Many children seem to love collecting natural objects and mixing solid and liquid materials together. Here are some ideas for inviting play involving collecting and mixing:

• Collect natural materials to mix soups, stews, and potions
• Collect rocks, leaves, pinecones, stones, dandelions for creating patterns, chains, mandalas, collages and  pictures
• Create a natural habitat to support different types of bugs, then collect bugs to visit your habitat
• Make rock collections to paint
• Collect natural materials and do rubbings
• Make a dandelion crown or jewellery
• Create a science lab with different natural items to examine and sort by different categories
• Put out different sized containers for storing collecting objects based on different characteristics (colour, size, use, etc.)

The Summer of Play project and the contents on this page are part of an initiative that grew out of the Canadian Association for Young Children. Please visit CAYC Saskatchewan on Facebook for more information: http://www.facebook.com/CAYCsask