5 Heuristic Play Ideas.

Why is heuristic play important?

When I was a little girl, my grandmother sometimes used to care for me. She didn’t have a great deal of money and she certainly couldn’t afford expensive toys, but what she did have was a very resourceful nature and an innate understanding of what all children need to learn and develop. She was brought up in a crofter’s cottage in rural Scotland in a time before plastic had been invented and toys were only for the very wealthy, but she instinctively knew the secret of how to engage and motivate children.

What was her secret?

She knew that young children need adults who listen to them, sit alongside them and join them in a playful way. She understood that children learn by using all their senses. She knew the magic of heuristic play before the term had even been coined. She used natural, everyday resources that had different textures, smells, sounds, and even tastes.

She understood that children want to do the same things that adults do. We are their first role models. So she gave us interesting items that she found around her home so that we could copy her. Real life, authentic resources that captured our attention.

Can I provide heuristic play?

My grandmother’s house was the place I loved most as a child. There were no plastic pre-cast moulded toys there. Instead she would give us authentic and rather random items like pots, pans, paper, string, jelly moulds, curtain rings and lavender bags and as a result we would use our imaginations in a way that we never could with a toy that had already been pre-cast. This was so much more exciting and the beauty of it is, anyone can do the same.

Where should I start?

Here are a few ideas I have used, some of them inspired by my own grandmother. Children are naturally curious about the world around them and have a desire to explore resources but it’s important to say that the key to all of the resources below is you! Sit alongside your child and discover which items they are naturally drawn to. Try not to ask your child lots of questions but instead, talk about each item as they explore them.

Where can I get heuristic resources from?

Look around your house and you will soon see that you don’t have to spend a lot of money to provide heuristic play. Most homes will have many of the items in the activities below. Charity or thrift shops, car boot sales or pound shops are also great for collecting items at a reasonable price. You don’t need to use everything listed. Start with one idea and see how it goes. But beware - hunting for heuristic resources can be addictive once you start to realise how well it works!

Begin with the ideas below and see where it takes you.

1.      Pots and Pans -Delve into your kitchen cupboards and find a selection of pots, pans, frying pans, saucepans with lids, colanders, sieves, a pressure cooker, and even a wok if you have one. Set them out, upside down on the floor and provide a couple of wooden spoon drumsticks and cymbal pan lids. Now simply let your child explore. Cast iron, copper and aluminium pans will all have different weights and textures and so are great for little hands to explore, lift and touch. Babies and young children may want to mouth the resources and as long as they are clean, that’s fine.

Let them explore the different sounds that come from the pots and pans as they play. This activity is early science skills in action, as your child is beginning to explore the properties of the different materials. It’s also great for language development and early music making skills.

Tip:     

Remember to follow your child’s lead. They may want to bang the “drums”and enjoy the noises the pots and pans make. They may prefer to sit and feel the cool textures of the items. They may want to turn the pans over and fill them up with smaller items, or they may be at the stage where they want to pretend they are cooking and stirring. All of this is fine and can lead to lots of conversations including full and empty, favourite foods or cooking ingredients.

3.       Spoons

Still taking inspiration from the kitchen, spoons are very inviting to babies and young children so this is a lovely idea to start a heuristic resource basket. Try to collect as many different types of spoons as you can and set them out in a special box or basket. Charity shops are a good place to find unusual items that can provide high interest. Look our for:

•    wooden spoons,

•    tea spoons,

•    tablespoons,

•    porcelain measuring spoons,

•    slotted spoons

•    wooden carved love spoons

•    fish slices 

•    spatulas.

•    large ladles

•    small silver teaspoons

•    plastic baby spoons, in a variety of shapes and colours.

•    tiny dolls cutlery

           Babies and young children love to look at their reflection in a spoon and if you turn the spoon over, the reflection becomes inverted. This can be both fascinating and funny! Allow your child to explore the spoons through touch and mouthing. You can add empty containers to the spoon collection for them to stir and they can pretend to feed themselves. If they like doing this, consider adding small amounts of food to taste like pureed fruit or mashed banana.

4.       Things that roll.

Look around your home for anything that is sphere, cone or cylinder shaped. It’s surprising how many things you can find to prepare for this activity. In my home I found the items below, but if you have other interesting different objects feel free to swap them out:

•    rolling pins of various sizes

•    tins

•    cans

•    egg timer (sand timer)

•    empty cylindrical washing up bottles

•    empty plastic bottles

•    an orange

•    corks

•    lemon

•    A ball of play dough (or pastry)

•    plastic beaker

•    circular pastry cutters

 Aim to add at least one item that doesn’t roll for comparison, e.g a wooden chopping block. As in the activities above, follow your child’s lead as they explore the objects.  

This activity develops early science concepts of exploring different  materials, and early maths skills in exploring the properties of shapes but so much more will be going on as your child learns the names of lots of new objects. They will also be learning how to manipulate objects with their hands and will be using all of their senses to explore.

5. Fruit and vegetable basket

You will need a wide wicker basket ideally, with a large selection of fruits. Set the basket on the floor and allow your child to sit and explore all the fruits using their hands and mouth. Remember to give the items a wash before you start. I like to use:

•    Apples

•    Oranges

•    A lemon

•    A banana

•    An avocado pear

•    A carrot

•    A parsnip

•    A potato

•    Some sugar snap peas

•    Celery

•    A pumpkin

 You can change the basket contents according to what is in season or what is available to you but aim for some bright colour and variety to make the basket enticing. Encourage your child to look at and handle all the fruits and vegetables and see which ones they are drawn to. Smell and feel the shapes and textures and see which ones will roll.

Heuristic play is not about spending lots of money on expensive resources from catalogues. (Although there are some beautiful resources for sale out there). With just a few carefully chosen items and an adult who is engaged and interested in the play, your child will be filled with awe and wonder and will become curious to learn all about the world around them. Take the time to sit alongside them, noticing which objects pique their interest and talking to them without questioning. Too many questions can make young children feel pressured.

There is no definitive list of heuristic resources - you can use anything as long as you have risk assessed it for safety and it has sensory appeal so take inspiration from your grandparents and give it a go.