Loose Parts, STEAM, and the Missing Letter

If you've been around these blog parts for a while, you're already well versed in my love of loose parts and small world play. I truly have a passion for the use of loose parts in the home and classroom from infancy all the way up through adulthood. (Yes, I play, too!) So often when we talk about loose parts, we talk about their use in STEM/STEAM activities as children develop science, technology, engineering, art and math skills through open ended exploration of materials both nature and man-made. Everybody loves a great acronym, but I think a letter was left out of the mix when it comes to loose parts play and STEAM: L! Literacy and Language Development are integral components of early childhood development and loose parts play is a fabulous way to foster these skills.

Read all about it here!

I have written on the topic of Loose Parts Play and Literacy before and you can read all about it (and so much more!) at Fantastic Fun and Learning. Early literacy through intentionally set up play spaces and activities is a topic near and dear to my heart. Today, however, I am focusing more on the way that children naturally develop language and early literacy skills (from as young as infancy) through meaningful play opportunities with loose parts.

Have you ever observed young children at play and noticed the way that they will hold a running monologue of what they are doing and what is happening? As they build, tinker, create and later, engage in symbolic play opportunities, children use language to describe their play and thought processes. Earlier on, this typically manifests in the third person narrative and later on, often develops into talking through characters and their experiences. What young children may not realize is that these are the beginnings of storytelling (and down the line, writing) skills! Our little players are indeed young authors! Encouraging them in this process can truly ignite a lifelong love of language, literacy and learning overall and an environment rich in loose parts and open ended play materials can support this.

Ok, but now what? If you're newer to the loose parts scene, beginning can always feel overwhelming and I want to quell that anxiety as much as possible. You don't need to go out and buy a lot or dig through your home and set out a whole lot of materials. The "loose" in loose parts is not synonymous with "little" or "lots and lots." In fact, particularly for younger ones, just a few different materials at a time can be enough to explore and tinker and ignite the imagination. Too many materials can be overstimulating and overwhelming. Many times we also mistakenly assume that loose parts refers to small objects that the very young cannot safely explore and this, too, is a misconception. Large, movable objects like recycled cardboard tubes, fabrics and silks, boxes and blocks can all make fabulous loose parts for very young players. 

Elements of color, sound, texture, position (whether it is high up like these scarves or within reach like these sensory balls and blocks) all spark curiosity and natural exploration. Even pre-verbal infants and young toddlers are developing early language skills as they explore, tinker and create with these objects. The addition of our own conversation in support of their play helps to enrich the experience with language connection.

Pace and Process: Our agenda with truly open ended loose parts play is different from that of an intentionally set up play invitation. Certainly, both of these scenarios have value. However, in open ended exploration, the player is the maker and creator. The objects he chooses may not "go together" or make sense to us, but this is his experience. The order of operations may also confound our adult minds, but it is assisting in developing the child's mind and critical thought processes.




For instance, just last night S was sifting through our STEAM Cart for some loose parts to tinker with. He came over to the art center with about 4 or 5 large wooden craft sticks and asked if he could use some tape on them. Generally speaking the definition of loose parts play excludes tape/glue and leaves opportunity for continued use, but I totally support the addition of these items when it's asked for. I asked S what he was making and he said he wasn't sure yet. I was curious to observe his process. He taped the wooden sticks together, binding them in four locations with masking tape. From there, he went back to the drawers and chose a paper straw. "Can I tape one of these on?" he asked. "Sure!" I answered, eager to see what was next. He taped the straw on, noticing that the sticks were made from wood and asking what the straw was made from. I told him it was made from very thick paper. From there, he held the contraption sideways against his lips to blow from the straw and announced he'd made a flute! He blew and hummed through the hole of his flute and I was simply astounded at the process. He didn't go into the process with a plan to make a flute, rather, he chose materials, put them together and it turned out in the end to be a flute. As adults, we often think in our adult mindset that a plan comes first, then a process, then a result. With children, this is not necessarily so. And for S, this play opportunity to use the materials he chose in the way he wanted and the order of operations he followed all supported his ability to problem solve and create his own story and process.

