How Do We Tinker?

Learn More About TinkerSpace...

Play is the work of childhood.

~ Jean Piaget

At their earliest ages, children learn about their world through their mouth. Babies will put a new food in their mouth, make a horrible face, and then try another bite. That horrible face was not distaste, it was simply an expression of learning and exploring ... of differentness, if you will. So, they try it again.

As they get older, they must touch. Have you ever taken a 6-year-old into a store and told them they can look but, please, do not touch. This is fine if they are familiar with everything they see. But as soon as they encounter something new, they must touch.

As they get even older, children see something done and they want to try. They see you struggling to remove a tough lid from a jar and they want to see if they can do it. They watch a gymnast at the Olympics on television and suddenly your couch is a vault.

Hopefully, our children find occasions every day to explore and learn about their world.

TinkerSpace provides opportunities children might not typically encounter or are too messy to allow at home. Our supplies for making are in the open, in sight, and ready to use. While we ask for help in keeping our space neat, we expect messes to happen and are set up for that eventuality (unlike your dining room table, perhaps).