A tree stump becomes a home for woodland animals. A blue play silk winds around stones to become a river. Wooden blocks create a bridge, peg people begin a journey across it, and several pinecones suddenly transform into an entire forest.

Within a few minutes, a handful of simple materials has become a world filled with stories, problems to solve and possibilities to explore.

This is the power of combining small world play with loose parts.

Small world play gives young children an opportunity to create miniature versions of real or imaginary worlds using people, animals, habitats, buildings and open-ended materials. Children might create a woodland forest, neighbourhood, farm, polar landscape, construction site, family home or fantasy world. As the play develops, they move characters, change the landscape, build structures and create stories around what is happening.

Adding loose parts makes these experiences even more open ended. Rather than providing children with a completely finished play scene, educators can offer materials that children can arrange, combine and transform themselves.

A stone can become a mountain, table or piece of treasure. A wooden arch might become a bridge, tunnel or cave. A play silk can become water, grass, sky or a blanket. Wooden rings might become ponds, campfires, stepping stones or gathering places.

The child decides.

For early childhood educators and parents, this means a rich small world environment does not require dozens of highly themed accessories. A carefully selected collection of versatile materials can support play-based learning, imagination, storytelling, problem solving, early STEM thinking, social interaction and language development while leaving plenty of room for children's own ideas.

So, what should you include? Here are nine practical loose parts and open-ended resources for preschool small world play.

What Is Small World Play?

A child may recreate something familiar, such as a family home, childcare centre or trip to the park. Another child may build an imaginary forest filled with animals, a dinosaur world or an invented community that has never existed anywhere except in their imagination.

Small world play often combines several types of play at once. Children construct environments, use symbolic thinking, create narratives, manipulate objects and, when playing with others, negotiate shared ideas.

What begins as a simple arrangement of animals and blocks can quickly develop into a complex story. Small world play often brings several areas of learning together.

Children construct.

They pretend.

They tell stories.

They solve problems.

They negotiate with other children.

They manipulate materials.

They change their ideas.

What begins as several animals on a tray can quickly become a complex narrative:

"The bears live over here, but they can't get to the forest because the river is too big. We need a bridge."

Suddenly, language, imaginative thinking, spatial awareness and engineering have become part of the same play experience.

That is one reason small world play is such a natural fit within play-based learning. 

Why Is Small World Play Important in Early Childhood?

Small world play gives children an opportunity to explore ideas on a scale they can physically control.

Children can move the characters. They can change the landscape. They can decide what happens first and what happens next. If the story changes, they can simply move the materials and begin again.

This sense of control creates opportunities for children to experiment with ideas, relationships and stories through play.

The American Academy of Pediatrics describes pretend play as an important form of childhood play in which children experiment with roles, cooperate with other children, negotiate shared scenarios and use increasingly sophisticated language. Its clinical report also connects developmentally appropriate play more broadly with cognitive, language, social-emotional and self-regulation development.

Research into pretend play also reminds us to be careful about claiming that imaginative play directly causes every developmental benefit associated with it. A major review by Lillard and colleagues found associations between pretend play and areas such as language, narrative and emotion regulation but concluded that the evidence was not strong enough to say pretend play is uniquely responsible for these outcomes.

That distinction is valuable for educators.

Small world play is not important because placing a few animals on a tray automatically develops language or executive function. It is valuable because it creates a rich context in which children can practise those skills through meaningful play.

The environment is no longer simply something children play in.

It is something they design.

This idea aligns closely with the Theory of Loose Parts, introduced by Simon Nicholson in 1971, which proposed that environments become richer in possibility when people can manipulate and rearrange the variables within them.

More recently, a 2025 systematic review examining loose-parts-like materials in early childhood identified relationships with areas including creativity, problem solving and early mathematical thinking, while also emphasizing that direct research on loose parts is still developing.

The materials do not automatically create the learning.

They create possibilities for children to think.

Why Add Loose Parts to Small World Play?

A ready-made playset often determines much of the environment before children begin playing.

A barn is already a barn.

A road is already a road.

A plastic pond will probably remain a pond.

Loose parts leave more of those decisions to the child.

