5 Ways With… Cornflour
5 ways with... is a series that gives you a whole week of ideas with one resource! This time we're focusing on cornflour.
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If your wee one...
- Mixes all the colours of paint into brown
- Tries to pour water onto their food (or put food into their drink)
- Loves mushing and mixing
- Spends ages at the beach mixing sand and water (or knocking down sandcastles!)
They’re not being “naughty” – they’re exploring the transforming schema
Schemas are patterns of repeated behaviours which children engage in. They are a crucial part of development and learning. Here are some ideas can help channel their interest.
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1. Dough
Creating your own dough is great for sensory play, but it also helps wee one’s understand how mixing things can change them into something new. Let them experiment with the ingredients – the mixing and testing may be more important to them than creating the “perfect” dough model.
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2. Smashing!
Chalk is a fantastic resource because it can be turned from something solid into something else. Smash it, make your own putty, draw with water, or change it into dust with sandpaper!
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3. Magic Potions
Wee ones love mixing together their own potions. Using store cupboard ingredients is great for wee ones who still like exploring everything with their mouths, or once they’re past that stage you can go hunting for natural resources to mix together. Food colouring is a great non-toxic way to explore colours.
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4. Spa Day
Create your own (edible) face masks using things like oats, bananas, avocado, yoghurt and coconut oil. Let your wee one squish soft foods with their hands and chat about the way ingredients are transformed as they mix together.
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5. Imaginative Play
Think about transforming every day objects. What else could a cup be – a hat? a telephone? Act out some ideas and make sound effects and faces together!
More ideas that explore the transforming schema...
5 Ways With… Chalk
5 ways with... is a series that gives you a whole week of ideas with one resource! This time we're focusing on chalk.
5 Ways With… Water
5 ways with... is a series that gives you a whole week of ideas with one resource! This time we're focusing on water.
Edible Spa Day Potions
Wee ones love exploring and mixing different ingredients, and these ones can be smeared on your FACE! Oats, banana, avocado, yoghurt, coconut oil and honey all make great face masks.
Magic Potion Pictures
Children love gathering and mixing all kinds of store cupboard ingredients to make potions – let the bubbles make a magic potion picture.
I Wonder What This Is?
It's a classic - take an object and pretend it's something else. I wonder what this is… a hat? A steering wheel? A dinner plate? An eyebrow? Act out as many ideas as you can think of, making sound effects and funny faces as you go.
Dough Disco
You can make dough with flour and water, cornflour and conditioner, or use pre-made dough. Spread it out like a pancake then crank up your favourite tunes - it's time to make your fingers 'dance' in a dough disco!
12 Days of Wee Inspirations :
Mistledough
Christmas is full of new smells for wee ones! This dough helps them explore them (and makes your kitchen smell like a winter wonderland).
Creative Skills Podcast :
Seed Bomb Tacos
Air drying clay filled with soil and seeds makes great seed bombs. Layer, then fold over to make a “taco”. Use papier-mâché (or eco-friendly paste and tissue paper) to make colourful art between slabs, in cracks in walls or in trees.
Chalk Puddles
Did you know chalk makes stronger, brighter marks when wet? Outline a puddle with chalk and see how your wee one chooses to play. Choose a puddle near home so its a quick walk back if you end up soggy or a bit muddy.
No Brush Painting
Today we're painting with everything except brushes: potato mashers, combs, toothbrushes, sponges, bubble wrap - anything washable.
Eye Bombing
As you chat to your baby, press your nose and pretend you've been muted. To your surprise, you keep mouthing words, but no noise comes out! Press again, and you can make noise again.
