As a multi-faceted and stimulating sensory resource glitter is an extremely relaxing and calming material and that’s the reason it should be an integral part of all crafting and arts activities and always available within your environment.
Have you ever witnessed children having fun and playing with glitter? They are so absorbed by the glitter that they are completely absorbed. The eyes of the children twinkle when they are captivated by the sparkling glitter and they are excited and amused by the way their fun transforms into creativity.
Glitter is not just a source of enjoyment to children, but can also aid in calming the over-excited or angry child, when there is nothing else to be helping. As a teacher in the early years for more than 20 years, I’ve discovered that glitter is a must-have product for craft and art and also as a part of sensory play.
In this piece I will discuss the play using glitter, and the way it aids in the development of children in a holistic way. The play of glitter not only aids children’s development holistically, but it is also a beneficial element of play that is sensory and offers numerous play activities and opportunities for learning.
Glitter play offers a myriad of options for children’s sensory play, much like children play with water. Children love to play with their toys and become extremely focused while pouring, filtering, or passing water through different sizes of bottles and tubes, playing with sinking, floating, and the list goes on. Similar to playing with sand play can provide a range of therapeutic activities, it assists in concentration, increases the fine motor abilities, as well as adds to social and language abilities.
I incorporate glitter into all of my art and craft classes and it’s available to the children anytime in our kindergarten. Children are always drawn to glitter. Even when they’re infants, they become enthralled and are attracted to glittery or shiny objects or toys.
As children get older, their playing habits change and they must experiment. With glitter, children have lots of opportunities to explore. It helps them develop social, intellectual, fine motor skills , and hand-eye coordination. Here are a few examples:
Mark creating for toddlers and pre-schoolers.
Offer activities, like making glitter art. This kind of activity can help strengthen hands, fingers and wrists. Children must be able to move their fingers on their own, as well as utilize the pincer grip (the pincer grip is a technique that uses the thumb and finger). Next step strengthening their wrists and thumbs. Then they must master the art of putting their wrists on tables and to to move their hands freely.
Here are some ways to help marking making. I’ve picked some games that are enjoyable and have an immediate influence on learning and understanding information through the senses and controlling.
Homemade glitter paint
It’s much more enjoyable for pre-schoolers in our younger years than ordinary paint. Here’s the recipe for making your own glitter paint. You’ll require:
1 cup of flour.
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of water.
1 cup of salt.
Food colours you like.
Squeeze bottles.
Large bowl.
Paper.
Combine all of the components together in the large bowl, excluding the colour. Put the mix into the squeeze bottles. Then add a different color to each bottle, and shake it up thoroughly. After it’s all blended, allow the youngsters to spread it onto the paper. When the paint is dry the salt in the paint gives sparkles.
Paint Christmas stars, trees, snow balls, and let your child’s imagination take over. The paint can be used for any occasion and event at our pre-school.
Making fir cones and leaves using glitter glue
Utilizing natural materials can be enjoyable and has the added benefit of helping children discover more about the world around them. They will be able to recognize various types of trees. You’ll need:
A collection of various kinds of fir cones, leaves and other leaves.
Transparent glue.
Glitter.
Paint for posters.
String.
Children should mix wholesale glitter with transparent glue. They can then paint the leaves or color the fir cones and leaves. The leaves can be tied with string and then make an edging of leaves.
Activity with spoons of glitter
This activity assists children with their early years to focus in their coordination of their hands. You’ll need:
Two bowls of the same size.
Teaspoon.
Tray.
Gold or silver sand (or pebbles)
Set the sand into one bowl. The child is required to transfer the sand using a spoon, to the second bowl. This game helps children to focus and concentrate by moving the bright sand between the bowls to the next bowl. Children will gain enhanced hand-eye coordination as well as increased concentration, as well as strengthening the thumb, fingers and wrist muscles.
Glitter sand
Mix glitter and sand. Children are able to use their fingers to create shapes, and later to create numerals and letters. Give paint brushes, forks and rakes to create shapes.
Glitter playdough
Playdough that is glittered with playdough is one of my most loved activities for pre-schoolers of all ages. Making, rolling cutting, sculpting, pushing, squeezing and even tasting playdough help to build the fingers robust.
The addition of glitter adds another additional dimension to the fun. If you are working on a subject taking place in pre-school, make playdough in different colours and glitter, for instance the various colours of playdough that we used in our lesson on “nutrition and food”. The kids made a range of vegetables and fruits from playdough.
We made use of black playdough for our lesson on’space as well as planets’. The kids enjoyed using the dark and silvery glittery playdough to create meteor stars and rocks. Also, offer children shiny beads, silver and gold paper.
These are games that are fun activities , but they have a direct influence on the development of perception and control as well as sensory experiences. There are many other options that provide similar opportunities.
I make use of these calming bottles whenever I have an over-excited and over-stimulated child who requires calming down. The bright, sparkling snow globes are extremely soothing and useful in helping children transition from co-regulation to self-regulation for instance in the event that a child becomes unhappy for any reason and doesn’t want to be soothed and would prefer to be completely alone.
