Wash the animals: DIY Mud for Sensory Play 🐖🐏🦓 HOME SCHOOL VACATION CHALLENGE

Hello everyone!

Finally I get the chance (and by that meaning TIME) to share with you this activity I often do with my little one in the SUMMER! Yes, only in Summer because it gets messy and I only do it outside the house..

Still, you maybe can adapt your Bathroom space for this activity?! Hmmm....YES, you can!

This post right here (the first of several to come these days) is my entry for the challenge.

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Challenge?

Yes, you hear it right! 🔔

It's a challenge in Home Edders community, where you'll have to submit an entry with one or more educational games/activities you do at home with your child, during the summer vacation, for the sake of learning and for getting time off of the screens.

Read more about it here. It's still plenty of time, till 14th August, but don't forget time flies fast!

And by saying this, I invite @thisismylife @annymharie, @artmom and @buckaroobaby to participate if you girls have time, ofc 😊!

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Ok, good luck everyone! 💗 Now let me tell you about what we were doing here!

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It's called Safe-to-Eat MUD Sensory Play Box

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You only need these few ingredients and things I bet you have them at home:

• flour
• cacao powder
• water
• 2 plastic box/containers (glass works too but I feel plastic it's much safer if the kids are smaller, like mine). You need 2 of these.
  -animal figurines

Put everything (flour, cacao powder, water) in the container and give it a good stir, until the mixture has a fluid consistency. You'll not when/if it's right. ;)

Then put only water in the second tray.

My son helped with this, he used the spoon to mix the ingredients. So I think it's a good start.

Fine motor skills on work!

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Description

The purpose of this activity is that the child wash the dirty animals, using his little fingers and hands. He's holding an old tooth brush which he uses and thats basically when fine motor skills and dexterity kicks in.

Concentration, patience to finish the activity are also requires and mind you, for a 3 years old its not that easy. So yes, I think 2 yers old kids can try this and maybe 5-6 yrs old maximum...I dont believe that this is fun for older kids.

But for toddlers and preschoolers it is! A LOT OF FUN!!

Besides what I just mentioned above, I named all the animals both in English and Romanian, so we can practice a bit of English as well with this activity.

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Maybe it would be better to have a second tray filled with clean water.

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Sensory Play ?

There was a lot of Sensory Play involved.

Those hands in mud...oh my! They like it a lot!

Sensory play it's always the best way for small kids to learn and understand the world around them.

Sensory play helps with making connections in the kid's brain, like "Ohh that's how mud feels". It's experiencing, not just hearing and reading about it. It's the same example with flowers. If you read to your kid about flowers, they eventually will imagine how a flower feels or smells, but the real thing is when they touch and smell the flower.

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My son chose which animals would be eventually washed. He absoluetely loved this activity, but he didnt washed them all.

In the end, his numbers were in the mud as well! It couldnt be other way!

And he continued to play in the water/mud. That was the best part for him.

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SO what do you say mamas? Would you try it? Do you consider this to be helpful or fun?

You can replace animals with...something else. The sensory part is important and the focus on washing the items, understanding the concept and what kids are supposed to do.

Thank you for reading,

And don't forget about the challenge! Can't wait to read your entries!

Love, Missdeli