Putting It All Together

A boy constructs roadways with his teacher.
A boy constructs roadways with his teacher.

What happens when you put all of these essential elements of constructive play together? Play becomes much more complex and imaginative. When the child has mastered some of the basic foundational concepts and skills used in play, he has the opportunity to decide how to construct and organize the materials used in play, to problem solve which pieces will fit where appropriately, and then to participate in an imaginative play activity.

Essential Elements of Constructive Play: Using a Pretend Car Set

In this video Trevor uses a pretend car set. He has the opportunity to decide how to construct the track and his cars, problem solve appropriately which pieces will fit where, and then participate in an imaginative play activity driving his cars on the track he constructed. This video takes place years after the previous ones you have watched with the blocks and magnetos. Observe how his skills have increased over time and what skills he still needs to work on.