Blog - The Imagination Centre

  You may have seen on previous blogs or on our social media platforms that we talk a lot about loose parts, process art etc. All of these come under the same category of open ended play! Open ended play is play with no rules, instructions or predetermined outcome, it is the rebel of the play world! If you're anything like me, that is appealing in itself, I have always struggled not to challenge the "rules"! But maybe you are more of a rule follower where everything has it's place and purpose? Read on and I'll share why having moments of playing like a rebel is the way forward! Imagination Open ended toys such as pegs, blocks, wood slices and wobble boards don't have a prescribed purpose, therefore children have to use their imagination and engage in thinking creatively. We have no idea what the world will be like in 20 years, that is why imagination and creativity are going to be so important for our kids! Independence A jigsaw puzzle will always have an end,...

 Getting something for free sounds too good to be true, right? Wrong! What if I were to tell you that some of the best resources for your child to play with were either already in your home or you could pick them up from outside? You might be starting to see where I'm going with this so let's dive in! Christmas has just been and you may have noticed that your small person was more interested in the box and the wrapping than the present inside, it's a tale as old as time! However, there is good reason for this. The box and wrapping are totally open ended, you could play peek-a-boo, turn the box in to a car, make a doll's House. That box can be anything you want it to be, physically it is and always will be a box, but using some imagination it can be anything you want it to be and it can change too! When you think about it, if there were a toy for sale that could be anything your child wanted it to be and it was cheap as chips, you'd be pretty sold! The box is a class...