Coloured Rice

So simple to make, so easy to use and it provides you with so many play options! I made a few batches of coloured rice yesterday (see the recipe if you want to try it, cinch!) and set up a 'pouring and transferring' table for Eden. I just laid a sheet on the floor, put some mixed coloured rice into a roasting tray and gave her a broad serving spoon (to use as a shovel), a funnel and a cup. Then I put some rice into containers by colour, so she could mix it up herself. As you can see in the photos, she really enjoyed it, and it occupied her in some quiet, solo play for over an hour (woo-hoo)!
          

For a different experience, I set it up again this afternoon with bits from her tea set and some of her play pots, pans and utensils. She had a ball serving rice tea and pouring it from the teapot into the cups (see below).

          

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At nearly six months old, Ava is obviously to young to play with rice in the same way as Eden, so I put some rice into a medium sized ziplock bag and put a few little objects in it (see photo below) and sealed the bag up with masking tape. She mushes it around with her hands (and her feet) to find the objects hidden by the rice. It's actually a very tactile activity for her, even though she's feeling the objects through the plastic, but obviously requires supervision, just in case the bag breaks.

          

Other coloured rice activities which I intend to try include:

• Pouring some into plastic bottles to form shakers.
• Pouring some into a cardboard cylinder and sealing up the ends, getting your tot to decorate the cylinder with stickers or oil-based crayons to make some more shakers!
• Drawing a basic picture (or a letter/number) onto stiff cardboard with a thick marker, covering the picture with PVC and letting your littlie sprinkle rice over it. Leave to set for a few minutes, then shake off the excess.
• Using the rice to make some beanbags (ok, ricebags) from felt. You'd obviously have to do the sewing yourself, but your toddler could 'paint' a picture on the bags with fabric paint, or they could superglue sequins or lace onto it. 

I'm sure there are heaps of other ideas out there, feel free to post ideas you have in the comments section! ~ L.

This post has been linked to Baby Play Friday at Sense of Wonder.

Sandpaper Pictures

Sounds weird, I know, but the concept is really simple. Cut up some wool or yarn in different colours at different lengths, grab a piece of (unused) sandpaper of medium grain, and let your child use the yarn/wool to make pictures on the sandpaper. Cinch! I store ours in a big ziplock bag, to keep all the yarn together.

It's Art, Dah-Link!

Toddlers often fall in love with painting from the first time they try it, and in our home that meant that at least twice a week we have to do some painting. This is a lot (to me) when you consider that life still happens! Playgroup, shopping, library story time, catching up with friends, playdates, cooking, playcentres, housework... and painting twice a week.

This causes some dilemmas! Firstly, it means I have to come up with different painting experiences for Eden (eg. Watercolours, fingerpaint, nature painting, and I have a dozen more ideas I've yet to try). Secondly, it means we end up with a lot, a LOT of paintings. I believe it is very important to display your child's artwork in your home, it gives them a sense of pride and boosts their self-esteem to know that something they have made is on show. So, that meant that a full wall in our home was always covered in Eden's art (see photos). Even then, I have to edit and let her choose her favourite pieces - she is very prolific.

  My solution for the second dilemma has been to buy a number of bright frames (see IKEA for the same ones we bought, cheap too) and to put them up with those removeable adhesive hooks. This has served to really showcase Eden's best art pieces. I let her play the art curator and select her fave pieces to display. Then I take photos of the rest of her art that she likes, and I plan on printing up the photos and letting her stick them into a scrapbook-album (I got ours for under $10 from Sam's Warehouse) so we can still show off her art, but the walls are spared! Also, will be a beautiful keepsake to show her when she's 21 :)

Brighten Up Chalk Drawings

We have done many chalk drawings on coloured paper in our home, but Eden's favourite combo is the black paper/white chalk duo, because of the contrast - it stands out the brightest. So, I made up a mixture of 1/4 cup sugar to 1 cup water and soaked some 'sidewalk' chalk in it (because these sticks of chalk are thicker), and laid them on some paper towels. She did a few drawings with the wet chalk on black paper, and initially it's almost like invisible ink; it just looks like she's drawn with water. But when it dries, the colours are so bright! She had a ball watching the colours brighten as they dried (and so did her Daddy). If you want to keep any of the pictures, just lightly spray them with some hairspray! This is a great one for kids from as young as one year old, just be sure to supervise them. why not give it a go next rainy day? ~ L.

Oil Pastel Pictures

 I know it looks like scribble to most people, but to me this is very artsy. I love the look of these pictures. We have about a dozen of them, 'cause my little girl got caught up in her creativity (woo hoo!), and I think these pics are so effective.
All that's required is some black paper and oil pastels. Of course, you can use whatever colour paper you like, but black is a great foil for bright colours.

 I located my oil pastels, covered the coffee table in newspaper and let Eden knock herself out. It actually occupied her for over an hour, and she kept telling me "it's ok Mummy, you can go now" (!) so it turned out to be a great activity for her to do with minimal supervision. If you plan on trying this out with your littlies, make sure they're wearing old clothes or a smock, - you'd be surprised where the oil pastels end up. Eden had smudges on her neck and under the coffee table!

A variation of this activity which I have yet to try, is to use the oil pastels on white paper, then getting Eden to do a wash with some watercolours over the top. I think either variation could result in some wonderful pictures to use for making cards. ~ L.