Edible Farm Sensory Play
When it comes to sensory play, babies and toddlers just love to explore using all their senses but we all know that they like to explore things using their mouths so ensuring sensory play is taste safe is hugely important.
Babies like to use their mouths to explore because their mouths are full of sensory nerves that allow them to really explore what something is like. By using their mouths they are learning if items are hard or soft, warm or cool, smooth or furry. So at a young age children are already experiencing sensory play through exploring items using their mouths.
Why is sensory play important?
Stimulating the senses through play stimulates healthy brain development in many ways. It's thought that the brain goes through it's biggest development before you are 5 years old. Sensory play is great for developing motor skills, language, imagination, problem solving, concentration and learning through play.
Edible items for taste safe play
When it comes to creating an edible play experience for young children obviously this includes providing safe items that your baby can safely put in their mouths.
For my edible farm I used peeled cucumber to represent grass, cheerios, shredded wheat to duplicate hay, oats (soak in water or milk before using) and some cocoa powder mixed with water to replicate mud. These are all completely adaptable though some other ideas include:
Cereals such as Weetabix, Rice Krispies, Cheerios, Cornflakes
Vegetables such as grated carrot (not small pieces as it's a choking hazard), sweetcorn and peas
Yoghurt
Cooked pasta shapes
I chose to set up the edible farm on an old IKEA cutlery tray because it has separate sections. I added the different foods to each section and then added some small plastic farm animals.
When setting up any messy activity I use a tuff spot tray. They are perfect for containing mess and with young children the mess tends to escalate quickly! I put a bib on my 9 month old to help catch any falling bits.
Obviously it goes without saying not to leave your child unattended during this activity. My little one absolutely loved this activity. She explored all the different textures with her hands and her mouth. It did get very messy, mostly thanks to the cocoa powder. It's a great activity especially when using smaller items such as cheerios or sweetcorn that can help with developing the pincer grip. Lots of learning and development going on in this activity:
Developing motor skills and coordination
Small world play building imaginations
Encouraging role play
Expanding language skills
More sensory play ideas include:
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