I’ve seen the cutest Spring themed sensory tubs all over the blogosphere, so today I decided to put together one for Elli. Since this was a last minute deal, I just gathered spring colored items that I already had. Some she’s been playing with and some have been ignored for a while. I added in Sammi’s left-handed chopsticks, a purple spoon and a measuring cup for added fun.
Sifting through the corn, finding the little toys and even picking up the corn that falls out of the tub are all great activities for developing fine motor skills. She had the added challenge of using Sammi’s left-handed chopsticks. She was able to pick up several things for me and had a blast!
As I was coaxing her unsuccessfully into picking up the corn on the floor, I experienced a moment of parenting-inspiration and turned it into a game. Games work every time! I don’t know why it takes so long for me to remember that. This game was about counting. I picked up one or two kernels, showed them to Elli and asked her how many I had in my hand. We counted them together until she could identify one or two by herself. We never did get three mastered! But then I asked her how many she had. She’d pick up as many as she could and then show me. We counted them together (usually four or five) and she put them in the tub and did it again. She was cleaning up and practicing numbers without even knowing it! Love that kind game.
