Play is an amazing thing. Children can do it without even having a toy. They can do it with empty bottles, a pot, wooden spoons or empty boxes. These are called “open-ended” toys because they can be used in many ways.

With these wonderful “toys” a child can check out her ideas about how things work.

Your young child always is into checking out her ideas and thoughts. You may think that when she drops her spoon from the highchair that it was a mistake. It might be but it also might be a way she can test what it will sound like when it drops or just wants to see how it will drop.

The key to making play meaningful even with household items is to first keep it fun. Your involvement can add in significant ways (Mind in the Making). Researchers have found that, “When a parent joins in … it always elevates the level of play.”

Parents should join in but should never take over. They have to follow the child’s conversation and lead. They need to talk about the kinds of things that the child is interested in even if they have a different way to do things.

Always make sure that you make eye contact as you play. Talk about what you see and hear. Follow your child’s leads and follow up what the child says with questions like “Why did you like that?” Make a conversation or a game out of what you are doing with your child by taking turns.

During mealtime, bath time and any time in your daily routine, there are easy ways to nurture your child’s interest in learning. When you stop at a signal, talk with your child about where the people might be going who are walking across the street. When it is time to turn out the light, let him do it and talk about what he has accomplished by turning the light on and off. When he is in the bathtub, see what ideas he has about the soap bubbles and what they look like to him.

When you are making dinner, talk about what you are doing. Ask him questions so you can have a give and take conversation. All of these conversations are building blocks for his mind. The ways you join in but never take over are helping him build a strong brain.

Look around for household items that make different sounds and have different size parts. Encourage him to explore what sounds each thing makes and how you can change the sounds. Let him take anything apart that comes apart. In the summer, be sure to do similar things outside that use water.

Even turn the time when you are picking up toys into a game. Tell him you will pick up two toys while he picks up one. You can tell him you will pick up the red toys if he can pick up the blue ones. Even if he doesn’t know numbers or colors, this will help him learn them. You even can have him guess which toy you will pick up next. Give him hints about the toy such as it is round or it bounces.

Cleanup is a learning time just as play. Actually, cleanup should be part of play time.

One of the most important parts of your involvement as your child plays is the back and forth conversations you can have. Many parents don’t realize just how important it is to talk with their children. We now know that merely talking to the child makes him smarter.

So whether you are a parent, a grandparent, a child care provider or a neighbor, play with the child on his terms. Talk with him about what is happening and see him open up.

All of this not only makes it more fun for him, but it certainly will make it more fun for you.

Cynthia Martin is the founder of the First Teacher program and director of Parenting Matters Foundation, which publishes newsletters for parents, caregivers and grandparents. Reach Martin at pmf@olypen.com or at 681-2250.