldschmeid and Jackson

How do I start this off?

You could start by putting the materials around your infant when he is on his tummy exploring the objects laid out around him. Introduce baskets when your infant starts sitting unaided. For the toddler a basket or even a collection of items in a small heap would work well too.

Safety first

• Do not include items with sharp ends, broken parts, choking hazards. Watch out for toys with easily detachable small parts (e.g. eyes on a doll).

• Inspect objects to check for toxic material, ensure the paint on the items is not toxic.

• Do not store items in plastic bags or include plastic bags in the mix.

• Consider: 'Would it be ok for my child to put this in his mouth?'

• Keep an eye out to ensure that your child is safe while exploring the objects.

• Inspect the objects regularly for wear and tear, remove items that have been rendered unsafe.

Safety tip: Anything smaller than a ping pong ball or that could fit through the mouth of an old 35 mm film canister is a choking hazard. If you don't have one of those film canisters, just roll a sheet of card paper into a 35 mm diameter tube, tape it and keep it handy.

What is my role?

Your main role is that of curator and observer

• Assemble the objects, check for hazards and put the items in an accessible place for the child. A basket is a great way to present the objects.

• Avoid making any suggestions or guiding your child on how to play. Remember there is no right or wrong way here. Let your child make the decisions.

• Please do not interrupt or try to teach your child the colour or shape etc. If invited to join in, follow your child's lead; resist the impulse to take over or play instructor.

• Stay close to ensure safe play.

• Once your child has explored the baskets, engage him in tidying up.
  

What kind of objects can I use?

• Everyday objects that are easily accessible (could be commonplace household items and/or collection of natural objects - anything really that could catch the interest of your child!).

• Range of materials and textures (wood, metal, plastic, rough, smooth, springy).

• Different sizes, weights, shapes, colours.

• Rotate the objects, bring in new items depending on what sparks your child's evolving interest.

• You could include diverse cultural and seasonal items.

• If using a basket choose a low basket that facilitates easy access. Make sure that the basket does not have any sharp materials sticking out. You could even use a cardboard box, salad bowl or a plastic container.

The main purpose of heuristic play is to provide opportunity for discovery and learning through open-ended, self-directed exploration. Once you have setup the objects safely, time and space will do the rest.

Read our first post on heuristic play to know more about the benefits of heuristic play.

Looking for ideas on how to create these heuristic play baskets? Read our post on Treasure Baskets.