ABSTRACT
Existing literature on children’s play materials predominantly reflects theoretical frameworks and empirical data generated in the Global North, where ideas of “developmental appropriateness” often overlook the socio-cultural specificity of materials’ affordances and parental expectations. This leaves a critical gap concerning the agency of parents within Global South contexts, particularly in China, where high-stakes educational expectations strongly shape family interactions. To address this, the current study asks: How do affordances of play materials shape Chinese parents’ interaction with their children? Using innovative media-elicitation techniques, data were collected through online, researcher-facilitated workshops and a home-based video documentation activity. Parents recorded their children (aged 3–6) engaging with commercially designed toys as well as open-ended materials like loose wooden blocks and sand, allowing for a naturalistic capture of play dynamics. Qualitative analysis of focus group discussions on recorded and processed media resources revealed three interlinked thematic findings. First, parents expressed a sense of surprise and amazement when their children engaged with open-ended materials, whereas clearly structured toys prompted evaluative responses that confined the play experience to pre-determined functions. Second, play materials with built-in “answers” often induced parental stress, as they were repeatedly called upon to clarify or support play activities, thus limiting opportunities for relaxed co-engagement. Third, materials with explicit educational affordances elicited more scaffolding behaviours, reflecting the cultural emphasis on learning through play within the competitive Chinese educational context. The findings not only illuminate the interplay between material features and parental agency but also suggest practical mechanisms for shifting parental perspectives towards more child-centred, exploratory play.