A cardboard tube can be a telescope, a tunnel, a trumpet or a chimney — a toy telephone can only ever be a telephone. This course explores why open-ended materials are such powerful learning tools and how to introduce loose parts play safely and richly across your setting.
What you’ll learn
- What loose parts are and why open-ended materials matter for learning
- The thinking behind it: affordances, schemas and creativity
- Sourcing, selecting and checking loose parts on a budget
- Provision by age group, indoors and outdoors — including babies
- The adult’s role: when to join, when to watch, what to say
- Risk-benefit assessment and keeping loose parts play safe
On completion learners receive an NFAQ-accredited certificate as evidence for compliance and Ofsted.
