Dinosaur Small World Play (Part 1)

Small world play. It may be a phrase you've never heard before, but it's a great branch of play that is perfect for preschoolers and kinders. 

Essentially, small world play is when children use toys (usually miniature) to recreate real life or stories. 

I got the idea for dinosaur small world play from my great friend, Katie. You can buy the kit at Walmart for $10. I have also seen dinosaurs at the dollar store. 

Supplies: bin, kinetic sand, dinosaur kit, rocks

I asked Monkey if he wanted to use his kinetic sand, playdough, rainbow beans, or water for his dinosaur world, and he chose kinetic sand. It was also his idea to grab the decorative rocks from our front hall shelf to add in. I'm always so happy when he shares his ideas for our activities because it means he is as equally invested as I am. (In this case, probably more!)

After we poured the sand into the bin, I dumped out the bin of dinosaurs and we went though everything together. I wanted to make sure Monkey knew what everything was. We didn't know the names of all the dinosaurs but thankfully, he didn't care. 

Then we set up the dinosaur world together. 

Monkey chose where to put the volcano, pond, and forest, and he put the rocks all around the pond, too. Sometimes I wish I could get into his brain and see where he is getting all this prior knowledge!!

Usually when I'm taking pictures, Monkey is super patient. He'll often grab his toy camera and take some too. Today, I had about five seconds to snap a photo because he was dying to get his hands onto the dinosaurs! 

He started out by very thoughtfully placing the dinosaurs in the bin. You can see there is one having a bath in the pond. This is an example of role play. Monkey is recreating a familiar, real-life experience in his play, and it is one important benefit of small world play. 

Soon, Monkey's dinosaurs were all a big family who were looking for something to eat. 

The dinosaurs were talking to each other ("It's just about lunch time"), developing Monkey's language skills, imagination, and creativity. Monkey is almost four (what?!) and has just begun telling us stories. A small world like this lets him pretend to be all sorts of different characters and develop a story in any direction he wants. 

For the most part, I left Monkey alone with the dinosaurs, because independent play is an extremely important skill promoted during small world play. He asked me lots of questions, especially about what dinosaurs eat, and if I noticed that he seemed a little stuck, I would sit down for a minute and help him get a different story going. 

We've had the bin out for a few days now, and Monkey now sets up the small world independently. Sometimes his world spills out onto the floor or table as well. 

There are so many possibilities for small world play. Google or Pinterest for lots of ideas. And stay tuned for Part 2 of Dinosaur Small World Play!! 

Mar