Scholar's Choice

10/24/2026

Meet the NEW Crazy Aaron’s Better Butter Thinking Putty! 😍 Soft, stretchy, squishy and oh-so-satisfying, this buttery-smooth putty is perfect for little hands that love to squeeze, stretch, swirl and explore!

Available in classic Better Butter and sweet, berry-scented Berry Butter, these fun sensory fidgets offer a playful way to keep hands busy while encouraging focus and creativity. 🫐💛

Through hands-on sensory play, children can explore textures, strengthen fine motor skills, develop hand-eye coordination and enjoy a calming, tactile experience. Whether at home, in the classroom or during a quiet moment, there's so much fun to be had with every stretch and squish! 🌈

🛍️ Shop the NEW Better Butter Thinking Putty here: https://tinyurl.com/n8yejxey

10/24/2026

Fall Mud Kitchen Invitation 🍂🎃🥣

It's time to cook up some autumn fun! This fall mud kitchen invitation is such a wonderful way to encourage children to explore, create and use their imaginations through outdoor play! 🧡🍁

Gather some fall treasures from nature, including colourful leaves, pinecones, acorns, sunflowers and pumpkins. 🌻 Add them to your outdoor mud kitchen alongside bowls, spoons, scoops, water, colourful squeeze bottles and other loose parts.

Create a fun fall-inspired menu with recipes like Pumpkin Soup, Fall Leaf Stew, Sunflower Soup, Pinecone Pie and Acorn Cupcakes! 🥧 Invite children to mix, pour, stir, measure and create their own delicious pretend recipes. There are endless possibilities when children take the lead in their play! ✨

Mud kitchens offer so many wonderful opportunities for learning through play! From mixing magical potions to baking pretend acorn cupcakes, children are developing creativity, confidence, early math skills and a connection with nature, all while enjoying the freedom of child-led outdoor play! 💛

Tuff Tray: https://bit.ly/3VIksJl
Mud Pie Menu Board: https://bit.ly/4yiUTOo
Potion Bench: https://bit.ly/4yJCCLi
Bargain Longlast Kitchen: https://bit.ly/4zBbka8
Pressure Treated Toddler Mud Kitchen: https://bit.ly/4oQYPTN

10/24/2026

What if we looked at play differently? ✨💭

What if we stopped focusing on what children should be learning and started noticing everything they're already discovering through PLAY? 🌈

What if the mess was part of the learning? The questions mattered more than the answers? And the process was more important than the finished product? 🎨🌿

Sometimes the most meaningful learning happens when we:
🌱 Follow children's curiosity instead of our plans.
💛 Give them time to explore without rushing.
🎨 Celebrate the process rather than the product.
👀 Observe and listen before stepping in.
✨ Trust that simple, child-led experiences are filled with learning opportunities.

As parents and educators, we don't always need to direct the play, provide the answers or create the perfect activity. Sometimes our most important role is to make space for children to wonder, discover and learn at their own pace.

Because children aren't just playing. They're building connections, developing confidence and constructing their understanding of the world. ❤️

10/24/2026

Fall Sensory Bins Without the Pinterest Pressure 🍁

Who says sensory play needs to be picture-perfect to be meaningful? Sometimes the simplest setups lead to the BIGGEST discoveries! 💭 Fall is the perfect time to explore sensory play and hands-on learning with colourful leaves, pinecones, acorns, scoops, bowls and other autumn treasures. 🧡

The beauty of play-based learning is that children don't need elaborate setups or perfectly arranged materials. They need opportunities to explore, experiment and follow their own ideas!

Our latest blog is a reminder that meaningful sensory play is about the PROCESS, not the perfect presentation! ❤️ Less pressure. More exploration. More PLAY! 🍁 Read the blog and get inspired here: https://tinyurl.com/4svv9f4s

10/23/2026

What a gift this week has been! Returning to PLAY, reconnecting with our WHY and rediscovering the wonder of childhood! 🌿❤️✨

Our hearts are so full after spending four incredible days in Grand Bend at our very first Return to Play Residential Learning Experience with the wonderful Alice Sharp 🧡

What a joy and privilege to learn, laugh, create, reflect and PLAY alongside such an inspiring group of women who brought so much curiosity, creativity, passion and love for early childhood education to every experience! 🥰

Together, we explored the magic of play-based learning, shared meaningful conversations, challenged our thinking and rediscovered what happens when we give ourselves permission to be curious, experiment, take risks and experience the joy of learning through play. ✨

From colourful loose parts and sensory invitations to small world play, light exploration, nature-inspired learning and hands-on creativity, we loved sharing some of our favourite Scholar’s Choice resources and invitations to play. 🌈🍂

But perhaps the most meaningful part of the week was the connections we made. The stories shared, the laughter, the thoughtful reflections and the reminder that educators need opportunities to play, wonder and discover just as much as the children they teach. ❤️

A heartfelt THANK YOU to Alice Sharp for sharing her wisdom, inspiration and passion for play, and to every wonderful educator who joined us with an open heart and curious mind. You made our first Return to Play Residential something truly special! 💕

We hope you leave feeling inspired, re-energized and ready to bring a little more wonder, joy and PLAY back into your early learning environments.

