In the Den we have been celebrating the Hindu festival Holi, a festival of colours by incorporating colour into all aspects of play. At group work our children were invited to use pipettes to take primary food colouring mixture and add it to a plate of corn flour engaging children’s curiosity, imagination and experimentation.
Messy play helps refine our children’s sense of touch and the richer the textural experiences, the richer their cognitive and language development will be, how else can a child understand the concept of slimy unless they have felt it.
Children also explore cause and effect talking about what they are doing and what is happening making their own discoveries as the primary colours mixed to create new colours. These activities develop fine motor skills and hand eye co-ordination. There is no ‘right’ way to do messy play which improves self-confidence and self-esteem.
As children explore the cause and effect of their actions they can begin to predict what will happen and evaluate information gaining a greater understanding of the scientific method. Messy play allows children to become involved and get to know one another. Children with English as a second language and those with limited words benefit from messy play as it doesn’t rely on words.
Sharing experiences together, making sounds and facial expressions can help all children feel part of the group. Try it at home and be amazed how engaged your children become!
Tam