For day two of our at-home, screen free play ideas series, we’re looking at ice play.
It’s a great contrast to yesterday’s water play ideas and offers the opportunity for lots of exploring and discovering.
Ice play ideas for children
Playing with ice is another great sensory experience that’s cheap, easy to set up, and lots of fun.
If you played with water yesterday, ice play is a great follow-on activity, as it uses they same basic material but is a totally different experience.
Your children can make connections between what they used yesterday and begin to ponder, question and understand how the process of freezing changes things completely.
With this simple play experience we’re looking at complex learning around sensory play, cause and effect, and science.
Here’s how my girls chose to play with their ice, with some extra ideas to try at the end.
Ice block art with coloured salt
To prepare for this play session, we filled some plastic containers with water and popped them in the freezer overnight.
We used quite big, rectangular containers as we wanted to make big blocks of ice we could use as a ‘canvass’ to ‘paint’ on.
We set out our ice blocks on baking trays sat on towels, ready to catch any drips.
To create some art, we used coloured salt to paint, decorate and transform the ice (click through to see how to make colored salt).
Complex learning through simple play
My girls have played with coloured ice blocks and plain salt before, so this was an extension for them – using similar materials, in reverse, allows them to get a better understanding of the materials.
They can follow up ideas from their last play time, becoming better ice experts, deepening their knowledge of this scientific process.
As they play they have the opportunity to explore:
:: the science of freezing and melting
:: the effect of the addition of salt
:: the creative expression of creating colourful art
:: the sensory nature of the cold and wet and crunchy materials
More ideas for ice play
1. Put the colour in the water itself and play with ice art blocks.
2. Build a Frozen ice palace.
3. Add ice to your sensory tub.
4. Play frozen math games.
6. Go on a frozen treasure hunt.
7. Add colored ice cubes to your bath.
8. Try ice excavation.
9. Make a frozen small world South Pole.
10. Make some ice lollies!
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it is pretty isn’t it. I love coloured salt.
Thank you so fun
alli
This looks interesting and fun loving for the children, thanks
This is such a great idea! Question: anyone know what to call that little round silver tray with the different compartments? Trying to search for things like “appetizer tray” but not getting the right kind. Thank you!
Hi Gudrun. I think if you search ‘snack dish’ or ‘divided snack plate’ you should find them.