Blogging about the importance of play for early learning and kindergarten readiness has gone all the way from play ideas for kids to career ideas for adults! So far, Shakuntala Devi, The Human Computer has inspired math play; the industrial designer, Raymond Loewy, some drawing fun; and then we turned our hand to crafting like Dot Falcon at Busted Button. Here’s another play-of-the-day sparked by Dr. Rebecca Keller at Real Science 4 Kids.
When I interviewed Dr. Keller on Learn and Play with Mrs. A, she confessed that as a child even though she had the same toys as other kids, she didn’t play with them in the same ways. She loved to take her toys apart, including Barbie dolls and music boxes, trying to see how they worked. Music 
boxes were particularly fascinating and she took off some of the nubs and unscrewed the pieces to see how the parts all worked. She once even took apart her bicycle!
Have you too heard stories of little kids that somehow took off the doorknobs to their rooms or unhooked pieces of devices? Taking things apart is a common play activity. Of course, safety is an issue, but there are toys that young toddlers can take apart and put back together, for example puzzles, nesting toys and construction and block sets. Older toddlers might enjoy building, taking apart, and rebuilding marble runs. Mr. Potato Heads go back together much easier than dolls. Sometimes, kids enjoy taking the kitchen chairs and the cushions on the couch to put together as a fort. This could be considered as taking a whole room apart.
For some kindergarten readiness learning and fun, can your child play by taking something apart today?