Play made simple
Photos courtesy of Nicole Roccaro
If you and your crew attended Greenport’s Sound & Skate Festival, Brick Cove’s event series, or Group for the East End’s recycled materials workshops chances are you’ve met Nicole Roccaro, the force behind Naturally Curious Children and Artfully Long Island. As an early childhood educator, curriculum writer, and process art teacher, Nicole has spent over 20 years in the industry passionately simplifying play-based learning with a focus on natural elements and loose parts.
“With all of the jungle gyms, beach toys, and ride-on cars out there, it can be overwhelming to know what our kids actually need,” Nicole shared. “Sometimes, it’s truly all right there for you when you step into nature — dirt or sand, rocks, sticks, flowers, leaves are really all they need. With these items, they can play pretend, develop math and language skills, tell stories, experiment, and even create art. Simple play in nature allows children to use their imagination and their senses, make connections and problem solve, and work on all areas of development: cognitive, motor, language, social-emotional.”
The Materials
You know the giant bucket of shells, rocks, and sticks your kids force you to bring home with you each time you leave the beach or a local hike? Well, here’s your invitation to put them to good use.
“Using everyday items, natural materials, and open-ended toys encourages creativity more than a ‘static’ environment or toys that have a singular or defined use. As the summer winds down, it’s a great time to give it [play with natural items] a try and see how it goes, or challenge yourselves to find new ways to play and create with what nature has provided us.” Nicole encouraged.
In addition to natural materials, Nicole also focuses heavily on using recycled or thrifted materials.
“One of my most important goals in my business and practice is to use recycled or thrifted materials as much as possible,” said Nicole. “I shop a lot at thrift stores for items to add to our natural play, but my favorite resources are online second-hand art supply stores. Some that I purchase from the most are Thistle Creative Reuse, Nantucket Creative Reuse, Cats Eye Creative Reuse, and Make & Mend.”
Another favorite, your own trash!
“Cardboard, brown paper, bottle caps, egg cartons, jars, bread bag tags… so many wonderful materials get thrown away. If you start to look at things you’re about to toss and wonder if they could be glued down, stacked, sorted, or painted, you will find you are saving a lot of things,” Nicole told us.
The Setup
Setting up indoor and outdoor prompts for your children to engage with is easier than it may sound and doesn’t need to be fussy or over-organized. Along with natural materials, adding pots and pans, large spoons or ladles, egg cartons for collecting, baskets, mirrors, scrub brushes, trays, magnifying glasses, paintbrushes, and water to the mix can create hours of open-ended play for kids of all ages.
“Our most successful prompt was setting up a mud pit in a corner of our backyard. My kids loved the mud pit from toddlerhood to about age 9,” shared Nicole. “Another favorite prompt is leaving a big mirror out on the ground or on a table with a collection of natural items like pinecones or twigs. This is great for all ages but you know your child best, if they might smash a rock onto the mirror, maybe hold off or only use soft items like grass or leaves.”
Process art play is easy to bring indoors on those days when your crew prefers cozying up in their pajamas. “Using some big rocks, a bowl of water, and different size paintbrushes is a very meditative form of process art. Kids of all ages like this one and as an adult, I find it very relaxing, as well,” said Nicole.
Nicole’s Offerings
Nicole currently works with families doing what she loves: creating! From curating and creating art kits and party favors to in-home play space consulting, Nicole infuses her expertise into everything that she does.
“From play space set up to choosing art supplies, I am happy to help you problem solve or build a space for your child where they can explore or create,” Nicole told us. “We can discuss how to be intentional with toys and your child’s spaces, how to encourage independent play, or how to incorporate sensory play into your home.”
For more simple, natural play ideas follow Nicole on social media at @naturallycuriouschildren. You can also find information on Nicole’s local classes at @artfully.longisland. Her pre-made and custom art kits can be purchased here.