Kanishka Pariani Shares Creative Play-Based Ideas For Educators

We're glad Play-based learning is getting popular and has become one of the significant ways to give children that perfect fun while learning. If you, too, are looking for easy ways to make learning entertaining for your little pupils, this one is for you. 

Meet Kanishka Pariani, a certified Early Childhood Educator with an experience of 15 years and founder of Kids Palette, Mumbai. She has been producing craft videos and curating various art-related activities to come up with interactive learning sessions for kids. In a conversation with ScooNews, she revealed a few interesting ideas that Early Childhood Educators can get inspired from.

“I use items that are easily available around us, for example, cotton, wax colors, sticks, dry leaves, sequin, buttons, old magazine, etc. Other than this, one can also involve products like busy bags, playdough and craft kits which are easily available in the market and help stimulate skills required for the overall development of a toddler,” shares Kanishka. 

During the lockdown, when teachers can only reach their students with the help of the internet, she’s using her social media pages to share exciting ideas with fellow educators and parents for kids quarantined at home. “Something as simple as cutting a picture from the newspaper or sticking a patch on the sheet can promote a child’s creativity. All these craft activities develop cognitive skills and also motivate them to be independent. They feel happy when they’re able to create an artwork on their own. Remember, children only learn to express themselves by manifesting their creativity. And while we’re confined to our homes, we’ve got enough time to unleash their hidden talent,” she explains.

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There is no need to use fancy craft materials to promote creative learning in children. Below are some simple tools that Early Childhood Educators and parents can use, according to Kanishka.

• Old newspapers and magazines can be used to make a collage
• Dals (pulses) can be used for mosaic art. ​
• Ice-cream sticks can be used to make tons of crafts.

• Use colourful papers as they’re non-messy and fuss-free. All you’ve to do is simply cut them in various shapes or draw something on them. Here, I’ve made bookmarks & butterflies out of them

• Maintain a stock of crayons and paints and let the kids draw whatever on a white sheet of paper.

• Use different mediums like cloth, plastic box, wood piece, etc.​

• Cotton buds can give kids hours of fun painting dots around a drawing.

• Painting branches and leaves that can be collected from the compound.

• Ribbons, buttons, sequins, wool, straw paper cups, paper plates are a few more items that are easily found at home.

• Use their toys to create a scene during storytelling.

Do you love the ideas? Have more to share? Write to us at editor@scoonews.com now!