Collages are fun and inexpensive and allow children to practice creative and problem-solving skills. We try to use as many open-ended activities as possible, so your child is motivated to think divergently. Open ended materials are those which young children can use for creative play in any way they like, within a set of guidelines for safety and clean up.

Open-ended materials are like open-ended questions. There is no “one” answer or one “right” way to use them. Any child can enjoy, and be successful in creating with crayons, markers, clays, paper and glue, finger-paint and paint.

Using open-ended materials nurtures both the child’s creativity and self esteem. Blocks, dress ups, props, recycled items, and natural materials like seeds, earth, sand, and water are also open ended materials which can be used in many ways. For our art activities, we include a lot of open-ended materials for your little one to learn from. This activity included magazine clippings that your child placed into “happy” and “sad” categories. There was no right or wrong answer. Each child separated the two groups according to their own understanding of the various facial expressions they saw on the clippings.