A wooden arch might become a bridge during one experience and a bear cave during another. Blue fabric can represent an ocean, river, frozen lake or sky. Stones can become mountains, food, fences, stepping stones or treasure.

The fewer answers built into the material, the more opportunities children have to create their own.

Research into loose parts is still emerging, but a 2025 systematic review of studies involving children from birth to age six found relationships between play materials similar to loose parts and areas including problem solving, creativity, early mathematics and literacy-related skills, and divergent and convergent thinking. The researchers also emphasized that evidence specifically focused on loose parts remains limited and mixed.

The practical takeaway is simple: loose parts create possibilities. What children learn depends on what they do with those possibilities, the environment around them and the interactions that happen during play.

1. Play Habitats: Give the Story Somewhere to Begin

A play habitat can be an inviting starting point for small world play because it gives children enough context to spark an idea without completing the entire environment for them.

A tree stump might suggest woodland animals. A cave could inspire bears, dinosaurs or fantasy creatures. An iceberg could lead to questions about polar animals, while a waterfall might become part of a rainforest, pond or imaginary magical world.

The important part is what happens next.

Rather than surrounding the habitat with a completely finished scene, offer additional loose parts nearby and allow children to construct the rest of the environment themselves.

A child might surround a woodland stump with pinecones and tree blocks. Another may add blue play silk beside a waterfall. Stones become paths and wooden arches become bridges.

Scholar's Choice's Play Habitats include small world landscapes designed to work with figures, natural materials, sensory play and loose parts. The assortment includes environments such as woodland, water, cave and polar-inspired settings, creating useful starting points for habitat investigations and storytelling.

Explore: Play Habitats

How Play Habitats Support Learning

Habitats can create opportunities to introduce early science concepts naturally within play. Children begin considering questions such as where animals live, what they need to survive and how different environments compare.

Instead of turning this into a quiz, educators can follow children's curiosity.

"I noticed you put the polar bear on the ice. Tell me about your idea."

This allows scientific vocabulary and knowledge to grow alongside storytelling rather than replacing it.

2. Stones, Tree Slices, Sticks and Pinecones: Build the Landscape

Natural loose parts are among the most useful materials for preschool small world play because they can represent almost anything.

A stone might become a mountain.

Tree slices become pathways or platforms.

Sticks become fences, bridges or trees.

Pinecones create a forest.

The irregularities of natural materials also add rich sensory qualities. No two stones, sticks or tree slices are identical. Children notice differences in shape, size, texture, weight and balance as they manipulate them.

Scholar's Choice's Naturals Woodland Wonders Set includes a variety of woodland-inspired natural materials such as branch pieces, bamboo elements, pinecones, wood slices, dried natural materials and leaves, while the Naturals Discovery Set combines materials including river pebbles, polished stones, pinecones, wood slices, bamboo and other natural elements. Both collections are designed for sorting, loose parts play, sensory exploration and creative investigation.

Explore: Naturals Woodland Wonders Set

Explore: Naturals Discovery Set

Try Them in Small World Play

Place several animals beside a collection of stones, wood slices and pinecones and leave much of the landscape unfinished.

One child might create a forest.

Another may build animal homes.

Someone else creates a road through the stones.

The materials are the same.

The worlds are completely different.

That is the essence of open-ended play.

3. Play Silks: Create Rivers, Grasslands, Skies and More

Few loose parts can transform an environment as quickly as a piece of fabric.

A blue play silk can flow through blocks as a river. Green becomes a meadow. A yellow silk might become sand or sunshine. A silk draped over an arch can become a cave, tent or animal shelter.

But educators do not need to assign those meanings.

Blue does not always need to represent water.

The child might decide it is the sky, a road, a blanket or something entirely unexpected.

Scholar's Choice's Primary Playsilks Set contains six colourful silk squares designed specifically for open-ended imaginative play. Their flexible, tactile quality allows them to be folded, draped, layered and transformed repeatedly.

Explore: Primary Playsilks Set of 6

Why Play Silks Work So Well

Silks add something hard loose parts cannot: movement and flexibility.

Children can hide figures underneath them, cover structures, create landscapes or connect separate areas of a small world.

This introduces sensory exploration while also encouraging symbolic thinking.

