Sensory Play: Why Messy is Best.

Your favourite sensory activities just got better with me, My mantra – the messier, the better. Make playtime kid (& playroom floor) approved.

So why is messy sensory play so important?

By giving little humans endless ways to develop and learn, playtime helps develop physical, cognitive, sensory and those very important communication skills. Messy play with meeko° helps to develop and improve gross and fine motor skills, concentration and co-ordination.

Don’t be Upsetti, eat some Spaghetti.

As adults, our senses provide us with vital information that we use to inform decision making thousands of times a day (…and sometimes making us more indecisive, but that’s for another day!) We take this for granted and barely notice our 1000000 thoughts flying by, it’s for this reason that helping little humans learn about their own senses is so, very important. For example, Frank, the fussiest 1 year old on the block screams bloody murder when served foods with a wet texture, such as spaghetti. By introducing Frank into sensory play here he can touch, smell and play with wet textures in a controlled environment, he can learn trust and understanding without getting overloaded. He’s then learnt to build positive pathways in his brain to say it is safe to engage with this food. Pasta la vista, baby (*cue lifelong love of Italian food), great work Frank. Sensory activities allow kids to refine their thresholds for different sensory information and help them learn which are useful and which can be filtered out.

Where to start?

Pre plan your activities. Each week on the blog my makers will be sharing a new sensory activity to encourage scientific thinking, problem solving and imaginative play. Sensory play includes any activity that stimulates a little human’s senses of touch, smell, taste, sight and hearing, as well as anything which engages movement and balance. The best part, sensory play is only really limited by your own imagination and types of play appropriate to kids ages and ability.  

Ideas for babies: Using a bubble wand, blow bubbles to watch them float, land on their skin & pop.

Ideas for toddlers: Introduce finger paint (water-based on meeko° only please!), watch the colours mix and end in different swirls and lines on a page. Cut up a kitchen sponge to dip the paint in and experiment with stamping. 

Ideas for pre-school aged children: Create shapes and patterns with kinetic sand, the messier the better!