The Early Years group were exploring wood chips along with various real kitchen utensils. The loose parts in this play were kitchen utensils and wood chips.
Through observation of the play, I noticed that the children were using the wood chips to represent food and drink.
The children offered me their creations:
Pancakes with chocolate eggs
Smoky coffee
Hot and spicy noodles
Egg omelette
Rainbow cakes
Pumpkin cookies
This led to conversation about the children’s home lives:
“My Dad drinks smoky coffee”
” I bake rainbow cakes with Grandma”
“I use chopsticks to eat spicy noodles”
The experience reminded me of how Loose Parts allow children to represent culture and diversity in their home lives.
Learning Discoveries 