Step by Step Fun!
Cut a hole in a cardboard box large enough to allow a child to easily reach inside and retrieve objects. The hole can be on the top or side of the box. Make sure the edges are smooth, so children don’t get scraped or cut. Place objects inside. Have children take turns reaching inside the box and identifying objects by touch. Alternately say an object and have the child find it by feel.
Activity Alternatives:
- For children who have attention difficulties and/or fine motor, sensory processing difficulties: lessen the number of objects you place in the box, so they only have a couple to feel and identify. Gradually increase the number as attention span and frustration levels permit.
- For children who are working on language,
- Discuss the attributes of the objects (colors, size, shape)
- Tell a story using the objects that have been retrieved from the box
- Ask questions (e.g., what shape is it, what color is it, how does it feel)
Modifications:
- For children who have attention difficulties, lessen the number of objects you place in the box, so they only have a couple to feel and identify. Gradually increase the number as attention span and frustration levels permit.
- For children who are working on language,
- Discuss the attributes of the objects (colors, size, shape)
- Tell a story using the objects that have been retrieved from the box
- Ask questions (e.g., what shape is it, what color is it, how does it feel)
Schedule Boosters:
- Take this to the bath:
- Easily modify this activity by using fun non-floating (water safe) toys covered with bath bubbles. Hide toys underneath the bubbles so they are not visible to your child. Then have the child feel and find a toy followed by identifying the toy while still under the bubbles.
- Take this on the go:
- Take this game on the road by using a canvas tote/reusable grocery bag filled with various toys/objects. Ask your child to play by reaching into the bag without looking and find a specific object using only their sense of touch.
- This game could also be taken to waiting rooms, doctors’ appointments, sibling sports events and anywhere when your child needs to sit and be occupied.
Challenge Boosters:
- Use easily distinguishable 3D shapes/objects such as numbers 0-9, capital letters, as well as familiar hand sized toys. Place only 2-3 different choices into the container and/or bath at once for your child to identify or find by feel.
- Use a higher number of different objects that are more similar in size, shape, and texture. Alternate between identifying and finding.
- Start with collecting duplicates of each object (e.g., two pencils, two erasers, Q-tip, buttons). Place one of each pair in the box. Then, point to an object and have the child reach in and find its match by feel.
Benefits of Play:
- Sensory processing: The box can have a finite number and a robust variety of objects to help children gradually manage more diverse types of input and make sense of it. This has a direct effect on their ability to focus and attend to one stimulus when subjected to multiple sensory stimuli.
- Descriptive language development: Basic concepts such as location (in/out) and number (more/less) can be exemplified during play. This helps build pre-reading and early math skills and increases vocabulary by helping kids describe what they’re feeling.