“Junk” Worth Keeping

Some of your child's most valuable, open-ended play comes from your recycling!

Unlock the hidden potential of your recycling bin and turn everyday objects into unparalleled learning opportunities for your preschooler. While most store-bought toys limit creativity with their single-purpose designs, recycled materials are delightfully open-ended, allowing children to manipulate, explore, and reinvent without limitations.

When you offer your child safe, clean, and repurposed materials, you aren’t just saving money—you’re triggering imaginative play and helping your child develop essential problem-solving skills, confidence, and independence.

This guide provides a wealth of ideas for collecting “junk” that your child will truly get excited about, from simple cardboard tubes and egg cartons to natural materials like shells and pine cones. They’ll spend hours happily occupied with their new favorite “treasures,” and you’ll get to watch them learn (and gain a sense of accomplishment seeing those throwaway materials repurposed).

Click the image below to download [58 page - PDF].