Alight, I alluded to this in an earlier post and now, it's real. The first Unplug & Play Summit, right here, in our community. Now, before you panic, the goal is not thousands of people, instead, my goal is to build our community and grow through sharing and bringing in some new members. We have several knowledgeable community members and I would love to have you showcase your area of expertise. Here are a few who have expressed interest in presenting, this is not everyone. @Janell Bitton, @Betty Jo Winters, @Brenda Chilstrom, @Ramona Zihlke, @Celia Kibler, @Jen Staniforth, @Gus Gray @Anna Murrietta @Mayelice Castro @Natasha Bryant @Roslyn Hill The caveat, to apply as a presenter from our community, you must be at Level 3 on the leaderboard, if you aren't there yet and want to speak, we will help you reach that level. I've attached the Speaker Info page. Let me know what you think. I'm excited. I hope you are, too.

Borrowing this from my mentor @Katya McEwen who is also hosting a summit this week. If you’re interested in her summit I’m sure she’d be happy to share details. Now, let’s have some fun! Your weekend in GIFs only... Tell us about your weekend in GIFs only👇🏼 - Step One - post your day or weekend in GIFs (max 4) - Step Two - Try and guess what at least 2 other members are doing - Step Three (bonus) - confirm if guesses or correct or if we should try again Here are mine. I’m in a guessing mood so I’ve tagged several of you. If I missed anyone let me know. @Allan Webster @Brenda Chilstrom @Janell Bitton @Anna Murrietta @Anna Brown @Catherine McDowell @Celia Kibler @Charlie Svensson @Daniel Cavaretta @Dannielle McAuliffe @Dee Gosrani @Des Cooke @Evelene Sterling @Elizabeth Houston @Betty Jo Winters @Michelle Fuentes @Gus Gray @Amy Grantham @Karen Gibson @Heather Wilson @Jacqueline Hutchinson @Jay Dee Archer @Kristy Allison @Lisa Kilby @Lisa Vanderveen @Wendy Lee-Chu @Mayelice Castro @Maryna Tempalova @Max Orlewicz @Natasha Bryant @Nakita Fele @Sharon Otaguro @Paisley Kiddie @Paul Wren @Ruben Plasmeijer @Roslyn Hill @Rene Kerkdyk @Ramona Zihlke @Sandie Slowey @Sarah Cooper @Sasha Woodall @Samuel Wendland @Tim Tindle @Anzumana Taal @Yu-Tzu Huang @Jen Staniforth

For those of you in the US and Canada, there is a toy company called Discovery Toys, of which I’m a part-time sales rep, official title Play Advisor. Besides the mission of the company, this gives me an opportunity to chat with parents about play on a regular basis and watch their kids in action. Why this long lead-up? So my story has context😉. Ken, my partner, and I work a fair bit of “vendor events” to get the word out about these toys and something we’ve both noticed is a parent can hand a child a highly detailed toy with lights, sounds, instructions, and a very specific “right way” to use it… and five minutes later they have discovered an entirely new way to play with it. We always set up a play area with toys for hands-on discovery. At first glance, it can look like chaos. It’s not! Now, expand this to your home, the chaos continues. Little piles everywhere. Half-finished structures. Rocks in pockets. Random strings tied to chairs for reasons nobody fully understands except the child who built it and underneath all of that, something really important is happening. Children are experimenting. They are testing ideas, solving problems, telling stories, redesigning systems, and learning how to adapt when something does not work the first time. Play theorist Simon Nicholson called this “loose parts play.” His theory suggested that creativity and discovery increase when children have access to materials that can be moved, combined, redesigned, taken apart, and used in more than one way. In simpler terms, the fewer instructions an object comes with, the more space there is for imagination. That is one reason kids will sometimes spend longer with sticks, boxes, rocks, fabric scraps, and recyclables than they will with something designed to do only one thing. The object itself is not doing the creative work. The child is. Remember, not every meaningful childhood moment needs to look polished or educational from the outside. Some of the deepest thinking happens in the middle of what looks like randomness.

Our community is growing and we have some talented and dedicated community owners here. Today is your day to tell us a little bit more. 🦉Who are you and who do your serve? 🔂 In 1 or 2 sentences, describe your community. 🔗 Drop a link to your about page. Comment on 1 or 2 communities that interest you. Let’s support each other and build new relationships. If I missed your name, it’s not personal, with over 80 members, I’m not sure who has a community🤫 @Janell Bitton @Allan R. @Blue Mojo @Brenda Chilstrom @Celia Kibler @Daniel Cavaretta @Des Cooke @Elizabeth Houston @Evelene Sterling @Michelle Fuentes @Gus Gray @Amy Grantham @Jose Guerra @Heather Wilson @Katya McEwen @Lisa Vanderveen @Maryna Tempalova @Max Orlewicz @Mayelice Castro @Natasha Bryant @Paul Wren @Ruben Plasmeijer @Ramona Zihlke @Rene Kerkdyk @Roslyn Hill @Tim Tindle @Wendy Lee-Chu @Yu-Tzu Huang

If you’ve been in the community awhile, you will notice that some activities are repeated with variations, there’s a reason for that. First, my goal is to keep life easier and second we’re modeling the play behaviors we’d like to encourage. Now, on to our activity. Did you know, the fastest way to turn boredom into creativity is often not giving kids more entertainment? It’s giving them interesting raw materials and a little space to experiment. Today’s challenge is simple, messy, imaginative, and works surprisingly well across ages. Mystery Basket Challenge Gather the Gear: - A basket, bin, bag, or cardboard box - 10-15 random household items Examples: - Wooden spoon - Sock - Flashlight - Paper clips - Tape - Plastic cup - String - Toy animal - Recyclables - Kitchen tools - Pinecones or rocks - Optional: - Paper - Markers - Timer The Steps: 1. Quietly gather random objects from around the house or yard. 2. Place everything in the basket. 3. Invite your child to pull out 3-5 items. 4. Challenge them to create something using only those objects. Depending on the child, they might: - Invent a machine - Create a game - Tell a story - Build a creature - Make “survival gear” - Design a trap - Pretend they are explorers, scientists, or detectives Your role is not to lead the activity too much. Instead, become the curious observer. Use phrases like: “Tell me about this.” “What does this part do?” “I didn’t expect that.” “What happens next?” The Twist: Halfway through, add one unexpected object. Something silly works best. A potato. A whisk. A pool noodle. A winter glove in the middle of summer. Then ask: “Now how does your invention/story/game change?” Variations by Age: Ages 3-5 Focus on pretend play and storytelling. Keep the object count small and let them narrate freely. Ages 6-8 Encourage problem-solving challenges. “Can you build something that moves?” “Can you invent a tool for a dragon?” Ages 9-11 Add design limitations. “You can only use tape twice.”