It’s often easy to think about our children learning their basics—to read, to write, to talk–but what about how to become a balanced and emotionally-grounded person?

Have you ever looked at materials and thought, "I wish my kids would engage with that but they just don’t!"? You are not alone in that! There are so many amazing materials that can encourage learning and growth but seem hard to truly engage children. How we present those materials can be key, however, especially with younger children. 

Constructive Playthings believes that the cornerstone of early childhood education starts with STEAM. Critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity are the building blocks your students need in order to expand their knowledge.

In a school setting there comes a time of the year where weather gets colder, equipment is wet or air quality isn’t safe for children. That’s when we bring the fun indoors! I am always looking for ways to bring fun activities you can do both in and outside of the classroom because multi-purpose equipment is essential to save money and get creative with what you have. I came across these numbered ladybug bean bags and a parachute that are perfect for that. 

Manipulatives come in so many different shapes and sizes and offer up a fantastic range of learning opportunities for early childhood development. Maria Cantillana shares her experience with one of our favorite sets, the Geo Block Build! Her kids amazed us all as they used a typical manipulative set to not only work through some fundamental skills, but instinctively engaged in open-ended play-based creativity and fun!