Lil’ Pallikkoodam’s Loose Parts Play showed how everyday items could ...

The grounds of Lil’ Pallikkoodam on Avinashi Road are buzzing with chatter and laughter as parents and children carrying tyres, plastic bottles, utensils, cardboard boxes, coconut shells and other strange items enter the gates. Everyone is gathering for the Loose Parts Play event organised by the school as part of Coimbatore Vizha. “Loose Parts are items that can easily be found around each house,” says Swetha Krishnamurthy, the school’s founder. “At this event, these things will be used to make toys. When children create something with items that they see around them, it improves their creativity.” The Loose Parts Play, she explains is part of an effort to raise awareness on the importance of reducing screen time. Both fine motor skills and attention spans are affected by too much time spent on electronic gadgets.