Valentine Garland

Sensory play and fine motor skills were the main themes for this toddler Valentine garland. I like creating projects for kids that are ongoing, meaning that we may create a painting or in this case marbleized paper one week, then make something from that painting. 

We created marbleized paper using the shaving cream method, a perfect sensory project for our toddler class.  I gave each student a tray of shaving cream, a cup of watercolor paint, a pipette and a chop stick to stir the paint into the shaving cream.

They added a few colors of paint using the pipette. The pipette isn't all that easy to use. It can take a few turns before they begin to understand the cause and effect actions of squeezing the bulb to get the ink into the tube and squeezing the tube to get the ink out of the tube.
They then use the chopstick to swirl and mix the colors together.

As the children drip and swirl, the parents are ready with paper to swoop in and take a print off the tray. The children and parents gently pat the paper onto the tray lift and set aside to dry before we wipe off the dried shaving cream.

The following week the paper was ready for cutting into hearts, which the parents did while the kids were joining some warm up drawing and hole punching, which some of the kids tried and succeeded in accomplishing.

Then the sewing began, having the kids choose their own color of yarn and a plastic needle. They moved the needle and yarn in and out of the holes in the hearts to create the garland.

Happy Valentines Day!!