MY new found ATTRACTION to all things MAGNETIC
Because I get to PLAY for work – I find I get on kicks. For a while I was obsessed with BLOCK PLAY (and that has stuck with me as a forever love), but lately it has been MAGNETS.
Magnets are so much more fun than I remember them being as a child and I have been having a great time watching children’s faces as they play for the first time with magnets – the shock – the awe – the curiosity seems to grow the more they play. So I thought I’d use this post to share some MAGNET PLAY ideas with you.
It started with these. I was in search of the big red horse shoe magnet but couldn’t find anywhere locally so I ordered this super powered one from Amazon.com
And for fun, I threw in some of these…but they ended up being smaller than what I wanted (and so great for own kids but not my “work kids.”)
And for fun, I threw in an old favorite…magnetic stones..these are also VERY strong and were purchased at a toy store in a velvet little bag.
From there — the Magnet Obsession grew and we had fun discovering a few things!
1) IT IS VERY FUN TO WATCH MAGNETS MOVE THINGS THAT ARE INSIDE OF OTHER THINGS!
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- Using magnetic chips from Fun Science inside the tube is also fun and showed us that the larger strong magnet picks these up quickly and more strongly than the larger balls.
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- The balls inside the tube and were even strong enough to attract a chain of stone magnets!
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- These magnetic balls found in this cool tube from our friends at Fun Science Kits, allowed us the opportunity to let our big red magnet move the balls at a variety of speeds…all together…or one at a time!
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- Using 2 of our stone magnets (one inside and one outside of this empty cashew container) allowed us to drive a “car” on the map drawn with markers.
2.) MAGNETS ALLOW US TO BE CREATIVE!
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- I placed cut pieces of rolled magnet (with sticky backs) on the back of random finds from my daughters’ art bins and our yard (popsicle sticks, stones, pom poms, glass beads), creating manipulatives that can be moved many ways. I started with your traditional person in a house with a yard and some clouds.
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- My daughter Leila Grace quickly changed the scene to help us see what this man is dreaming!
Watch this idea for a Magnetic Lego Car
3.) MAGNETS HELP US PLAY WITH THINGS IN DIFFERENT WAYS!
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- Clean up is a breeze when everything is magnetic! (and no one complains!) Hmmm….maybe we should add magnets to everything 🙂
4) MAGNETS HELP US LEARN ABOUT SCIENCE!
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- Attraction (also from Fun Science)
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- And Repulsion!
5) MAGNETS HELP US IN INTERESTING WAYS!
One of my little buddies has mild Cerebral Palsy and trouble using one hand. Typically small items are hard for him to grip. The magnet stones, however both provide him some strengthening (through resistance experienced when pulling them apart) and assistance (through the same attraction) that helps him hold and play with them longer than other small toys — end result – he was less frustrated, had more fun, and was excited to engage in purposeful PLAY that hopefully carries over to his long term function with his hands!
Watch this example of Play with Magnets
Whether you are a therapist, childcare provider, parent, grandparent, or anyone else who PLAYS with kids, I hope you’ve found this post ATTRACTIVE and that the ideas will be MAGNETIC for your creativity during play and inspire you to share the science (and fun) of MAGNETS with a child today! What are ways you use MAGNETS to PLAY?
For more ideas on PURPOSEFUL PLAY paired with detailed milestones – check out 1-2-3 Just Play With Me today! And see why Early Head Start staff, childcare centers, therapists, and parents find it practical, useful, & FUN!
See Fun Science Kits to see some of the cool toys in this post!
** Always use caution with children who can not play with magnetic toys for medical reasons (such as those with shunts) and be present and engaged to avoid chocking with little ones!
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