Instead of purchasing a miniature pond, children can decide whether the silk is a pond at all.

4. Wooden Blocks, Arches and Planks: Let Children Build the World

If play figures provide the characters, wooden blocks, arches and planks give children the tools to create the architecture.

Blocks become houses.

Arches become bridges and caves.

Tree blocks become forests and towers.

Planks become roads, ramps and pathways.

These materials dramatically extend small world play because children need to solve physical problems as well as imaginary ones.

The animals need a bridge, but it keeps falling.

The peg person cannot fit under the tunnel.

The house needs another wall.

The road is not long enough.

Now children are exploring length, height, stability, balance and spatial relationships because those ideas are relevant to something they are trying to accomplish.

Recent Canadian research supports this relationship between loose parts and early STEM thinking. A 2025 study found significantly more spontaneous STEM behaviours during children's play with loose parts than during play with more limited-function toys, including construction, goal-setting, mathematical thinking and problem solving.

Several Scholar's Choice resources fit naturally into this kind of small world construction.

The Earth Natural Scene Set contains varied wooden forms intended specifically for constructing and recreating landscapes, small worlds and open-ended scenes.

Explore: Earth Natural Scene Set

The Tree Blocks 36-Piece Set brings the irregular textures and forms of real wood into construction play and can be combined with other building resources.

Explore: Tree Blocks 36 pcs

The Wooden Arch and Tunnel Blocks provide arches and tunnels children can incorporate into bridges, buildings, caves, transportation routes and imaginative environments.

Explore: Wooden Arch and Tunnel Blocks

Let the Construction Problem Stay With the Child

When a bridge falls, there is often an urge to fix it.

Try waiting.

Ask:

"What are you noticing?"

"What could you change?"

"What else might work?"

When the adult does not immediately provide the answer, construction becomes an opportunity for children to develop persistence and problem-solving strategies through play.

5. Peg People: Give Children Characters for Their Stories

While peg people have a more recognizable identity than a completely abstract loose part, their simple features make them especially useful for open-ended small world storytelling.

A minimally detailed figure does not arrive with a predetermined personality, job, emotion or storyline.

Children decide.

A peg person can become a parent, friend, teacher, explorer, neighbour or imaginary character.

This flexibility creates opportunities for children to tell stories about families, communities, friendships and everyday experiences.

Representation matters within these environments too. When children encounter play people with varied skin tones, family structures and characteristics, small world play can better reflect the diversity of the children and communities around them.

Scholar's Choice offers several options that work particularly well for this purpose.

The Multicultural Peg Families feature a range of skin tones and a simple design intended for small world play, storytelling and social learning.

Explore: Multicultural Peg Families

The Little People Like Me Families provide figures in multiple sizes and skin tones with minimal facial detail, allowing children to assign their own emotions and stories. The set is designed to support open-ended storytelling and exploration of families, friendships and relationships.

Explore: Little People Like Me Families

Other possibilities include:

Ethnic Wooden People

Wood People – 40 Assorted People

How Peg People Support Language

Small world figures often create a reason for children to speak.

"She lives here."

"They need to go to the store."

"He's scared of the cave."

"This is their family."

Children narrate actions, establish relationships, assign emotions and negotiate shared stories.

The materials become a vehicle for language.

6. Translucent Loose Parts: Add Light, Colour and Imagination

Translucent loose parts can add a completely different quality to small world play.

Clear and coloured stones, translucent blocks, acrylic shapes and see-through construction pieces may become ice, water, windows, crystals, stepping stones or imaginary magical objects.

Place them on a light panel and familiar materials suddenly behave differently.

Children notice that light passes through some objects but not others. Colours overlap. Shadows change. Reflections appear.

A polar small world might incorporate translucent blue shapes as ice. An imaginary city may contain glowing windows. A fantasy landscape might be filled with colourful crystals.

The scientific exploration and imaginative story can happen at the same time.

Why Translucent Materials Are Valuable

Translucent loose parts naturally invite children to investigate:

Colour.

Transparency.

Light.

Pattern.

Symmetry.

Layering.

Shape.

Rather than creating a separate "science lesson," educators can allow these discoveries to emerge within children's ongoing small world stories.

