going toy free?

[Helen79]

I know a few members on here have gone toy free so looking for some advice on what other resources to get instead.
I only look after pre-school age and babies. We go to playgroup in the mornings, lunch, sleep, craft activity, then school run so don't really have a lot of time for free play anyway.
I'd like to get rid of most of the toys as they're all stored in my living room and I'm sick of having boxes of plastic tat that just gets emptied all over the floor and not played with. What do I replace them though?
I'm going to keep the toy kitchen, instruments, wooden building blocks and some cars but that's about it.

[dette]

since last week when i cleared out 90% of my toys to make room for xmas tree i have been sooooo happy .the kids seem to play longer with the remaining toys and its so easy to tidy up afterwards.i do still have alot of toys,but they are in two tall IKEA storage towers with 10 boxes that fit in to them and a another one with 3 large boxes side by side,but once theyre away it all looks sooooooo tidy !!! the ones ive used this week are cars ,bricks ,small world (peppa pig and co ) and my homemade sensory bottles,i will not be bringing it all back after xmas . im going to fill the boxes with open ended toys and anything that doesnt fit will be going .i,ve bought a wooden shop that will fit where tree is now and that will be it .i feel a car boot sale coming on

[ajc]

Just looking at your post with interest as im going to just work with pre schoolers next year! sorry im no help but am interested in getting rid of plastic too, x

[JulieA]

Me too!

I have a wooden play kitchen - but I am getting rid of all the plastic food, and replacing with felt, knitted or wooden products instead.

I will still keep the Duplo, Happyland stuff etc but this will be stored in the cupboard under the stairs and only brought out occassionally. I am sick of clearing up as everything is just dragged out and left on the floor.

I have managed to stay Character-free though.

Books I have a problem with. I have so many, and although I have spread them out so there are some available all the time, others are seasonal and rotated (to fit with season or theme), but still they just get emptied on to the floor.

[Mouse]

I have very few plastic toys. I have Happyland (admittedly a lot of that) and a few electronic toys, but that's about it. I don't have plastic boxes either. They're all wooden, wicker or fabric.
I do have a lot of toys, but the majority of them are wooden or fabric.

Non-toy play things that I've found the chlidren enjoy are:

a wooden mug tree with a basket of wooden/fabric bracelets to hang off it

a treasure basket with wooden items

a treasure basket with metal items

a basket of fabric pieces

wooden cotton reels

a basket of empty cardboard boxes

a basket of dolly pegs

little cotton bags to carry things round in

a box of buttons & beads (obviously depends on age)

[mushpea]

I did go totally toy free, took th all out and replaced with cardboard boxes of all shapes and sizes, plastic bottles and tubs, glass beads and lots of bits like pompoms, straws, pipe cleaners etc
It was excellant and the imagination really flowed

[sarah707]

Something to be aware of - when you read Ofsted inspection reports inspectors are often picking one area of learning and looking at resource provision.

If they find it lacking in available resources for all ages of children they are giving it as an action on reports and mentioning it in reports.

I've seen a few recently which makes me think this is something they are focussing on at the moment

[loocyloo]

Something to be aware of - when you read Ofsted inspection reports inspectors are often picking one area of learning and looking at resource provision.

If they find it lacking in available resources for all ages of children they are giving it as an action on reports and mentioning it in reports.

I've seen a few recently which makes me think this is something they are focussing on at the moment

it seems to be technology as far as i can see!

[Belly2009]

Yes, i received a mention in mine about technology

[sarah707]

it seems to be technology as far as i can see!

Yes you are right - there are quite a few mentioning ICT - but I've seen other areas of learning mentioned as well

[loocyloo]

LOL i've currently got a list of technology 'bits' on my wall and noted next to them what i have got/what we use & how we use it. i also note in LJs when parents tell me LO can use tv remotes/ipods/ipads/iphones/smart phones etc as they won't be using them here!

[singingcactus]

LOL i've currently got a list of technology 'bits' on my wall and noted next to them what i have got/what we use & how we use it. i also note in LJs when parents tell me LO can use tv remotes/ipods/ipads/iphones/smart phones etc as they won't be using them here!

I keep all my old tech, like phones, both mobile and landline, remotes, webcams, cameras, mouse/mouses/mice?, play station controllers etc. I remove all wires, and battery cells etc and dump them in the toy box. The kids would much rather play with something real, even if it doesn't work, than a big chunky babyish plastic pretend tech. It is pretty awesome sitting listening to a toddler chat on the phone to his dad in afghanistan, or turning the TV on to mickey mouse (in their heads lol), or taking pics of their mates. All my boys know which are MY remotes/phones/tech and they know that hell needs to freeze over and the oceans boil etc etc before they can touch MY tech, but that's okay cos they have their own .

Not anything to do with the initial question I know, but this is a way to introduce tech into the setting, without it being toys. I have to say though, I do firmly believe there is a place for toys, and children should be shown how to play with them. Boring and tedious I know, but it needs to be done. Children don't actually know how to play with toys unless they are taught.

