Alphabet Soup

Place letters/numbers (foam) into a water bin for your child to scoop out with ladles. This works as a great bath activity as well.

Bubble Water Play

Gather a few buckets/containers or set up at an outdoor water table. Fill the buckets with water and your preferred soap (we’re big fans of Babo Botanicals as mentioned in my registry guide), toss in a few foam shapes or letters and let your child reach in for the objects or scoop them out with a shovel.

Ice Grab

This is a highly sensory activity so it may be very engaging for some children and not so much for others. If the cold bothers your child, have them try it while wearing gloves. To play, all you need is a bowl of ice, tongs or a spoon, an ice tray/egg carton and a large container. Show your child how to grab the ice and transfer the pieces into the tray. The melted water will remain contained in the larger bin.

*Bonus, you can add a bit of food coloring and when everything melts, you now have a water bin to continue playing with.

Color Mixing

Set up a large container with ice. Add a few squirts of paint into a squirt bottle – perhaps start with only primary colors. Add water to the paint and fill the bottles. Invite your child to squirt the bottles into the ice and discover different color combinations. They’ll observe how red and yellow make orange, proudly share

Draw in the Tub

Bathtub crayons are a fun way to add art to tub time.

Garden Soup

Explore your neighborhood or yard and have your child pick flowers, petals and grass. Invite them to prepare the garden soup by filling a bowl/container with the items , a terrific pretend play set-up that allows children to create all sorts of concoctions in the backyard.Have them snip leaves, flowers and grass, scoop, pour and mix the items into a large bowl of ‘soup’ to strengthen their fine and gross motor skills.

Spoon it Out

Perfect for bath time or set up outdoors, spoon it out is a simple way to keep kids entertained with objects you already have around the house. With any lid or object that floats, place the items into the tub or in a large bowl/container of water. Give your child a large spoon and have them spoon out the objects.

Squeeze Sponges

Provide sponges of different sizes for your child to absorb, transfer and squeeze water out of the sponges. Provide two bins, one with water, and one without. This is a great activity to promote fine motor development.

Painting With Water

To set up, all you need is a bin/bucket or a few cups of water and some paintbrushes so your child may ‘paint’ outside on your patio, driveway or sidewalk on a warm day, or indoors at a chalkboard.

Pom Pom Water Bin

Pom poms are amazing because they’re reusable – they can get wet and dry perfectly. Grab two large bins, fill one with water and the other with the pom pom balls. Provide scoops, spoons and cups and let your child take over, transferring the poms from dry bin to water bin.

*Dry the poms by ringing them out and placing in a pillowcase. Tie a knot at the end, wash in a normal load and dry with head (always within the pillowcase). Busy Toddler swears by this method.  

The post At Home, Hands on Water Activities first appeared on Lindsey Boova.

Chalkola Markers

Chalkola chalk markers are the latest addition to our art supplies and they have truly been a smash hit. Every morning, Wesleigh perches at our kitchen island and draws while I prepare breakfast. The bundle we were gifted has been perfect – Wes practices writing W’s and shapes and has loved getting creative with each of the 30! colors provided. Suitable for non-porous surfaces, Chalkola’s markers are dustless, non-toxic and created with a water based ink formula making them super easy to clean up. Trust me, Wesleigh got a bit carried away drawing on herself and even on our counters so I was thrilled to see the chalk wipe off with just a wet towel.

For more products by Chalkola, visit their website here (use code: LINDSEYp0 for 10% off) or via their Amazon store (use code: CHALKOLA10)

Dab and Dot Markers

I always encourage Wes to express herself through art and find that items such as these Doodle Hog markers (they come with a simple twist cap and easy grip feature) have continued to support learning (color names) and development of her fine motor skills. For extra measure, I’ve been able to contain some mess, the markers are water-based, washable and non-toxic, items this mama will consider before purchasing.

Kinetic Sand

Soft, stretchy and squeezable, Wes has a lot of fun playing and creating with Kinetic Sand. It’s a wonderful sensory activity and good alternative to play doh. We simply dump the sand into a plastic bin, our ‘sand box’ and let her focus on running the sand through her hands, scooping it up with shovels, creating castles, and even dropping in plastic animal figures. Wesleigh’s Barbie has even been known to take a trip to the beach once or twice. Because the sand sticks to itself it’s relatively easy to clean up – even when tossed around by a toddler. Safe for kids, it is non-toxic, gluten and casen free and bonus, it never dries out.

Magic Doodle Paint Mat

Wes received this Magic Doodle Mat as a gift for her birthday this year. The water paint pad is large enough for more than one child to paint at a time and because it does not require actual paint, the toy is nearly mess free. The additional stencil tools provide a fun educational component that Wes can use for years to come.

Paint in a Bag

This simple, mess free painting requires little prep. Simply grab a Ziploc bag, your child’s finger paint and add the paints into the bag – you can sort into ROYGBV to create a rainbow, whatever your child’s preference may be. We used four colors and placed them in the bag horizontally. I cannot emphasis this next step enough – make sure to seal the bag properly. Once the bag is sealed tightly, tape the bag down onto a flat surface. We use Wesleigh’s kitchen table (currently on sale!). Encourage your child to blend the colors with their fingers (you can put a white piece of construction paper down beneath the bag so serve as a canvas). Enjoy what beautiful artwork your child creates with paint – mess free!

Pottery Painting

Another fun art activity we’ve enjoyed lately is painting pottery. If you’re local to Fairfield Country in CT, a favorite pottery studio of ours is Hands On Pottery in Darien that I’ve mentioned previously here and here.  Their to-go kits include pottery of your choice, a selection of 3 paints along with paintbrushes. The custom pottery has offered a special, DIY alternative to holiday gifting. It’s been gratifying to watch Wesleigh paint, see the finished product after firing and ultimately, gift the piece to a loved one. To keep this activity relatively mess free, we use a drop cloth under Wesleigh’s craft table and she wears an apron. I also limit the amount of paint she’s given and provide her with one paintbrush at a time to contain any mess. If you don’t have a pottery shop nearby, check out this kit to order online.

Note: Affiliate links may be used in this post. I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you if you use my affiliate link. Full disclosure policy here.

The post Our Favorite Less Mess Arts & Crafts For Kids first appeared on Lindsey Boova.