7. Cardboard Tubes, Corks and Repurposed Materials: Make the Ordinary Extraordinary

Some of the best additions to a small world centre cost very little.

Sturdy cardboard tubes, small boxes, large corks and carefully selected repurposed containers can become remarkably versatile loose parts.

A cardboard tube might be a tunnel, tower, tree, pipeline or cave.

A cork could become a seat, table, rock or piece of food.

A box becomes a house, barn, garage or mountain.

These materials encourage an important kind of creative thinking because children learn that objects do not need to remain connected to their original purpose.

They can become something else.

This is symbolic thinking in action.

Why Repurposed Materials Belong in Open-Ended Play

Loose parts do not need to be elaborate or expensive to have learning value.

In fact, an everyday object may require more imagination because it does not look like the thing the child wants it to represent.

The child has to create the connection.

Always inspect recycled materials carefully and avoid objects with staples, sharp edges, unsafe finishes, damaged surfaces or small components that could detach.

  

8. Bowls, Baskets and Small Containers: Encourage Collecting and Transforming

Small bowls, baskets and containers can become much more than storage within small world play.

A bowl becomes a pond.

A basket becomes a bed.

A container becomes an animal shelter, boat or swimming pool.

Children may also use these pieces to gather, transport and organize their loose parts.

They might collect all the stones needed to build a road or move wooden rings from one part of the world to another.

These actions introduce early ideas about quantity, capacity and spatial relationships.

Will all the animals fit?

Which bowl is bigger?

How many stones can we carry?

Which container will hold the most?

The mathematics appears because the child has a reason to use it.

Storage Can Be Part of the Play

This is one of the useful qualities of an intentionally designed loose parts environment: the line between storage material and play material does not always need to be rigid.

A basket can hold resources when the centre is not being used and become part of the child's story once play begins.

9. Wooden Rings and Discs: One of the Most Open-Ended Additions

Wooden rings and discs are worth including in almost every loose parts collection because they can represent an extraordinary number of things.

A disc becomes a table.

A plate.

A stepping stone.

A wheel.

A pizza.

A coin.

A platform.

A ring becomes a pond.

A campfire.

An animal enclosure.

A garden.

A place for peg people to gather.

Their lack of detail is exactly what makes them so useful.

Children are not restricted by what the material looks like.

They supply the meaning themselves.

Why Simple Materials Often Create Richer Play

The less a material dictates the storyline, the more interpretive work the child may need to do.

This does not mean realistic toys have no value.

Small world play often works particularly well when recognizable characters are combined with highly open-ended environments.

The peg person provides a character.

The child decides what everything around that character means.

That balance gives children a useful starting point without completing the story for them.

What About Animals, People and Vehicles?

Animals, people and vehicles are incredibly valuable companions for small world play, although they are not always considered true loose parts because they already represent something specific.

Think of them as the characters, maybe even think of them as story starters while loose parts create the world around them.

The animals provide characters. The vehicles create movement and destinations.

A small collection of developmentally appropriate animal figures can inspire children to build habitats. Peg people may encourage homes, communities and family stories. Vehicles can generate roads, bridges, garages and destinations.

The balance is important.

If every tree, building, road, fence and landscape feature is already provided, there may be less for children to design.

Instead, try combining several recognizable figures with mostly open-ended materials.

The children then decide where the characters live and what their world looks like.

How Does Small World Play Support Language Development?

Small world play often generates language naturally because children need to communicate what is happening.

The meaning of a loose part may not be obvious to someone else. A child needs to explain:

"This is their house."

"These rocks are the mountains."

"The blue part is the river."

"The animals sleep here."

As stories grow, children may describe events, introduce characters, explain problems and sequence what happened, negotiate with peers and invent dialogue.

Pretend play with other children can require them to establish shared meanings and rules for an imaginary scenario. The American Academy of Pediatrics notes that make-believe play can encourage more sophisticated language as children communicate with play partners and create shared scenarios.

Educators can support this language without controlling the story.

Instead of asking questions with one expected answer, try:

"Tell me about your world."

"What's happening here?"

"I noticed you moved the stones. What were you thinking?"

