It used to drive me crazy when my kids were little and they would mix up all the different “types” of toys in their big, elaborate, imaginary games. I went to a lot of trouble to create and label separate bins for legos, blocks, play food, etc. and then my kids would mix and match when they actually played with the toys. Turns out that all that mixing and matching actually makes for smarter, more creative kids!
My need for organization not withstanding, mixing up “media” or “genre” is actually a good thing and helps kids develop problem-solving and higher-level thinking skills—not to mention spurs on their creativity. Using the play dough and the blocks and the outdoor trucks all together may seem like a messy recipe for disaster to a parent, but for a child it actually encourages some really creative learning stuff. Learning to think outside the box doesn’t always come naturally for children, but mixing up the toys and play materials can help.
My own children used to love to mix blocks with books or use pens and pencils and crayons as building materials. While I would find myself getting annoyed at the random clutter and messiness of such projects, my kids were actually learning all sorts of things about science, engineering, and other practical things. Not to mention just having a rollicking and consuming good time.
Parents can encourage kids to mix up toys, if they don’t automatically go in for such types of play. We might actually be inhibiting them if we are insisting that they “play with one thing at a time.” Showing kids that they can use items for purposes other than what they are officially designed for can open up the floodgates of learning and creativity—not to mention keep everyone from getting bored with existing toys.
See Also: Boys Playing With Dolls and Girls Playing With Cars
Teaching Little Ones to Play Together
Storage in Your Children’s Playroom