This month in the St Nicholas preschool room, we experimented with several activities related to developing children's tactile senses.
**Sand Play: Educator Bailey mixed some smooth green stones and sand together for the children to play with. Roman picked up stones from the sand and placed them in a bowl, and cup. He carefully did it many times, over and over again. Michelle picked up stones from sand and arranged them into different shapes. Sand and stone games are a wonderful way for children to explore the world and develop themselves. They are children's first hands-on lessons in science, engineering, and art.
**Playdough Activity: The children, with the help and guidance of educators, made green playdough together. We also prepared some playdough molds. Olivia and Elijah flattened the play-dough by hand and then used molds to cut out their favorite gingerbread man. In this process, the children played with the play- dough by kneading, pinching, pressing, rolling, and squeezing, which not only provided rich tactile stimulation but also strengthened their hand muscles and fine motor skills.
**Snow Play Activity: Snow has arrived early, and it's also Christmas time. We put snow in containers and added Christmas decorations. The children used these decorations to create various shapes. Xander used bells and twigs to create a Christmas scene on the snow. He also made a cold face when he touched the snow and said it was cold. Michelle used some bells and pom- poms to make a beautiful Christmas wreath. Educator Sue also prepared some colored paint, brushes and some snowflakes with pipe cleaners for them to use. Children made use of them to paint the snow in beautiful colors. Abigail and Vivaan carefully drove their toy cars through the colored snow. Sue, seeing this, explained that when driving in the snow, it requires extreme caution and safety. While outdoors, Roman and Vivaan put their faces on a large snowball, and enjoyed the coolness of the snow. Playing with the snow can develop children's creativity and imagination because snow is an open-ended material that can be transformed into anything. Snow provides unique sensory stimulation—the cold feeling and the sparkling visuals—all of which enrich children's sensory exploration.
** Cornstarch and Baby Oil Activity: Educator Mia mixed some cornstarch and baby oil together for the children to play with. Noemie mixed in some colorful pom-poms and said, "Look, I made a pizza." Alex placed some Q-tip pieces vertically in the mixture and said, "I made a birthday cake." Destin and Kali-Ann also created different items, expressing their creative thinking.
** Baking Soda and Water Activities: Educator Mia added some water to the flour for the children to play with. She also prepared some small paper cups and loose parts. The children used these to make many creative structures and items. Then, under Mia's guidance, the children put vinegar on top. The children were pleasantly surprised to see a big change in what they had created. A mixture of flour, baby oil, and baking soda is also an open-ended material. Children are free to shape it into anything they can imagine. This greatly stimulates their creativity and imagination, and it supports their regulation as it is a calming activity. This activity enhances a full range of sensory exploration, including sight, smell, and even hearing.
Through these activities, children learn about object properties through touch, such as hot, cold, slippery, dry, rough, soft, and sticky, thus understanding cause and effect.
In thinking of next steps, we will provide children with more tactile and sensory games, such as painting with their feet and wrapping themselves tightly in blankets in winter.
