Simple Toddler Play – Scooping and Pouring

I love finding ways to play and learn using inexpensive items found around the home. This activity is a great example of that. These pictures were taken a while ago now ~ when R was about 2.5 years old. They show R engaged in one of the very first truly open ended activities that I ever set up for him. I had a bowl of buttons and a bowl of beads sitting on the dining table after I had made our home-made fishing game. R was fascinated with them and began sifting through them, inspecting each one. I set out a few colourful plastic bowls, a measuring spoon and his magnifying glass and let him explore.

He began transferring the buttons and beads from one bowl to another – a great fine-motor skills activity. At first he poured the buttons directly from one bowl to another.

He then experimented with the measuring spoon, scooping up some beads from one bowl and the pouring them from a great height into another bowl.

He was always very careful about keeping the beads separate from the buttons – he was mindful of them being two separate collections that shouldn’t be mixed (a demonstration of classification – an early mathematical exercise).

He was fascinated by the various colours and shapes which presented us with lots of opportunities for language development.

This little activity kept R occupied for almost 30 minutes – pretty fantastic for a 2.5 year old when many activities will only hold their attention for only ten minutes at a time.

Why we loved this activity:

It was open ended – R was able to use his imagination and explore the materials freely
Fine motor skills practise – transferring, scooping, pouring
Early mathematical activity – sorting and classifying
Language development – we talked about the size, shape and colours of the various beads and buttons

Safety note: Activities using small items, like buttons, may constitute a choking risk for small children and require close adult supervision. R has never been one to put things in his mouth at any age so I knew he would not be likely to try to put these in his mouth and I supervised him fully throughout this play.

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19 thoughts on “Simple Toddler Play – Scooping and Pouring”

This looks like fun! Your guy really enjoyed it! What a smile!

Every time I see a bead activity, I think of Gus Gus from Cinderella exclaiming, “Beads!!” (That’s exactly what my kids say, too!) This looks like a lot of fun and something I’d love to scoop my fingers through, too

My toddler has been wanting to pour his own milk lately. This activity is a great way to let him start working on the concept of pouring without making a big mess!

We do a similar kind of thing – with beans. I have a large, but shallow, rubbermaid “tote” that I filled with inexpensive white beans (I have heard rice used too). I hid small trinkets (colored rocks, buttons, coins, etc) in the beans and he goes on a treasure hunt….he also pours, sifts, measures and plays with the beans. Great fun and has kept it’s “charm” for a long time – he is 4 and still enjoys the treasure hunt.

Wow, 30 min I am impressed. I am not sure if I could my little guy to do it for more than 5 min. Maybe when he gets a little bit older, here’s hoping.
Mari

*love* open ended activities -this looks so fun

Love the pic’s, what fun! FSPDT

My kids also love pouring.Great acitivity!

haha, i thought i already commented on this post.. but must have commented on your fb. Go the Kmart bowls! haha. I love these types of simple activities where pure exploration of the materials is the intention. I want to jump in and start scooping and pouring too!

My boys love buttons! I have quite the collection, and my older two ask to play with them often. This is a great post. I love all the details you shared, and I’m impressed with your little guy for keeping the buttons and beads separate. Mine usually combine them, but at least they ask permission first.

My mother has a huge collection of buttons that she keeps tucked away. I asked her why and she says that one of her earliest childhood memories was going to her grandmothers house and pulling out her buttons and playing for hours and hours with them. When her grandmother died, the buttons were what my mother kept to reminder her of her. This post brought all that back. Thank you.

Goblin found my tub of buttons the other day, they are great toddler toys aren’t they

this looked like it was great fun

Such a great idea, this looks like a ton of fun!
http://www.iheartpears.blogspot.com

that smile says it all! buttons are so versatile! i love the idea of using them to scoop and dump with! thanks for linking up to tip-toe thru tuesday!