Messy Play

We have been promoting messy play in nursery as we found that a lot of our children won't go near activities which are messy which limits their learning about certain aspects. Here are some of the children embracing the semolina which was great to see.

Messy play gives children the opportunity to explore objects and raw materials such as sand, water, chalk, paint, playdough and paste in a free and unrestricted way. The children can use the basic materials without being constrained by the one right way to use them. The sensory experience enables them to understand how things feel, smell and taste and it supports their physical development.
Messy play fosters your child’s curiosity, imagination and experimentation and practices good concentration. When making marks in sand or paint, the children develop an early form of writing. The high concentration levels needed to explore the different sensory qualities of the objects and elements practise your child’s ability to read a book or write a story independently later on. The big movements performed when drawing in sand or making a mark in clay build up the large muscle groups at the top of the arms to then enable the smaller muscles in hands and fingers to make more precise movements. Your child will eventually have increasing control over their movements when holding a pen or cutting with scissors.

The benefits of messy play

• Practices good concentration
• Nurtures early form of writing
• Supports ability to play independently
• Strengthens body control
• Fosters curiosity and experimentation
• Stimulates imagination
• Creates understanding of the senses