Overview
From the craft area to the playground, tape is a loose part that supports play, exploration, and learning. Among other things, it is a novelty that sparks interest, a tool that simplifies tasks, and a helping hand that makes things easier.
It’s a loose part that can really bring other loose parts together. It’s a must-have in craft, tinkering, and construction areas.
We always tried to make a wide variety of the stuff available for our children and the children in our family child care program.
Our daughter, Zoe, was so in to tape for a few years that she received big boxes of it as birthday presents a few times. The downside was that errant hunks of it wound up stuck to the floor, woodwork, her hair, and many other places. The upside was the hours and hours she spent creating and building with her endless supply.
Over the years, we found tape play pretty easy to manage for kids two and up. When introducing it for the first time, you’ll probably go through rolls of the stuff as kids explore its properties and get to know how it can be used. This may be seen as wasteful, but it is part of the exploratory process and use tends to taper off (for most kids) over time.
If you’re brave enough to allow it to range freely around your play space, we recommend colored painters tape. It’s a bit pricier, but it is less sticky than other varieties, so it is easier to remove from toys and people. It also comes in bright colors, which makes it easier to keep track of what’s getting enveloped.
Conclusion
We hope this post helps you embrace tape as a loose part for your play space and would love to see your tape related questions, insights, experiences, and photos in the comment section.
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Author
After nearly 30 years working in early learning programs, Tasha now devotes her time to making Explorations Early Learning and Playvolution HQ work, quilting, and taking care of her pet duck, Tape.
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Tasha Johnsonhttps://playvolutionhq.com/author/tasha-johnson/
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Tasha Johnsonhttps://playvolutionhq.com/author/tasha-johnson/
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Tasha Johnsonhttps://playvolutionhq.com/author/tasha-johnson/
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Tasha Johnsonhttps://playvolutionhq.com/author/tasha-johnson/
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Tasha Johnsonhttps://playvolutionhq.com/author/tasha-johnson/
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Tasha Johnsonhttps://playvolutionhq.com/author/tasha-johnson/
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