Let’s create an engaging small world play setup!
Creating a little small world to play with is so much fun! This was a lion small world played with by my 4 year old. She enjoyed creating stories about her lions as she acted them out.
Here’s how this small world was created:
The Small World Invitation to Play …
This beautiful small world play started with a few items placed on a table. I intentionally didn't set it up as a small world this time, rather left the items for my daughter to explore how she wished.
For this invitation to play I used:
A tub of animal figurines
A tub of lucite cubes
A selection of wooden tree pieces - mini logs and rounds
Grimms rainbow
*Important: Please note small parts as shown here are for children ages 3+.
Small world play tips for home
Here’s a few small world play tips that work for us …
Let your child choose what animal or other figurines they would like to play with.
Setting the materials out like this allowed my daughter to choose which animals she wanted to play with and how she wanted to play.
She tried to find animals that had enough figurines to represent our family. She tried the giraffes first, but only counted 4. After trying to count out a few different animals with no luck she asked for my help. The lions had the perfect amount and she even added in another family member too!
Play allows children to explore things that are important to them in their world.
Let your child explore how they wish
An invitation to play doesn’t need to always be set up as a complete small world.
Try putting out a selection of items that could be used to create a small world. We used wooden pieces, Grimms pastel rainbow and natural semi circles and lucite cubes.
Let your child decide how they would like to create their world or build it with them.
Sometimes I will set things up for them, but I have found they always enjoy creating their own worlds. We do a mix of both!
Show how open-ended toys can be played with …
Sometimes it can be a good idea to show how open ended toys, such as the rainbows can be used. This allows children to try out new ideas and feel inspired in their play in the future when they play with the same toys.
Showing the possibilities of open ended toys can be very helpful to begin with and is a great way to support your child’s play.
I showed Miss 4 how the rainbow can make a cave. She really liked this as a home for her lions. We grabbed the Grimms natural semi circles and made a stack too. Now she knows how to do this she will be able to create them herself as she plays.
Leave the materials out to explore
Offering children the opportunity to explore materials again on a different occasion can be a wonderful way to see their play develop and change over time.
We have had the same materials out for over a week now and they have been used for a farm animal small world too.
Small world play is lots of fun , with so many possibilities for play and learning too!
I hope you found an idea or two today to try or maybe something that you’re already doing.
Tag me on Instagram @our.playful.learning.journey with any small world invitations to play you feel inspired to set up. I would love to see!
Until next time, have fun learning in a playful way!
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