We can't wait to do it all again! ✨

10/23/2026

Little Acorn Bookish Play Sensory Glow Small World 🍂🌳✨

Bring the magic of autumn to life with this beautiful Little Acorn bookish play invitation! This engaging fall small world activity combines storytelling, light play and hands-on exploration as children discover the wonders of the forest! 🐿️🧡

Start by setting up your Sensory Glow Tuff Tray with colourful fall leaves, acorn loose parts, translucent bowls, tongs and woodland animals. 🌿 Add a wooden tree for children to explore and create their own little woodland world. Place the book Little Acorn nearby to inspire storytelling, imaginative play and curiosity about nature. 📖

Turn on the glowing light and watch the autumn colours come alive! ✨ Invite children to collect acorns, explore the forest, create homes for woodland animals and bring the story to life through play.

Why is this activity beneficial?
📖 Early Literacy: Bookish play encourages storytelling, language development and comprehension as children make connections between stories and their own play experiences.
🌳 Small World Play: Inspires imagination, creativity and symbolic thinking as children create woodland adventures and explore different storylines.
✨ Light Play: The glowing surface encourages sensory exploration, visual discovery and curiosity as children investigate colours, shapes and translucent materials.
👐 Fine Motor Skills: Picking up acorns, using tongs and transferring loose parts into bowls helps strengthen little hand muscles and develop hand-eye coordination.
🧠 Cognitive Development: Encourages problem-solving, sequencing and creative thinking as children explore the story and make their own discoveries.
🍂 Play-Based Learning: Creates meaningful opportunities for child-led exploration, allowing children to learn through hands-on experiences and imaginative play.

Extend the Learning:
🐿️ Encourage children to retell the story of Little Acorn using the woodland animals, tree and loose parts. What adventures might the little acorn have?
🌳 Explore the changing seasons by asking, “What happens to the leaves in autumn?” or “What might grow from an acorn?”
🔢 Introduce early math by counting and sorting acorns. How many can you collect? Which bowl has more?
✨ Experiment with different coloured lights and translucent materials. How do the leaves and acorns look when the light changes?
🍁 Go on a nature walk to collect real fallen leaves and acorns, then compare them with the loose parts in your small world invitation.

Sensory Glow Tuff Table: https://bit.ly/44yj1RL
Woodland Trail Treehouse: https://bit.ly/3V99jzS
Translucent Colour Bowls: https://bit.ly/47gYvUd
Translucent Leaves & Seeds: https://bit.ly/4zW3F7f
Translucent Colour Tweezers: https://bit.ly/43zz8gX

10/23/2026

What happens when we offer an invitation instead of an instruction? 💭

A provocation is more than a thoughtfully arranged collection of materials. It is an invitation to wonder, question, investigate, and discover.

✨ A flower can inspire an investigation of color and form.
🍂 A collection of natural materials can spark unexpected connections.
🔎 A simple observation can lead to deeper questions and new ways of thinking.
🤝 A shared experience can bring children together to exchange ideas, collaborate, and learn from one another.

And perhaps most beautifully, provocations have no age limit. The opportunity to explore something unfamiliar can awaken curiosity, creativity, and a sense of wonder.

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10/23/2026

Light up learning with colourful, open-ended discovery! ✨ 🌈

The new Translucent Colour Loose Parts bring play-based learning to life inviting children to explore colour, light, and creativity through hands-on sensory play. From glowing galaxies and nature-inspired leaves to vibrant dinosaurs, these translucent manipulatives transform light panel invitations into engaging early childhood learning experiences.

Perfect for loose parts play, these resources encourage sorting, counting, pattern building, and imaginative storytelling while strengthening fine motor skills and early math understanding. When used on a light panel, colours shine and overlap sparking curiosity, creativity, and deeper sensory exploration. 💚

Translucent Colour Galaxy: https://tinyurl.com/s9j7d6et
Translucent Colour Dinosaurs: https://tinyurl.com/mstm7m7x
Translucent Colour Leaves & Seeds: https://tinyurl.com/wb7j8bn9

10/23/2026

SO sweet 🥹🍁

Nobody tells you, when you start in early childhood, how often you’ll be handed treasure.

A leaf. A pinecone. A rock that “looks like a heart.”

It’s never about the thing. It’s about being chosen. 💚

Happy weekend to everyone heading home with full pockets.

10/22/2026

NEW Wooden World Animal Sets invite little explorers to discover animals from around the globe through hands-on, open-ended play! From Arctic animals to creatures from North America, Europe, Asia, Oceania and South America, there are so many possibilities for small world adventures. 🐋🐘🦘

Add them to sensory trays, blocks, loose parts or nature-inspired play spaces and let children take the lead! Through small world and imaginative play, children can explore:

🌎 Animals, habitats & the world around them
✨ Imagination & storytelling
💬 Language & communication
🧠 Early science & inquiry
🤲 Hands-on, open-ended learning

Where will their imagination take them today? 🐾✨

👉 Shop the NEW Wooden World Animal Sets here: https://tinyurl.com/4tdzkvk6