"Tell me about what you've created."

These prompts invite children to explain their ideas in their own words.

How Does Small World Play Support Social-Emotional Learning?

When children create small worlds together, they need to negotiate more than the story.

Who gets which animal?

Where should the house go?

Can the road travel through someone else's construction?

What happens next?

Children practise listening, expressing ideas, compromising and developing shared plans.

Small world play can also provide a comfortable way to explore familiar experiences symbolically. Children may recreate going to school, caring for animals, visiting the doctor, travelling somewhere or interacting with family members.

However, educators should avoid trying to interpret every imaginary scenario as evidence of a particular feeling or experience. Often children are simply experimenting with ideas through play.

The adult's role is to observe, listen and respond sensitively when children invite us into their thinking.

How Does Small World Play Support Problem Solving?

Loose parts introduce problems that ready-made miniature environments often solve in advance.

If children want animals to cross a river, they need to create something that represents a bridge.

If the bridge collapses, another problem appears.

If a figure will not fit inside the shelter, the design needs to change.

Children may test several possibilities before finding something that works.

This creates a useful pattern of thinking:

Imagine. Try. Observe. Change. Try again.

Rather than correcting the problem immediately, educators can give children time.

Ask:

"What are you noticing?"

"What else could you try?"

"What do you think your animals need?"

The goal is not to withhold support. It is to avoid taking away the thinking opportunity before children have had the chance to investigate it.

How Do You Set Up Small World Play Without Over-Planning It?

A meaningful small world invitation does not need to look like a finished Pinterest photograph before children arrive.

In fact, leaving some of the environment unfinished can be an advantage.

Instead of creating an entire farm with every fence, road and tree already positioned, consider offering a basket containing several animals alongside blocks, stones, tree slices and fabric.

Then allow children to construct the environment.

An educator can intentionally choose materials without predetermining what the children must make.

This is the difference between preparing an invitation to play and preparing an activity with a required outcome.

The first says:

"Here are some interesting possibilities."

The second says:

"Here is what I want you to create."

For open-ended small world play, we want more of the thinking to remain with the child.

Let Small Worlds Change Over Time

One of the most valuable things educators can do is allow children to revisit their small world experiences.

You do not need to completely change the materials every week.

A collection of forest animals, wooden blocks, stones and fabric may generate completely different play after children have encountered it several times.

The first day, children may simply arrange the animals.

Later, they build shelters.

Then roads appear.

A river is introduced.

Several children begin developing a shared story.

Eventually the same materials may transform into something unrelated to the original theme.

Repeated encounters allow children's play to become more complex.

Rather than asking, "What new invitation should I create tomorrow?", educators can sometimes ask:

"What could help this idea continue?"

A Simple Preschool Small World Starter Collection

A strong small world collection does not need hundreds of pieces.

Begin with a few versatile resources:

• A play habitat or open-ended landscape piece
• Stones, tree slices, sticks and pinecones
• Play silks
• Wooden blocks, arches and planks
• Peg people
• Translucent loose parts
• Cardboard tubes, corks or repurposed materials
• Bowls, baskets and containers
• Wooden rings and discs
• A small selection of animals or vehicles

Then let children's play guide what you add next.

If you are building a preschool small world collection from the beginning, you do not need dozens of materials. Start with a thoughtful combination and a few sturdy repurposed materials. Keep the collection manageable enough for children to see what is available. As their play develops, introduce new materials based on what you observe.

Then add several developmentally appropriate people, animals or vehicles to provide characters. If children are interested in woodland animals, introduce more natural materials. If water becomes important in their stories, add blue silk or translucent pieces. If characters are constantly travelling, add planks and blocks for roads and bridges.

The children's play can help determine what comes next. The best small world environment evolves with children's thinking.

Choose Loose Parts With Safety in Mind

A good loose part is not only versatile. It must also be appropriate for the children using it.

Consider children's developmental abilities and whether they are still mouthing objects. Check materials for choking hazards, sharp edges, splinters, cracks, unsafe finishes and pieces that could detach.

Natural materials should be inspected regularly because they can deteriorate. Repurposed objects need equally careful consideration for their previous use, cleanliness and condition.

Follow manufacturer age recommendations, centre policies and applicable provincial childcare requirements.

The most beautiful small world invitation is not valuable if the materials are inappropriate for the children exploring it.

Small World Play: Tiny Worlds, Big Possibilities

Small world play may take place on a tabletop, tray or small section of the floor, but the thinking within it can be surprisingly big.

Children build.

They imagine.

They communicate.

They solve problems.

They explore relationships.

They manipulate materials.

They test ideas.

They create stories.

When loose parts are added, children gain even greater ownership because they are no longer simply moving characters through a world someone else designed.

They are creating the world themselves.

That is what makes the combination of small world play and loose parts so valuable within a play-based early childhood environment.

The goal is not to provide every possible accessory.

It is to provide possibilities.

Start with a few simple materials.

Add characters.

Give children room to build.

Observe what captures their curiosity.

Then allow the world to grow from their ideas.

Because sometimes all an imaginative learning experience needs is a wooden animal, a few stones and a child who decides:

"This is where our story begins."

Scholar's Choice currently offers a dedicated Loose Parts collection selected to encourage children's curiosity, imagination and creativity, making it a natural resource for educators looking to expand open-ended small world environments.

Explore Loose Parts at Scholar's Choice

Frequently Asked Questions About Small World Play and Loose Parts

What is small world play in early childhood?

Small world play is imaginative play where children use miniature people, animals, vehicles and open-ended materials to create environments and stories. Children may recreate familiar experiences or invent imaginary worlds while manipulating and changing the environment.

What are the best loose parts for preschool small world play?

Versatile choices include wooden rings and discs, stones, tree slices, pinecones, blocks, arches, fabric, bowls, translucent pieces, child-safe mirrors and carefully selected repurposed materials. Adding a few animals, people or vehicles gives children characters for their stories.

Why is small world play important for preschoolers?

Small world play provides a rich context for symbolic thinking, language, storytelling, problem solving, creativity and social interaction. When children use loose parts, they also make more decisions about how their environment will be designed.

How does small world play support language development?

Children often describe what materials represent, narrate events, create dialogue and negotiate shared stories. Pretend play with peers can encourage children to use increasingly sophisticated language to communicate shared ideas and scenarios.

How do loose parts make small world play more open ended?

Loose parts do not determine exactly what the environment should look like. A stone can become a mountain, food or treasure, while fabric can become water, snow or a roof. Children decide what materials represent and can change their meaning as the play develops.

How many loose parts should I put in a small world invitation?

There is no required number. Begin with a manageable selection of perhaps four to six types of loose parts plus a few figures or animals. Add materials gradually based on children's interests rather than overwhelming the play space with too many choices.

Does small world play need a theme?

No. Educators can offer familiar themes when they reflect children's interests, but small world play does not need to begin with an adult-selected theme. Open-ended materials allow children to create the setting and storyline themselves.

What is the educator's role in small world play?

Educators select safe materials, prepare an accessible environment, observe children's ideas and support thinking with thoughtful questions or additional materials when helpful. The goal is to extend children's play without taking control of the storyline.

Research References

Cankaya, O., Martin, M., & Haugen, D. (2025). The Relationship Between Children's Indoor Loose Parts Play and Cognitive Development: A Systematic Review. Journal of Intelligence, 13(5), 52. The review identified relationships between play materials resembling loose parts and several areas of cognitive development while emphasizing limitations in the current evidence.

Lillard, A. S., Lerner, M. D., Hopkins, E. J., Dore, R. A., Smith, E. D., & Palmquist, C. M. (2013). The Impact of Pretend Play on Children's Development: A Review of the Evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 139(1), 1–34. The review found associations across developmental areas while cautioning against treating pretend play as a proven unique cause of those outcomes.

Nicholson, S. (1971). How NOT to Cheat Children: The Theory of Loose Parts. Landscape Architecture, 62(1), 30–34.

Yogman, M., Garner, A., Hutchinson, J., Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Golinkoff, R. M. (2018). The Power of Play: A Pediatric Role in Enhancing Development in Young Children. Pediatrics, 142(3). The American Academy of Pediatrics clinical report was reaffirmed in January 2025.