Natural Loose Parts (Creativity & Equity)

Let's talk about natural loose parts! Here are some simple ideas for engaging your young children with natural loose parts that you can easily find/collect/organize right from your neighborhood.

These were collected by my 7-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son this morning on our morning walk. They plan on spending the day making fairy houses and a fairy village with all the natural parts. We've touched on math, science, and let's not forget engineering in our planning!

The best part about natural loose parts is the endless possibilities that invite creativity and equity within playgroups of children. A stick can be (straight out of my kid's mouths).... a bone, propeller on a plane, swing set, piece to a house, an arrow for a bow and arrow, lamp post, slide, hammock, stop signs, people, pretzels and the list goes on and on!

Here is a great article that explains all the amazing benefits of including natural (and not natural) loose parts into your child's playtime: Click HERE.