Water play can be lots of fun! In the summer, it’s a great way to keep cool. Water play can also help young children to learn about science, play together with others, and develop both their sensory and gross motor skills.
What is water play?
Water play includes any kind of play activity using water. It’s a type of sensory play that allows children to feel the sensation of water on their skin. Babies, toddlers and preschoolers all enjoy a variety of water play activities, using toys and props such as buckets, funnels, spray bottles, water wheels and more.
What do babies and toddlers learn through water play?
Water play brings out the inner scientist in every child. Learning through water play, children are able to discover and understand the properties of water. Which objects will sink, and which will float? What happens if you pour water from a big container into a very small one – will it fit? Can water flow upwards as well as down? By having fun and splashing about at a water table or in the bath, babies and toddlers can investigate all of these questions, as well as learning about cause and effect. Watch out for the splashes!
Playing with water is also a great way for babies and toddlers to improve their hand-eye coordination and gross motor skills. Pouring water into a container without spilling it is a tricky thing to achieve, and water play is a great way to practise.
In addition, water play can help babies and toddlers to develop their social skills. They can do this by taking turns, working together towards a common goal and just having fun with others.
Water play activities
There are lots of water play activities that you can do easily with babies, toddlers and preschoolers at home. These can be done outside in a paddling pool, in a large plastic container or at a water play table, or inside at the sink or in the bath.
Here are some simple water play ideas for early years:
- Add food colouring to water and watch what happens.
- Use a sieve or net to go ‘fishing’! Encourage your child to scoop toys out of the water.
- Give the toys a good clean with soap and water! This activity encourages role play as well as being useful and fun.
- On a hot day, take a large paintbrush and ‘paint’ with water onto the patio, for mess-free creativity.
- Give them a variety of different containers, from Tupperware pots to funnels. Can they pour water from one container to the other?
- Do you own a marble run? Use the chutes to create a mini water park!
Contact us
At All About Children, we love to use water play as a fun activity to support children’s development. For more information about our nursery, contact us today.