Who knew spaghetti could be so much fun, and educational too! The concept is simple, the results - educational! This activity is fun to do at home (perfect for a rainy day, play-date activity or birthday party game) or it can be used by preschool teachers and babysitters, to keep little fingers busy! Plus, it doesn't break the bank!
Recommended age group: 1-6 years of age (although it really is fun for all).
What you will need:
- A large container with low edges. We used a cat litter tray (not for the cats).
- A large pack of spaghetti.
- Food coloring
- Zip lock bags
Making the colorful spaghetti:
- Cook the spaghetti as you would for a meal (boil on the stove). You don't want the pasta to get too mushy, so take it off the stove as soon as it softens and can bend.
- Rinse thoroughly under cold water to remove the starch, the starch tends to make it a bit too sticky.
- Separate the spaghetti into piles depending on the amount of different colors you want, then place each pile into a zip lock bag.
- Place about 20 drops of food coloring into each bag, zip the bags closed and then toss and turn the bag until the spaghetti is thoroughly colored.
There you go!
Now what?
Well, you can keep the activity simple by placing it into your container and then let your kid/s take the lead. Kids will most likely sink their hands into it, squish it and even eat. This is mostly ideal for very young toddlers. For older children, 2 years and above, you can try out some of these activities, for a variety of fun play!
1. Learn colors! Use this as an opportunity to not only enjoy sensory play but to develop language and visual skills too. Encourage your little one to pick up a piece of spaghetti in the color you mention, he/she will focus on the rainbow of colors to track the or "a" color down (your toddler might not select the right color at first, that's ok). Then you can see if your little one is happy enough to try and repeat the color of the strand he/she has selected and is holding.
2. Little cook. Give your tot some cooking utensils and pots to play with. Encourage him/her to move the spaghetti from one pot/container to the next, using hands or the utensils. Here movement is practiced as well as the concept of "here and there". Excellent for fine motor development.
3. Pincer grip. This activity is perfect for little fingers to develop fine motor skills. Hide objects in the spaghetti (plastic bugs are always fun) and then encourage the kids to search for them among the strands of pasta. Then the need to pick them out using tweezers or tongs.
Images are courtesy of Baby College SA. Baby College SA is a place where parents can take their little ones to enjoy activities they help them develop and practice milestones, while bonding with their little ones at the same time. Parents also get to make new friends, usually with kids in the same age group as theirs.
This really is such a simple way of creating some educational fun for the little ones. It can be done as a group activity or to keep fidgety fingers busy on a rainy day. Whatever is left over can be kept in a container in the fridge for a week max, so you can pull it out at a later stage too.
Having a rainbow them birthday party for your toddler? This is an excellent birthday party trick!