A peek inside a reader’s play space…
When we bought our house we had no kids (and didn’t have them in mind) and we had this strange little sun room on the side. The elderly man before us built it for his wife so that she could sit in there and enjoy the sun. We placed many different items in there over the years but became stuck with what to do with it. Once the kids were born and old enough to want to play and make a mess (which doesn’t take long) we painted it and made it into their own play space.
I added string and used pegs to hand up the continuous flow of artwork…all too good to throw away! I used hooks to hang up the costumes and created a bright workspace for them. They have a playdough area and a sensory tub and can be as messy as they want. We also change over the equipment that we place in there – at the moment I have brought in the outside play equipment as we have had a really cold winter.
It really is a great play space for all of their friends to come over and enjoy. What was once a dead space is now an great play space thanks to the kids.
Thank you Bernadine for sharing your play space with Childhood 101. You can read more about Bernadine and her family on her blog, Pretend and Move.
Do you have a family or kids play space in your home that you love (indoors or outdoors)? Submit your play space here and you too could be featured on Childhood 101.
Be sure to visit the previous Our Play Space posts for more inspiration!
Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood 101 as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.
Thank you so much for this idea! Just did this with our sun porch today because of your inspiration and the kids are LOVING it! It was just a useless space before! Great idea. =)
I’m picking up some great ideas from this Our Place series, Christie. I think the continual theme here of changing things around to keep them interested is the key. 🙂