{"id":18115,"date":"2024-04-30T15:41:32","date_gmt":"2024-04-30T10:11:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learn.toddleapp.com\/?post_type=resource_post&#038;p=18115"},"modified":"2026-07-09T13:30:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T08:00:25","slug":"playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit","status":"publish","type":"resource_post","link":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/","title":{"rendered":"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years &#8211; A Toolkit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">Imagine a classroom where the rustle of leaves and the patter of raindrops ignite a flurry of questions from a group of four-year-olds. &#8220;Why do leaves fall? Why do they change colours? Is the rain pushing them off the tree?&#8221; In this scenario, educators are not just providers of answers but are co-explorers, using these questions as a springboard into a world of exploration. This hands-on discovery process is central to our toolkit, which emphasises playful invitations and provocations that not only engage children but also inspire them to delve deeper into their surroundings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">How often do we, as educators, truly engage with the natural inquisitiveness of the children? Are we equipped to transform their fleeting curiosities into meaningful learning experiences? This toolkit is here to help you reflect on these questions and more. It guides you through setting up environments that provoke thoughtful inquiry, illustrates how educators can be driven by inquiry alongside their children, and demonstrates how you, too, can embody an inquisitive spirit in your professional life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">Furthermore, the toolkit includes five detailed setups that encourage specific explorations, from the natural world to everyday materials, ensuring that every educator has the tools to foster an enriching learning environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">Dive into a world where learning is driven by curiosity, and where every question is an opportunity for growth. Explore more, inquire more, and teach in a way that transforms learning from the earliest days of the child\u2019s learning journey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":323,"featured_media":18117,"template":"resource\/resource_post_container.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"categories":[299],"tags":[405,319],"coauthors":[406],"class_list":["post-18115","resource_post","type-resource_post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-early-years","tag-early-years","tag-english"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Playful Inquiry in the Early Years - A Toolkit - Toddle Learn<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Imagine a classroom where the rustle of leaves and the patter of raindrops ignite a flurry of questions from a group of four-year-olds.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years - A Toolkit\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Imagine a classroom where the rustle of leaves and the patter of raindrops ignite a flurry of questions from a group of four-year-olds.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Toddle Learn\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-07-09T08:00:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1088\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"612\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"Lisa Kane\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/\",\"name\":\"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years - A Toolkit - Toddle Learn\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-30T10:11:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-07-09T08:00:25+00:00\",\"description\":\"Imagine a classroom where the rustle of leaves and the patter of raindrops ignite a flurry of questions from a group of four-year-olds.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/04\\\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp\",\"width\":1088,\"height\":612},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/resource-post\\\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Learn\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years &#8211; A Toolkit\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/\",\"name\":\"Toddle Learn\",\"description\":\"Toddle Talks, Articles &amp; More\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.toddleapp.com\\\/learn\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years - A Toolkit - Toddle Learn","description":"Imagine a classroom where the rustle of leaves and the patter of raindrops ignite a flurry of questions from a group of four-year-olds.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years - A Toolkit","og_description":"Imagine a classroom where the rustle of leaves and the patter of raindrops ignite a flurry of questions from a group of four-year-olds.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/","og_site_name":"Toddle Learn","article_modified_time":"2026-07-09T08:00:25+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1088,"height":612,"url":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"2 minutes","Written by":"Lisa Kane"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/","url":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/","name":"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years - A Toolkit - Toddle Learn","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp","datePublished":"2024-04-30T10:11:32+00:00","dateModified":"2026-07-09T08:00:25+00:00","description":"Imagine a classroom where the rustle of leaves and the patter of raindrops ignite a flurry of questions from a group of four-year-olds.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Toddle-Play-Enabling-Children-Voice-Play-Curriculum-Card-544x306px-2.webp","width":1088,"height":612},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/resource-post\/playful-inquiry-in-the-early-years-a-toolkit\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Learn","item":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Playful Inquiry in the Early Years &#8211; A Toolkit"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/","name":"Toddle Learn","description":"Toddle Talks, Articles &amp; More","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/resource_post\/18115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/resource_post"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/resource_post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/323"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18117"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18115"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18115"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18115"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.toddleapp.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=18115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}