Rainbow Pasta Cutting

Children are often taught not to play with their food. However, children actually learn best when they explore the many sensations around eating. Joy used to put yogurt in her hair and mix it in like it was conditioner. She would rub sauce on her arm as if it was lotion. She still does what some would think are “odd” table/eating habits, like dipping her carrot stick in water. I encourage that sort of exploration in eating because it is the very thing that helps Joy better understand her own body and what feels, tastes, and smells good!

At first Joy explored the sensory bin with her hands, and then dove her arms in as if swimming. She made remarks about the temperature being chilly and the feeling “gooey.” She chose to work with the spring-back scissors at first and very quickly snipped several strands in the pile. She then moved to the safety scissors and settled on them for the rest of her play. Her imagination took off as she brought her plastic horses into the bin and proceeded to give them all haircuts. We then gave the horses a bath to wash the oil off of them. Follow your child and let some magical, fun, and sometimes messy play evolve!