Even the process of building and woodworking becomes an opportunity for building language and sequencing as S navigates the process of taking loose materials and turning them into something else.

 Here, he decided to make a bed that was later used for Goldilocks so she would not need to
sleep in the beds of the Three Bears.

Look Who's Talking: When selecting loose parts, I tend to love natural options. Even taking children out into nature to gather and collect pine cones, seed pods, leaves, sticks, rocks and wood pieces can ignite storytelling opportunities. Children create their own props for stories and dictate their processes as they navigate the way these work together. Perhaps something is not functioning in its intended manner, and the child must reconstruct in a new way. Language supports them and dictates the process. It helps them to problem solve and to navigate elements of their stories. We can further support the process by acknowledging that they are storytellers and giving value to this experience. We can also try as much as possible to refrain from too much of our own dialogue and input and to make room for theirs. It is so tempting as adults to ask "what are you making?" or "what is next?" and while our intentions are the very best, we can inadvertently give forth the idea that all processes of play are product oriented and that time is limited.

Time is of the Essence: Maria Montessori wrote about a concept called false fatigue in play, during which a child will seem disengaged with their activity and we [falsely] assume this means they are done and need a new activity. Rather, this is a period of transition before which play reaches a new level--a pause, so to speak. I think that one of the greatest detriments to the pace of the current early childhood classroom is the loss of open ended time for activities, play included. We have so many opportunities and activities for children to explore that everything is on a clock; our clock. First there's table time and then it's time for Circle and look, now it's snack time and we have to go outside. We are also set to this pace as adults and we often assume that it is what our children need. We are certain that their young attention spans cannot stay with one space or activity for longer than a few minutes. And while I do agree that "sitting still" is not a developmentally appropriate expectation, staying with an activity that truly engages a child is an opportunity that is often lost in our culture.

Resisting the Urge to Rescue: More recently having been on Winter Break from school, S had the opportunity to experience boredom. When I say "boredom," I mean, unfilled space and time. Parts of our day that were not automatically filled with an activity for him, but rather a time he had an opportunity to choose his own. It was a struggle! He often needed to sit for a few minutes before deciding what to do. (These moments usually came after one activity had ended and before another began.) Sometimes I would give a suggestion and other times, I did not. I would assure him gently that with a space full of things to use and a mind full of ideas on how to use them, I knew he would come up with something great. And that it was OK to sit a minute with the thoughts about it. I resisted the urge to "solve his problem," because truly boredom is not a problem; it's an opportunity. We think of boredom as a feeling that is very uncomfortable and it can be, but it can also be OK to sit back and think and we need to assure our children that this is so. S would indeed sit on the couch for a few minutes and then move forward.
Another challenge that frequently arises in our home is one in which S (or Y) has an idea of something he wants to use in his play and it is either put away somewhere else or not in our current rotation. We are short on space here and it used to always be that I felt compelled then to go get what the boys were asking for and rescue them from the discomfort of not having it right away, or, heaven forbid, having to solve the problem another way. More recently, I decided to say instead that I could not get it right away and ask what else could be used. Naturally, nearly seamlessly, the boys both gravitated toward what was available in our STEAM Cart, art shelves or play area and use the materials in novel ways to support their play schemas. S was able to use straws and metal hex nuts to make birthday candles on a cake Y made from playdough to celebrate a fictional character's birthday party. We did not need to immediately go upstairs and get the plastic cupcake dishes out and the set of birthday candles we use for sensory play.

I credit a lot of my boys' problem solving skills to the opportunities they've had to play with open ended loose parts. They create small worlds and intricate stories. They solve problems for and through their characters and thereby solve problems for themselves. And while much of the experience does touch upon those other letters in STEM/STEAM, I also know that they are gaining so much in the area of language and literacy development. Sometimes I might offer to take down dictation of their small world scenes and stories or the process by which they built or created something. In this way, they come to connect the rich value of language with that of written word. Sometimes I do this through photos and we hang them at child level for them to see their play and creation experiences. I don't need to tell them that I am giving them the gift of becoming literate (they can thank me later). The greatest gift we can give our children at this stage and well beyond it is the opportunity for unrestricted, self-led exploration.

Happy Playing!