Real Tools | Day 16 – 30DaysTYP

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7
Day 8 | Day 9 | Day 10 | Day 11 | Day 12 & 13 | Day 14 | Day 15

Welcome to Day 16 (a bit late! Sorry!) of the 30 Days to Transform Your Play series! Today we’re discussing something I love – real tools for children! I have discussed the benefits of using real tools for children before.

Real tools have many uses – for pretend play, for exploration, for learning and for creating. I love Kate’s division of the examples (Play | Kitchen | Garden | Art | Creation).

Real tools provide interest, give children a sense of pride, and help them grow self-awareness and self-control. It is empowering for children to be given this level of responsibility. Giving them real tools, rather than pretend toys, honours the child’s abilities and intelligence and sends the message that they are capable and competent learners and experimenters. – Learn & Play with Real Tools for Kids

Some reading you may enjoy:

DIY Microscope Slide Kit | How we Montessori

Tinkering School Blog & TED Talk

Teaching Photography to Children

Task:

• Consider which tools would be beneficial to nurture your child’s interests
  (e.g. a telescope for an interest in space, a camera to document a project, binoculars to observe animals, etc)
• Create an exploration basket of related items (tools, books, toys, etc) relating to your child’s interest – particularly if they don’t have experience with the tools involved,
• Encourage exploration of real tools and work alongside them to make meaning with them.

Feel free to share your photos (no matter what day!) on Instagram with the hashtag #30daystyp and/or on my Facebook page.

Here is the rest of the 30 Days to Transform Your Play series!