Little cardboard boxes

"With nothing more than a little imagination, boxes can be transformed into forts or houses, spaceships or submarines, castles or caves. Inside a big cardboard box, a child is transported to a world of his or her own, one where anything is possible." National Toy Hall of Fame

Did you know that the humble old cardboard box is in the National Toy Hall of Fame?

And with good reason.

Cardboard boxes can engage children for hours for minimal cost and minimal impact on the planet. But more than that, playing with a cardboard box can build skills that toys with more bells and whistles can't - creativity, imagination and resourcefulness.

Cardboard boxes inspire creativity and imagination as they children build upon, transform and reinvent them.

The cardboard box takes them on adventures and helps them explore imaginary places in their minds.

Things to do with a Cardboard Box

"Children don't need a box to be anything more than a box. We didn't really need to make the box into anything, we just need to give the children the box and step back. " - Amy, Child Central Station

The best kind of play with boxes is unstructured play - giving children the opportunity to explore a versatile open-ended material without an end result in mind.

Simply put out the box/s and see where the play unfolds.

Have other fabulously open-ended materials available that the children can easily access and combine with their box play.

These might include:

• ropes
• string
• wool
• pegs
• masking tape
• scissors
• coloured markers
• glue
• play silks, scarves or lengths of material
• Smaller boxes or containers
• cardboard tubes
• empty yoghurt containers
• paper
• garden mesh
• paint
• cushions
• blankets
• carpet squares
• old sheets
• sticks or leafy branches

Loose parts, plus the time to explore them takes children's imagination and creativity off into a myriad of different directions, as these images from the wonderful The Big Play Box show so beautifully:Just like in real estate, box play can be all about location, location, location. Children may find different ways to explore boxes simply by placing them in different areas around the preschool (or home). Don't limit box play to one area - mix things up a bit.

Why not try the:

• sandpit
• digging patch
• block area
• reading area
• craft table
• home corner
• next to the easel
• mud pie kitchen

• Extra long cardboard boxes
• Design cardboard boxes
• Foldable cardboard boxes
• Lidded cardboard boxes
• Single cardboard boxes