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How does spontaneous play promote children’s imagination and sense of wonder?

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Delahey Children's Centre
0-2 Babies Room
All children are creative learners and enjoy exploring different materials of art using there imagination

All children are encouraged and allowed to freely express themselves in whatever way they like; such as expensive art, Creative play, dramatic play, water play ect

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With multiple pieces of paper and a box of crayons placed on a table in the middle of the room. Child A was crawling and as they approached the table from other side of the room, they picked up a blue crayon with their left hand in a closed fist and started drawing on the paper. Child A first grabbed two coloured crayons and began to fill the whole page up with different coloured lines, Child A was focused on the paper and crayons, as time went on Child A used different colour crayons to display her imagination. Child A then collected another piece of paper, now they have two pieces of paper Infront of them. Using two pieces of paper Child A kept swapping which the pieces of paper they were drawing on. They then stopped swapping the pieces of paper for a little bit and started drawing on the first piece of paper. Child A then held two different colour crayons in both of their hands, Red in the left and Blue in the right with a closed fist. Child A started making circle like movements, child A then dropped both crayons out of there hands and crawled away.

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Child B was sitting on a chair at the table with a paint brush, paint, and a shoe box In front of them, they had been painting a shoe box for a while when I saw Child B holding the lid of the shoe box with their left hand and in the other was the paint brush. Child B was using the paint brush to dip it into the pink coloured paint, then using the brush in a closed fist to put a blob of paint on the lid they were holding. As the lid of the shoe was on an angle the paint that Child B placed was now moving down the box and fell onto the table. Child B began to laugh. Child B again repeated the same thing, filling the paint brush again with more paint to the top of the shoes box in the same place. The same thing happened again, the paint moved down the box and fell onto the table. Child B repeated this over and over again until they had enough and dropped the paint brush and moved away.

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The educator made a fresh batch of Playdough and rolled it into a ball then placed it on a table. Three children approached the table running from across the room to see what it was. Child A reached over and grabbed a piece of the playdough, Child B didn’t take any of the playdough they just said “ball”. Child C said “Taa” to Child A reaching for some playdough. Child A had two big pieces of playdough in each hand, with the left hand they were squeezing it tight and were watching it ooze out of their fingers. In the right hand Child A went to squash it onto the table and started giggling. Child C was rolling their piece of playdough on the table when an educator came along and asked, “What are you making?” Child C in response said “ball” and pointed at Child B then passed it to them.

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Each observation and activity were surrounded by sensory play building on their imagination and communication through materials of arts, such as Playdough, paint and crayons. The activities were present with no expectations but to use their imagination. Gathering observations my surroundings and using them to help influence me.

The socio-cultural and socio-behaviourist theories both explain about how children use their social experiences as an influence in their learning and development, shaping them as construct of their environments around them. The themes on the artwork all display a sense of enjoyment of indoors and outdoors and connect with outcome two. How children connect with and contribute to their worlds around them, displaying the child observing and using the environment as a learning tool. The child confidently and actively communicated and empowered their own learning linking. With outcome four children are confident and involved learners and outcome five children are effective communicators, as the children communicate and take ownership of what they are doing with the materials. The children are developing and engaging with their surroundings, developing on their fine motor movement as well as applying their imagination, which reflects in their artwork and creations. Building on their concentration skills and ability to use and reflect on their knowledge.

The post-structuralist theory believed children were able to influence their own decisions, the child creating their art influenced and directed their own play, using resources around them to express their thinking, being an influence of their surroundings and decisions. Developing on building decision making skills and taking ownership of learning. These theories contributed to my understanding of the ordinary moments as children are social constructs of their environment, using influences from their surroundings and expressing it in their learning and activities, not only do they use influences from the surroundings they use their own influences to guide their decisions and actions in anything they do.

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Child A from Observation 1 holding a crayon with a closed fist drawing on paper.

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Child B artwork from Observation 2

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Child A, Child B, Child C from observation 3 using play dough

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Children are little curiosity boxes, they want to see, touch and explore everything around them. Providing them with new experiences is a great way to encourage their questioning and help them learn where us as educators can boost their curiosity.

My question " How does spontaneous play promote children’s imagination and sense of wonder? "

"A child's world is fresh and new and beautiful, full of wonder and excitement. It is our misfortune that for most of us that clear-eyed vision, that true instinct for what is beautiful and awe-inspiring is dimmed and even lost before we reach adulthood. If I had influence with the good fairy, who is supposed to preside over the christening of all children, I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last throughout life, as an unfailing antidote against the boredom and disenchantments of later years, the sterile preoccupation with things that are artificial, the alienation from sources of our strength."1

Each child should be allowed and given the opportunity and access to resources which help encourage, support and promote sense of wonder and curiosity. In which then these following on helping to develop their cognitive development and fine motor skills.
Sensory play encourage curiosity, activities  may include
- Sand Play
- Water Play
- Finger Painting
- Nature Play
- Play Dough
Cognitive Play encourages recognition of colours, size, sorting and constructing. Activities may include
- Blocks
- Puzzles
- Matching together
- Large Lego
Pretend / Dramatic Play encourages the development of social, language, self expression and problem solving. Activities may include.
- Dress ups
- Playing with dolls
- Playing with Cars
- Playing shops
- Mud Kitchen
- Puppet Show
- Play house
Fine motor play encourages fine motor skills, hand eye coordination and development of small muscles. Activities may include.
- Scooping
- Pegging
- Puzzles
- Tongs
- Squeezing

Going back to my original question of...
"How does spontaneous play promote children’s imagination and sense of wonder?"

There isn’t really one answer I could give to you... Each child is unique and "Sparks" their own interests in different ways which is why it's important to understand the whole child. Also providing the appropriate resources and materials that helps support the child. As shown above there are many different experiences for children to help with their development.

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As stated in Plan (Provocation)
Each child should be allowed and given the opportunity and access to resources which help encourage, support and promote sense of wonder and curiosity. In which then these following on helping to develop their cognitive development and fine motor skills.
Sensory play encourage curiosity, activities  may include
- Sand Play
- Water Play
- Finger Painting
- Nature Play
- Play Dough
Cognitive Play encourages recognition of colours, size, sorting and constructing. Activities may include
- Blocks
- Puzzles
- Matching together
- Large Lego
Pretend / Dramatic Play encourages the development of social, language, self expression and problem solving. Activities may include.
- Dress ups
- Playing with dolls
- Playing with Cars
- Playing shops
- Mud Kitchen
Fine motor play encourages fine motor skills, hand eye coordination and development of small muscles. Activities may include.
- Scooping ( Using an ice cream scoop and coloured balls )
- Puzzles ( Small puzzles appropriate for babies )
- Tongs
- Squeezing ( Playdough )

I implemented these into the babies room this allowing the children to explore their sense of wonder and curiosity, observing what and how these " Sparked" the children's curiosity. Which is leading back to my original question.

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Ice Cream Scoop and Colourful Balls ( Encouraging Fine motor Skills)

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¹ Carson, Rachel. The Sense of Wonder. New York: Harper & Row, 1956

My teaching cupboard. 2022. Learning provocations. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.myteachingcupboard.com/blog/what-is-a-learning-provocation. [Accessed 21 October 2022].