SE T2.02Containers and Collections (Heuristic Play)
A set time in which a small group of toddlers fills, empties, stacks, and combines large collections of everyday objects and containers, then helps put them away by kind.
Safety
- Every object must not fit the small parts test cylinder (1.25 in. × 2.25 in.); recheck before each session.
- Do not use wine corks, bottle caps, or small pompoms; they fit the small parts test cylinder.
- Any ball must be at least 5 cm across; balls under 1.75 in. (4.4 cm) are banned for children under 3 by US federal rule (16 C.F.R. 1500.18(a)(17)).
- Metal lids and tins must have rolled or taped edges with no sharp points; check before each session.
- No cords, strings, ribbons, or chains among the objects; drawstring storage bags stay with the adult, out of the children's reach.
- An adult watches for the whole session, because toddlers still mouth objects.
Presentation
- 1
Before the session, clear the floor area and put other toys away so only the heuristic play objects are out.
- 2
Check every object against the small parts test cylinder and for sharp edges, cracks, and splinters.
- 3
Set out the containers and the contents of three to five bags in separate groups across the floor, with enough objects that each child has plenty.
- 4
Invite the children in and sit quietly at the side. Do not suggest what to do, name objects repeatedly, or praise.
- 5
Watch what each child fills, empties, stacks, lines up, or bangs together. Point of interest: an object dropping into a tin with a sound, or one object fitting inside another.
- 6
Step in only to comfort a child, to stop a child from hurting another, or when a child comes to you for help.
- 7
When interest drops, and within about an hour including putting away, hold open one bag and ask for one kind at a time: "Can you find the rings?"
- 8
Thank each child for what they bring. When every bag is full, put the bags away out of reach.
Extensions, easiest to hardest
- Offer the same objects with different containers (rings with tubes, pegs with tins)
- Add one new kind of object while keeping the others the same
- Ask older toddlers to put away two kinds at once, into two bags
Control of error
The objects themselves: a ring does not fit into a narrow tube, a full tin takes no more pegs, and a stack of tins falls when it is uneven. When putting away, an object in the wrong bag looks different from the others in it.
Ready to move on when the child…
- Fills and empties containers for long periods without adult help
- Combines two kinds of objects on purpose, such as rings onto a tube or pegs into a tin
- Finds and puts away the named kind of object at the end of the session
- Lines up or groups objects by kind during play
Guide note
From Goldschmied and Jackson (2004). Unlike shelf works, heuristic play is a group session at a set time, with every child using the same collections. It does not replace the morning work period.