The bottles that soothe children are useful. Put the bottle right in front of the child in a place where they can observe. The bottles can help bring children’s attention to a single location, especially when the child is afraid that no one is there to help.
A child is able to shake the glass upside-down, and immediately concentrate on the swirling glitter before settling. It can have a calm relaxing impact on your brain. The child is calm and not focusing on kicking or pushing. The child’s breathing will slow to a normal level and eventually will reach an appropriate pace.
These bottles can serve as “time out” bottles when a child is struggling to settle down and remain quiet for a several minutes. Offer the child a bottle and request them to remain quiet and look at it until all the sparkle is settled at the bottom. It takes between 10 and fifteen minutes to let the sparkle settle completely down. The kids love watching this. I create this bottle with preschoolers. You’ll require:
Small empty plastic water bottle.
1 cup of clear glue.
Hot water.
Choose the glitter you like.
Hot glue gun.
A large mixing dish.
Hand mixer.
Then, place the clear glue into the mixing container. Add sufficient water so that the container is filled to the neck (taking into consideration the safety of children). Add the glitter you like.
Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and ensure that the glitter and glue is well mixed and the glitter lumps are broken up, and it is completely smooth, and there aren’t any lumps remaining. Once the liquid is at cool enough, make sure that it is filled until it fills about the neck on the bottle made of plastic.
The final (adult) procedure is to secure the lid using the help of a hot glue gun, so that children won’t be in a position get the bottle open.
Edible glitter
This time, I’d like discuss edible glitter. It’s easy and cheap to make, and children will have lots of fun while doing it. When I first explained to my preschoolers that we would be using to make edible glitter, they were quite awed. They wanted to know to let them take a bite of the glitter. I replied, yes that when you decorate your Christmas cookies or cupcakes, they can enjoy the taste of the shimmer. Make these in advance and store the cookies in an air-tight container. The edible glitter is suitable for any occasion like birthday parties Halloween, Easter, Halloween or Christmas, as well as for all of your cooking and baking.
I enjoy doing these kinds of games with my children. They need to understand that it is not necessary to buy everything in the shops. There are many things which can be made by us. These types of games give kids the chance to work as group members, to master basic mathsand build language skills and discover new vocabulary. They teach children skills in social interaction like working in a group by sharing and caring and waiting for their turn and much more. In terms of emotional satisfaction, it gives them the joy of seeing a dazzling finished product.
Making glitter sugar sparkles
Things you’ll need:
One cup of sugar that is granulated.
1 teaspoon of food color of your preference.
Oven tray.
Mixing bowl.
Pre-heat the oven up to 180 degrees. Add the sugar and the color into the mixing bowl and mix the other ingredients thoroughly. Spread them thinly to the baking tray. Place it in the oven at least 10 minutes, or till the sugar is shiny. After the sugar is cool mix it up and keep it in an airtight container. You can use it anytime you want to decorate cakes, biscuits and other things.
Edible salt glitter
It’s easy and cheap It is possible to add shimmer salt into playdough, or make your own paint. You’ll require:
One cup sea salt (or cooking salt).
Two teaspoons or less of food colouring you prefer (depending of how intense you would like the color to look (light or darker).
Oven tray.
Mixing bowl.
The oven should be heated at 180°C. Add the salt and the colour into the mixing bowl and mix. After mixing, thinly spread it onto the baking tray, then place it within the oven to bake for 10 minutes. When the salt has chilled, mix it up again and keep it in an airtight container.
Making use of natural materials and mixing them with glitter, colour and glue can be very satisfying for adults and kids. It’s cost-effective and some of the materials are in your backyard and at your home. If you don’t have a yard for your back then you can use the forests and parks that are open to the public. They’re filled with natural resources which are for free and children are able to learn a lot from these short excursions.
In our preschool, following Easter, we typically take a trip to the park. Children are taken in by the parents. Then teachers are there to meet them. The children have their normal kindergarten days in the natural surroundings. The children really enjoy their time in the park. We gather all sorts of stuff, including leaves, twigs, nuts as well as fir cones, acorns and many more. We then return them for the preschool.
Sand is a great way to relax for children. Adding glitter is a bonus sensory experience and entices children who are shy, and helps to improve their social abilities. Creativity boosts their abilities in fine motor skills as well as the development of their language. It assists children in integrating into the larger group.
The above activities help children develop their imaginations and help them learn to make use of items that are easily accessible to them. The main reason behind this is the fact that children are engaging their senses. They use their vision, hearing and smell or touching and developing fine motor kinaesthetic abilities.
It is encouraging children to engage in activities that increase their self-esteem and confidence in their competence in areas which are appreciated by everyone. This will boost their enthusiasm and motivation to learn, and lay the foundations for the next stage of their education, and beyond.
Key Aspects
Sand is a great therapy for children, and adding glitter can be a great sensory boost and also helps youngsters who feel shy, and helps them develop their social skills.
Creative thinking boosts their capabilities to develop fine motor skills and the development of language. It assists children in integrating within the group.
Glitter is required to be accessible throughout your early years .
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