During caregiving routines, caregivers can provide a safe outlet for children to explore by affirming and encouraging their efforts as they explore things in their daily environment.

When children are given the time and the freedom to make play choices, they are more likely to engage in play activities for longer periods and sustain their curiosity. Studies have found that children exhibit increased curiosity outside of pedagogical (teaching) contexts and in the absence of explicitly given explanations.

In an experiment, researchers gave children a novel toy to explore, either prefaced or not, with partial instructions on how the toy works.

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1. Bonawitz, E., Shafto, P., Gweon, H., Goodman, N. D., Spelke, E., & Schulz, L. (2011). The double-edged sword of pedagogy: Instruction limits spontaneous exploration and discovery. Cognition, 120, 322– 330. doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2010.10.001

Children played for longer and discovered more of the toys’ functions under non-pedagogical conditions. Hence, allowing opportunities for free exploration in safe environments were more likely to promote curiosity and exploration.

Read more at AL-CUR-C02.