Market Collective Recap - Spring 2022

Wee Wild Ones was part of Market Collective’s Spring 2022 Edition last weekend, and it was a hit! When we first envisioned our booth, we sought out to create endless opportunities for engaging and entertaining play in a fun and springy environment. Read on to learn how we brought the world of WWO to the BMO Centre amongst some of Calgary’s best artists, makers, and small businesses.

Imagination Runs Wild

One of the best parts of Wee Wild Ones is watching little ones create, build, and imagine, and there was no shortage of this over the weekend. Guests were excited to check out our bird’s nests and engage in exploration through loose parts play. If you aren’t already familiar, loose parts play is an open-ended process of learning that allows for multiple learning opportunities. Through loose parts play, children are free to learn more about the world around them.

To do this, we had each of the following stations:

• Investigation: Using books, magnifying glasses and found bird nests, the children had the opportunity to look at how a bird creates their home and the different materials that they use. The intention of this was to show that WWO loves nature and education surrounding the world we live in.

• Art: Our art section centred around a bug drawing station and a still life flower painting station. Together, these invited children and their families to get creative and reflect on spring as it begins to bloom.

• Loose Parts: The setup of our loose parts brought everyone down to the ground to create large nature-theme loose parts art – think mushrooms, flowers and butterfly wings! We hoped this would spark some collaboration between different participants and show people what loose parts can be used for. 

• Bringing the Outdoors In: At this station, the kids played with large-scale loose parts and outdoor equipment. This space was intended to encourage creativity, imagination and collaboration.

Though all of our stations were busy, our painting and investigation stations were the most popular among the kiddos! 

Last, but certainly not least, our reading nook allowed guests to explore books on diversity, nature, social and emotional learning, and more. Over the course of the weekend, we had many families come together to collaborate on activities and discuss important topics. We’re thrilled to be extending the conversation through our Young Readers events, coming this June. For now, we’ll reflect on another fantastic weekend as part of the Market Collective community. See you at the next one!

To keep up to date on what’s up at Wee Wild Ones, make sure to follow WWO and WilderFutures on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn!