Sensory activity with dry pasta

 

I love spending time with my little munchkin but as a working mum, I don't have enough time with him. I reached home from work at around 6pm and he sleeps at 8pm. Therefore, the 2 hours we have is very precious to me.  When he was younger, we spent the time cuddling each other and reading books. But now he is older, I think I should introduce some learning activity to our 2 hours quality time.  I want him to feel that mum is not just for comfort but mum can be a friend too.

 

I started to look for some activity online that is easy to setup and is great fun for my little boy who is now 28 months. I found this sensory activity using dry pasta and this activity helps the little ones to explore their sense of touch and sound.

 

What you need for this activity

• A big container to store the pasta
• 2 bags of Coles small pasta shells (500g per bag)
• Recycled yogurt cups, measuring spoons and some recycled plastic containers

 

 

I set it up on his play table with the lid still closed on the container. He was so excited and he kept on drumming the lid on the container like the drum rolling and waiting for me to reveal the mystery behind the lid. Once I lifted the lid he immediately dipped his hand into the container to feel the pasta. His face was filled with excitement and he kept on laughing and smiling.  It is priceless to see such happiness on his face.

Such a simple activity for us as an adult but it is quite challenging for the little ones. He was very engaged with the activity and I thought to myself that this is a very good activity for him to learn to scoop the pasta and to fill up the containers without spilling on the table. When the shell pasta drop on the floor, he will say “Opps! Pasta drop.” Then, he will pick it up and put it back on this spoon. It is so cute to see him so serious.  He loves to shake the little containers when the lids are closed because it reminds him of the sound made by the maracas.  (He has a set of percussion instruments)

This activity turns out not just a sensory activity but he learned so much more than that. I am so happy seeing him having fun while learning. I will definitely try to find more of these activities to play with him. 

NOTE: Pasta can be a real choking hazard so please be careful. I stayed by his side the whole time while he was playing with it.