Many of you will know I have written about this before…
I have a real passion and innate desire to allow children to be free in their own creativity.
In our setting gone are the days where we create a Gruffalo cave (I’m not being funny… How many gruffalo caves have you been in? Me neither and even if I had I’m not sure what play I’d do in there?) I hold my hands up and say that I used to be that teacher that would print off a load of key words, spend hours laminating them and stick them up in “MY” role play area, and expect the Kidkets to sit with a clip board and write them down, or read them and use them in their conversation! Of course they didn’t use them… All that was happening was a big old waste of a few hours spent at the laminator!
What I do do is spend my weekends trawling round various supermarkets and shops asking for boxes so that I can provide my children with a great range of different types, sized, shaped boxes that can be whatever the heck they like!
Today was one of those days my heart felt happy, and a few goose bumps appeared on my arms! (Ok it doesn’t happen every day- but you know that feeling when it does!)
I looked over to our role play and this is what greeted me…
I literally whooped and cheered! I think I perhaps made a few children jump with fright in the process! (Oops- surely they are used to this crazy lady by now!!)
I was totally blown away by the creativity, craftsmanship and collabation that had gone into this design. Not only had they cut the paper into a flag shape, drawn the skull and cross bones, attached it to the mast (big tube) tied the mast onto the box with string! But they also presented their plan!
“We decided what we wanted it to be first” they said “So we drew it!”
And there we have it… Creativity in its simplest form!!
EYFSMatters 
This is so lovely and inspirational I’m going to give it a go !
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Thank you! Please give it a go Evie… I promise you’ll love it 😉
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Fabulous, you provide a fantastic environment for creative learning! I spied a rail with tape on in the photo. Is that an Ikea rail? If so how do you get tapes on and off to replace and if not what sort is it please? I have been looking for a solution to this issue! Thanks
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Thank you Jacqui, what lovely comments. Yep you have fab eagle eyes, it is indeed an ikea rail. The rolls just slide off when its u done with an Allen key. I try to get the biggest roles of tape I can find so I have to empty it less frequently x
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Hello, me again. How do you attatch your paper roll and does it dfo the job well please? We are going for it and are stuck with finding a rail deep enough to hold the paper roll. Do you use lining paper from DIY shop or have you found a cheaper alternative?
Thanks Jacqui
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Hi Jacqui,
Thanks so much for your message. I got the paper role holder from Ikea. I tend to order the paper roll from B&Q as any cheaper and it just rips! The kids use it all day every day to mark make. Good luck… Go for it!
Ps you will have to model how to “play” in there, but with different enhancements each week your little ones will be transported to magical worlds of imaginary play on a minute by minute journey
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