What toys exactly are you looking to get rid of?

I have small world, cars, construction, instruments, books (which I keep in a tub on the sofa and that IS where they stay), I have a writing area, some home play stuff, some dressing up, and some pieces of cloth for them to use as they will. I try, try, try, to have an invitation to play, or science activity, or learning activity each day. I also for part of the day have table top toys out - jigsaws, lacing, counters, magnadoodle and the like. These are all mixed in with soft toys, the odd bead frame, dolls, and a couple of other toys. I can't actually think of any toys that I would get rid of.

The bigger kids have a 3 drawer unit of toys, the like you get at macdonalds I guess. They have action men, super hero figures and those type of toys, and cars, marble runs...I guess most of my toys are actually open ended.

[VeggieSausage]

I am interested in this thread as I have bundles of toys that are hardly played with it seems. I usually have out the kitchen and play food, babies and buggy and blankets, brio, cars and garage, books, mark making of some sort at the table and general plastic toys.....everything else gets rotated round. I find that I now have 3 x 3 year olds on my books and I have had them all for over 2 years and they are bored with the toys and I am looking to change stuff, get rid of things and have more open ended natural resources.

For those who have got rid of plastic stuff, what do your after schoolies play with?

[Helen79]

If they find it lacking in available resources for all ages of children they are giving it as an action on reports and mentioning it in reports

Have I misunderstood or do you mean that ofsted expect us to have resources for all ages of children even if we don't look after that age group?
so if I only look after toddlers do they still want to see what resources I have for a 7 year old?

It's always good to hear what ofsted are looking for and I know this sounds bad but I'm starting to care a lot less about what ofsted want me to do. I'm not due an inspection until 2014 anyway, by the time I have my inspection there'll be something else that they're focussing on. My paperwork is all up to date and I'm confident that if I cull most of the toys that I'll still be meeting the development needs of the children.
They get to play with toys every morning at playgroup, they only play for an hour or so at my house after naps and lunch. The last few weeks all they've played with is a box of pom poms, all child led, I've provided other toys but they just want to explore the pom poms. I've done so many observations and planned different activities around the pom poms to make sure that I'm still covering all areas of learning.

Thanks for all the ideas, I'm going to have a sort out during the xmas holidays. I have old phones that they play with that would be part of a treasure basket.

[Mouse]

For those who have got rid of plastic stuff, what do your after schoolies play with?

I still have a lot of toys, but they are mainly wooden, not plastic. So I still have cars, dolls house, work bench, kitchen play, little people, farm set, animals etc, just all in wood.

I've found all the children love the treasure baskets, no matter what age they are.

And the last couple of weeks we have had out a small christmas tree & a basket of baubles to play with. They have all really enjoyed decorating the tree.

For the older children I also have board games, but again a lot of them are wooden - snakes & ladders, dominos, pick up sticks.

[Mouse]

Something to be aware of - when you read Ofsted inspection reports inspectors are often picking one area of learning and looking at resource provision.

If they find it lacking in available resources for all ages of children they are giving it as an action on reports and mentioning it in reports.

I've seen a few recently which makes me think this is something they are focussing on at the moment

That is why natural resources and non-toys fit the bill perfectly. They can be used in all areas of learning & for all ages. My big box of buttons is enjoyed by children of all ages. They count them, share them out, sort them, pick them up, talk about them, compare size & colour, thread them, use them to decorate playdough... the list is endless.

I really don't see that there is any area of learning that has to have a 'toy' to make sure it is covered

[nipper]

For the older children I also have board games, but again a lot of them are wooden - snakes & ladders, dominos, pick up sticks.

I have had to be strict with my two before school sisters who arrive at 6.45am. It seems they are incapable of sitting still, so by the time my own two are wake and come downstairs they are jut walking around the room...makes me really cross. I'm investing in some more board games that require a little more concentration and co-operation.

[maryp0ppins]

After reading this thread I took 3 days to realise 3/4 of the toys I have are NOT played with, just took out looked at & thrown ready to go to the next lot...... Today with my little ones I have had a mass clear out. I have two full black bin bags & a plastic bag of books all to go to the charity shop. Helped by the LO's ...... I got fed up with toys all over the house yet not played with!!!!
I may even bin a few more when they have gone, don't get me wrong I still have 3 boxes of toys ( building blocks, cars & train set, animal toy box, babies & cuddly toy box & my book shelf) so it's not like my house is bare but let's say MORE manageable

[Helen79]

I had the clear out over xmas and have got rid of nearly all toys. I've only worked 3 days since the clear out but so far all is good. I found that I'm interacting more with the children as I'm helping them learn new ways to play with the items available for them and I'm being more creative thinking up new ways for them to explore.

[dette]

i'm loving all the space ,cant wait to get rid of more,its so easy to tidy up at the end of the day now...lovin it