My little one is really into dinosaurs. I attribute this to his older brother's obsession spilling over onto him, nonetheless, we play with dinosaurs A LOT in my house.

One day I decided to put a little dinosaur provocation on the light table and see what he would do with it.

I simply placed a few small toy dinosaurs, some wood cookies and a stick, and a basket of model magic dough. I laid them on the light table just as you see in the picture.

Then. . .  I waited to see if he even noticed or cared.

He did notice the model magic very quickly. He promptly began pinching and tearing it apart.

He pinched and pulled for quite a while, and then turned to the dinosaurs.

He also discovered he could squish the model magic. I love his chubby little hands.

When he turned to the wood cookies, it was all about stacking them and knocking them down, over and over.

Ssshhh... don't tell him he's busy building hand/eye coordination.

In all honesty, my teacher brain envisioned him building dinosaur habitats and pretending the model magic was dinosaur food.

However, he had his own agenda, as children always do.

I absolutely loved sitting back and watching his play unfold and witnessing connections being made. I think it is very important to allow children space and time to play without interrupting or guiding them.

He practiced crucial fine motor skills, hand/eye coordination, and made new discoveries about the materials around him and how he can use and manipulate them.

What types of provocations do you use with your kiddos?

How do you follow your child's lead and honor their interests?

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