By Hayley Winter
In recent years, glow play has become an increasingly popular way to engage children in meaningful and imaginative learning experiences. The vibrant and mesmerising glow of specially designed resources creates a sensory-rich environment that stimulates children’s curiosity and creativity.
By incorporating glow play into early years settings, educators can provide children with unique opportunities to explore, discover, and grow in a multisensory way.
What Is Glow Play?
Glow play involves the use of luminescent or glowing materials in activities that encourage exploration, problem-solving, and imaginative play. These resources, often used in dimly lit or darkened environments, captivate children and draw them into focused and intentional engagement. Glow play is not only fun but also supports various aspects of early development, including sensory processing, fine motor skills, and social interaction.
How Glow Play Benefits Children’s Development
1. Stimulating the Senses
Glow resources such as the TTS Glow Trees are perfect for creating visually stimulating experiences. Children are naturally drawn to the gentle glow, which encourages them to explore small world play in an inviting way. Not only this, these trees have a small button on them to press to allow them to change colour or flash. This sensory engagement helps to develop visual perception and focus while fostering a sense of wonder.
2. Encouraging Imagination and Creativity
The open-ended nature of glow play inspires children to think outside the box. Resources like the TTS Glow People can be used in storytelling, role-playing, or small-world play, allowing children to create their own narratives and scenarios. This kind of imaginative play builds critical thinking skills and enhances language development as children articulate their ideas.
3. Supporting Social and Emotional Skills
Glow play often encourages collaborative activities, helping children develop important social skills. When using glow resources such as the TTS Small World Glow Houses, children can work together to build small communities or enact scenarios, promoting teamwork, communication, and empathy.
4. Perfect for visually impaired learners
Glow resources are especially valuable for visually impaired learners, as the high-contrast glow enhances visibility and provides a tactile and sensory-rich experience. Tools like the TTS Glow Trees and TTS Glow People allow these children to engage with materials in a way that fosters inclusion, exploration, and independent learning.
Takeaways for Practitioners
Most importantly, incorporating glow play into daily or weekly routines doesn’t require a lot of preparation. Simply, create a dark space to explore the glow resources in small world play.
Glow play is much more than a trendy activity; it’s a powerful tool for supporting children’s holistic development. Whether used for sensory exploration, imaginative storytelling, or calming mindfulness, glow play opens up a world of possibilities for children to shine—quite literally!
Hayley Winter is an Early Years teacher and leader who is passionate about learning through play. She shares simple and effective teaching ideas for 3-5 year olds on social media.
