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As early childhood educators, we all know the importance of play in a child's development. It fosters creativity, social skills, and overall well-being. However, as we plan our lessons and activities, we often run into a frustrating roadblock: the cost of play materials. This issue is exacerbated by education supply companies pushing fancy play materials that come with a steep price tag. Often time there are cheaper alternatives, or simpler versions that can be bought from a variety of stores. Being smart in sourcing your supplies can save your program a significant amount of money! From paint to chalk to bubbles, these supply costs can add up and limit the play experiences we can offer our students. But what if I told you that there is a solution?
In this blog post, we've compiled a comprehensive document that highlights the basic art and outdoor play materials that every childcare or preschool should have. We then scoured the best deals in Alberta to make sure you get the most bang for your buck. We also have added anecdotal information on material quality, and other budget saving tips. With quarterly updates, you can count on us to bring you the most accurate and up-to-date information. So, let's dive in and equip our children with the tools they need to learn and grow while also saving some money along the way.
This guide aims to help educators source high quality materials for affordable prices. While we aim to provide local/ small business options we also understand the financial limitations of the early childhood education industry and therefor try and offer a variety of options. This guide focuses on consumable materials such as glue, paint, paper etc.
PLEASE NOTE: We do our best to ensure prices are accurate and up to date but online prices can fluctuate frequently and we cannot guarantee prices will match links listed at any given time.Should you find a cheaper and equal quality product for the below listed options, send us a message and we would be happy to look into it! If there are materials you want sourced that you use frequently let us know and we will do our best to include them in our next update.
No longer will you have to compromise on the quality and quantity of play due to budget constraints. So let's dive in and discover how we can provide our students with the best play experiences without breaking the bank. Creative Seeds believes in our mission to support our community in providing opportunities for outdoor play, as a part of that we work hard to remove barriers to play such as cost. We hope you find value in our Guide to Affordable Play Materials.
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