Size doesn't matter

 Size doesn't matter...I know what you're thinking.  But when it comes to play, size doesn't matter.  Children do not care about equal proportions when it comes to their playthings.  Yesterday, I came across the above grouping.  It was Papo and Schleich and Lego horses with Lego Friends as the horses' caretakers in a Breyer barn.  And it was magical.

 Here, Papo polar bears play harmoniously with Duplo and Little People polar bears.  Children naturally categorize and group like items.  And it's okay.  Kids don't have to have all the same brand or the entire playset of something.  I have found that the less the play is directed, the more the imagination kicks into high gear.

Why is that important?  Play is learning.  Let me say that again. Play IS learning.  As a child acts out a scene where the Lego Friend take care of the horses, it is imagination at work.  But it's also language - they are creating a story, acting out a scene, using vocabulary, describing what they are doing, engaging.

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." -Albert Einstein  Now, who's going to argue with genius Albert Einstein??? :)  Play is important - uninterrupted, unscripted, undirected.

Big Bag of Gems

 What do you do with a big bag of gems?  Well...you decorate a castle and...

 do patterning and...
(this would be great for a princess or pirate theme day at preschool)

 Sort by color and...

 Some of these gems are HUGE.

 It's a 1lb bag that I found at Michael's store.  The bag was $14.99 but I used a coupon.

 You can put them in the sensory table and "dig for treasure".
This container is the perfect toddler size sensory bin.

 The princesses have brought the gems home with them.

 The Lego castle was decorated with gems.

and the "castle box" was decorated too.