Happy, Messy Little Hands – 3 Fun Recipes

Watching little hands explore and experiment with messy play is amazing.  Their faces light up while they are totally absorbed by the task at hand, engaging so many of their senses.

Children’s imaginations are sparked when they have the opportunity to play with tactile  materials like pasta, rice, sand, water, chalk, paint, play dough or paste. They make their own discoveries and subsequently this stimulates their curiosity and develops knowledge too.

We think there are a handful of reasons why messy play is so important in the early years for children.

What Messy Play Can Do for Children

Fosters Curiosity, Imagination and Exploration

Children play with these materials learning foundation skills. They love to pour, pack and puddle the materials with trial, error, delight and frustration. Curiosity helps children to be observant and think to figure out a process.

Promotes Physical Development

Hands-on play offers many physical benefits, allowing children to develop an awareness of their body and personal space. All the while, they are strengthening their muscle control and inciting muscle memory. Activities such as pouring, shovelling or drawing in the sand, for example, help build strength in the large muscle groups at the top of the arms and it is these muscles that then enable the smaller muscles in the hands and fingers to make precise and controlled movements.

Supports the Ability to Play Independently

Among today’s younger generation, some say children are losing the ability to be able to amuse themselves with all those electronic distractions. With messy play, it’s open-ended and children – as they learn to make their own entertainment – can play for ages.

Encourages Communication and Language Development

Messy play naturally enriches social relationships. It can be such a fabulously engaging activity, both with family and other children. Young children can’t always explain the situation verbally, so getting their hands messy, in a group, allows them to create experiences share their discoveries in different ways.

Practices Good Concentration and Nurtures Future Skills

Concentration levels are high while engaging in messy play. From exploring objects and engaging all of their senses to thinking through their discoveries and trying to communicate them children happily learn to concentrate as well as concentrate as they learn.

 

The Recipes

Here are 3 of our favourite simple messy play ideas to keep toddlers busy. These are recipes to keep your little one busy and active:

1. Coloured Play doughIngredients:
   2 cups plain flour
   1 cup salt
   1 tbsp oil
   1 cup cold water
   2 drops liquid food colouringStep 1: Combine plain flour and salt
   Step 2: Add water, food colouring and oil. Mix until ingredients are combined.
   Knead well
   Step 3: If consistency is too wet add a little plain flour

   Original recipe from Australia’s best recipes on Kidspot https://www.bestrecipes.com.au/recipes/no-cook-playdough-recipe/v7a0hvfx

2. Coloured Dried PastaIngredients:
   Dry Pasta (different styles)
   Food Colouring
   Vinegar
   Baking Paper
   Baking trayStep 1: Measure 1 Cup of pasta into a container. Try to do several colours of pasta in different containers and mix them together for rainbow pasta
   Step 2: Add 1 Teaspoon of Vinegar.
   Step 3: Add as much food colouring as desired (deeper colour= more food colouring)
   Step 4: Cover the container and SHAKE vigorously for a minute or two. Check to see if the past is evenly coated
   Step 5: Spread on paper towel or plate to dry in an even layer
   Step 6: Once the coloured pasta is dry transfer to a bin for sensory play

   Original recipe from @littlebinslittlehands https://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/dye-pasta-colored-pasta-sensory-play/

3. Rainbow Foam
   Ingredients:
   1 cup water
   2-3 tbsp soap
   A few different Food colouring
   Hand /blender
   Step 1: Add water, soap, and a drop or 2 of food colouring to the blender
   Step 2: Start at a low speed then increase to medium for about 1-2minures until you like the texture, then pour into a play tray and start playing.
   Original Recipe from @mothercould – https://www.mothercould.com/links

What Messy Play activities do you love to play with?

Share your photos on and tag @edxeducation or #edxeducation so we can share with our community on Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

Each week we will have more fun activities available on the play blog ready for family fun and adventures for children to play and learn together at home and in the classroom.

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Posted by Heather Welch, International Brand Manager, Edx Education