Water Bead Fun!

The kids have really enjoyed the water beads that a friend of mine (Thanks Flo!) gave us (You can purchase these from the dollar store; they are usually on the aisle with the bath salts, bath soaps, etc.) .  K and G have both enjoyed working with them.  It has also given me the opportunity to see their personalities at work.  

K enjoys sorting the beads by color (the containers in the first picture are from our stacking cups; I found the small containers at CVS with their dollar deal items).  This work affords K the chance to work on his sorting skills as well as his fine motor skills.  It's fun and funny to watch him at work.  K will only touch the beads with a measuring spoon/measuring cup because he really does not care for the way they feel (they are sort of slippery). Even when they fall into the tray, he uses a measuring spoon to retrieve them. He's also very particular about the way he transfers them. He likes to sort all the beads of one color before moving on to the next, so he has to push other beads out of the way.  He's like his mother =).

K at work



The finished product with the small containers

G will sort them by color for about two minutes, then she just places them into the containers and takes joy in moving them from container to container.  She also enjoys opening and closing the little containers.  In contrast to K, digs right into the beads with her hands.  The water beads are one of the first activities she chooses almost every day. I have also given her measuring spoons/cups and additional containers to use while she works with the beads.

G at work (probably right before she is done with color sorting and simply dives in with those hands). 

Fun and easy!