Playdough Pasta and Straws - Toddler Sensory & Small Muscle Exercise

What I love most about playdough is the toddler educational benefits.  Playdough is probably the number one way to play to strengthen those small muscles in little fingers.  While they are molding and smooshing and manipulating the playdough, those little toddler finger muscles are getting a workout.  And strong finger muscles are needed to hold a pencil properly and control it and write.  Who knew playdough was so amazing, right?

You can set up the scenario at the table for your kiddo.  I started with a glob of playdough and poked 3 thin straws into the glob.  Roo immediately knew what to do, but if your toddler needs help, you can model what they are supposed to do.  Fit the pasta onto the straw and let it slide down.  Repeat again and again.  Toddlers learn through repetition.  You may go bored with it, but a while a toddler is exploring, they are learning.

This activity held Roo (who is 21 months) for about 30 minutes.  That's a looong time in toddler time!  Let your kiddo experiment and play until their attention span wears thin.  It could be 2 minutes.  It could be 22 minutes. 

Have a fun and playful day
Mel

Exploring Textures with Playdough

I love playdough.  I love the texture of it.  I love the creations. I even love the smell (am I weird?)  But what I love most about playdough is the educational benefits.  Playdough is probably the number one way to play to strengthen those small muscles in little fingers.  While they are molding and smooshing and manipulating the playdough, those little finger muscles are getting a workout.  And strong finger muscles are needed to hold a pencil properly and control it and write.  Who knew playdough was so amazing, right?

Today, we explored playdough and pasta (lions and tigers and bears oh my!).  We rolled the pasta across making ridges and made flower or gear impressions by pressing the end of the pasta into the playdough.

Phew!  That was a mighty good workout!

Have a fun and playful day
Mel

Makin Monsters

 Wanna make some crazy monsters or creatures or maybe aliens?

 Super easy. Super fun. Give your kiddo a glob of playdough, some straws, pasta, googly eyes, and other materials you have on hand.

 Let them poke poke poke away, adding whatever they like. I had fun making one, too. Playdough is therapeutic, I think.

What will you make today?

Have a fun and playful day
Mel

Straw Necklace Update

Our straw necklaces turned Put super cute with this orange polka dotted ribbon that we had left over from another project. Miracle of miracles, we had just enough ribbon for BOTH necklaces! Simple and easy easy project.

Have a fun and playful day
Mel

Straw Necklaces

This morning, we practiced some scissor skills by cutting up these happy color straws.

After nap, we are going to string them into ribbon to make necklaces - which is good small muscle exercise.

Have a fun and playful day
Mel

small motor skills - a balancing act

My friend Cari teaches preschool and sent me this idea. I revamped it a little.

Golf pegs are stuck in playdough (recipe below). Kiddos exercise their little finger muscles trying to balance small toys or marbles pom pom balls on the peg.

We played with small toys from Safari Ltd toobs or erasers or pom poms.

Roo who is 21 months mastered it quickly.

Smelly Playdough Recipe
1 box corn starch
1 bottle conditioner - any scent
Mix

It smells so so good! We used kiwi lime off brand from the Dollar tree dollar store. Any scent works great and really wakes up the brain.

Have a fun and playful day
Mel

Planting a Toddler Garden 2

A couple weeks ago, I did a different version of this toddler garden but with fake flowers (and broccoli, too!).  Roo,age 20 months, LOVED it.  It's a great activity to strengthen those little finger muscles.  (You want strong finger muscles, so you can hold a pencil and control it when writing.)  I decided to do this activity again for a few reasons:
1. She loved making the garden
2. It's Spring
3. I found a Flowers Toob at Joann

This fun, colorful Toob from Safari Ltd has 8 flowers (2 Toobs are shown here).  Their stems easily pushed into the Model Magic dough from Crayola.  Doesn't it loo like a garden in full bloom?

Roo was busy "planting" her garden then "unplanting" over and over.  I think her Babyzilla side took over and she enjoyed destroying the garden as much as planting it!:)  Such a toddler.  Then, Big Sister walked into the room.

"I want to plant a garden, too.  I love working in the garden with Daddy." G, age 4.  So G planted the garden and Roo picked all the flowers.  Then, G had to replant.  It was a cycle - again and again with lots of giggles in between.

Have a fun and playful day
Mel

Planting a Toddler Garden

Roo had so much fun helping Big Sister make her Rainbow Forest that I decided to create something just for her to do and realized that it is a great fine muscle builder!  I had random fake flowers left over from a project, picked up the wooden fence recently in Target's Dollar Spot (it was $3), and used a coupon at Joann to get the Crayola Model Magic for under $3.

First, let the child squish and smoosh the model magic into the "garden".  This was a lot of fun.  Roo doesn't like much sensory stuff like playdough, because it leaves a film on her fingers.  But Model Magic does not feel like that at all and she loved it.

Then, just start poking the plants in.

Add more and more...

Yes, we did add some broccoli heads.  We had them left over from the weekend and were kind of soft.  But it does make a good connection...broccoli>garden>plants>earth.

Of course, I added some animals.

They are Jesse James Dress It Up buttons.

It actually makes a cute centerpiece, right?

Love her chunky little hands.

I think she had more fun "picking" from the garden!  What can I say?  She is a toddler.  Destroying things is in her dna.

As we are expecting yet another snow, it's fun to plant a garden and hope for Spring.  Hurry, Spring!  What's the saying...To Plant A Garden Is To Hope For The Future. 

Have a fun and playful day!
Mel