ABSTRACT
This chapter suggests a Messy Play Framework. On the Microlevel it helps meet children's and adults' need to experience Autonomy, Relatedness and Competence in material engagements. On the Macrolevel it serves as a tool for planning a balance between adult/child-led activities. Messy play cameos are explored at different points on this sliding scale, unpicking the plethora of decisions involved and importance of planning for continuity. By using the framework as a planning tool on the Microlevel, it is possible for practitioners to gradually build their own relatedness without compromising on their competence and autonomy. While adult-initiated interventions like creating papier mache birds would certainly satisfy Beckerleg's call for clear objectives and planning, as autonomy resides with the adult, they also limit the potential and ownership of children's material engagements. Rather than advocating a 'one-size-fits-all' approach to material engagements, a sliding scale of provision is proposed.
