Shadow Play

Storytelling. Science. Seeing the world in a different way. What can children learn from playing with light and shadow?

Storytelling. Science. Seeing the world in a different way.

It’s amazing what children can learn from playing with light and shadow. Using their hands, household items or crafted objects they’ve made themselves, they can act out a story. Create an imaginary world. Or look at the differences between opaque, transparent, and translucent materials. This simple activity could be a simple drop-in session or a more structured workshop, and there are lots of ways to guide interesting, open discussions that boost creative and thinking skills.

Download activity packs

Get grab-and-go guides for our activities and adapt them for different spaces. We also include a campaign toolkit so you can spread the world about the Build a World of Play campaign. All available in 7 different languages.

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What Happens Next?

Stories have the power to fire up imaginations - especially if young listeners get to play their part in creating them.

Playbus

Every child should get the chance to play. Hop on the Playbus, and bring the benefits of these fun activities to wherever they are needed most.

Treasure Tales

The world around us is full of hidden treasures and unwritten stories. Guide little adventurers to hunt them out and create their own legends.

Creativity Quest

Children get a lot out of a fun challenge - from friendship skills to physical exercise. It’s even better when they get to build their own, too.

Imagine and Play

Games are great fun - and while children play games they develop all sorts of skills, from creativity to getting on with others. Here’s how to spark some joyful family learning time.

More Play in Our Day

How do we fit more play in our day? This carousel of playful activities is as easy to run in a community space as it is to recreate at home.

Play Goggles

Some card, paper and string. A few household items. And a sprinkle of imagination. That’s all it takes to see the world through a child’s eyes.

Create with curiosity

What? Where? How? Why? Great adventures start with curious questions. Here’s how to turn curiosity into playful learning.

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About the Build a World of Play campaign

Community spaces: Bring everyone together

We’ve created ideas and guides to bring play to libraries, museums and other community organisations and spaces. Are you ready to host them?

Big ideas to put children at the centre

We’ve launched our biggest open call grant yet - for organisations everywhere around the world to work on to join up and share their boldest ideas to help children under six learn through play. Find out more!