Heuristic play is a form of self-motivated and purposeful sensory play with loose parts involving the exploration, investigation, and manipulation of objects in an effort to better understand them. In heuristic play, children explore with their senses of touch, vision, taste, hearing, and olfaction. The term was coined by Elinor Goldschmied (1910-2009), a pioneer in the care of infants and young children, in her book Infants At Work.The Book‘>² According to one source, “Elinor believed that children should be able to have access to any type of natural material even if its shape led adults to gasp out loud.” Describing a video of Goldschmied working with a 6-month-old involved in heuristic play, the source writes:

I remember watching with a group of students a video of her [Elinor Goldschmied] allowing a baby of six months to select a metallic egg whisk from the basket which he promptly stuck in his mouth. There was no danger. His mother and Elinor were vigilant. What they offered instead, was the time, safety and space to explore an object using the tools at his disposal.

He was six months old. He explored mainly by using his mouth and tongue as a sensory detector. He had acquired the ability to grasp and bring objects to his mouth and therefore, his eyes and nose and ears. He discovered the unique taste of metal. He discovered the feel of cold, virtually unyielding substance formed in a particular shape to be used for a specific function.

He explored the properties of the whisk until he had had enough; then he put it down and picked up a heavy glass ball. Again there were gasps from the audience. It was evident that no one had considered that, provided adults kept a watchful eye on proceedings, there was no danger. Their understanding of children’s development at six months had been forgotten. They seemed to assume that the child would throw the ball and either kill himself or any other child who happened to be passing.

Nothing like this could have happened. No child at this age can throw – objects are released from their hands when something else catches their attention. The height from a sitting baby’s hands to a padded floor is very short so there was no danger even if he had wanted to do such a bizarre thing.³

Note: If you’re seeking ideas for heuristic play materials, you’ll find an ever-growing collection of loose parts ideas here.

More About Heuristic Play

I was unable to locate the video described above, but this 1991 video Goldschmied helped to create provides some delightful examples of children involved in heuristic play:

Final Heuristic Play Thoughts

Some sources I looked at in creating this post claimed heuristic play involved “everyday objects, not “toys”– pine cones, spoons, or thread spools, not baby dolls, trucks, or Batman action figures. We here at Playvolution HQ disagree. The provenance of the item is not relevant, the exploratory process is what matters. Heuristic play is about supporting curiosity, wonder, imagination, and free exploration⁴ whether the item was picked up off the forest floor, pulled from a kitchen drawer, or purchased in the local big box store’s toy department.

Exploring materials through heuristic play is something older children do as well. For example, plop a dozen milk crates onto a preschool playground populated with kids who have never played with the things, and you’ll see heuristic play. Before the children start using them in their power play, heavy work, or dramatic play, they need to understand the materials–getting a sense of how heavy they are, how sturdy they are, and more.

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Browse Trainings

1. Her Obituary
2. The Book
3. https://thetcj.org/early-years/elinor-goldschmied-pioneer-of-treasure-baskets-heuristic-play-and-the-key-person-system
4. https://projectplay.nz/pages/what-is-heuristic-play