Craft Foam in the Tub

Here’s a clean creativity-booster that doesn’t involve scrubbing paint out of clothes or scanning the rug for bits of smooshy play dough. It’s also fabulous for folks with limited art-making space. I wish I could claim this idea as my very own, but when I saw this on Filth Wizardry (Leslie over there is so creative), I knew it was something my pocketbook would adore and my daughter would get hours of creative fun from. And now, you should feel free to steal it from me (via Leslie)…immediately…and not feel an ounce of guilt about it.

Start with some foam sheets. I picked these up at JoAnne Fabrics for .69/sheet. Good deal!

Cut the foam into desired shapes. I kept mine pretty simple (rectangles, triangles, circles, half circles, hearts, etc.) so that the process of playing with them could be open-ended.

And then cut some more shapes. Use pinking shears to make shapes with zig-zag or curly edges, or use cookie cutters or a die-cutter to create more elaborate shapes.

Find a suitable container

Let your kids play! Just dip the foam in water and watch it stick to tiles, glass, or porcelain…pretty much anything slick. The first night we played with these, the joy came from getting all of the pieces up on the wall.

The second night we busted these out, it turned into a color sorting game. And then on the third night (nursing baby and supervising bath…sorry no pictures!), we started building symmetrical patterns. I can already see how this activity will grow as my daughters grow. There are endless possibilities for learning shapes, colors, telling stories, and designing monsters or cities…to name a few.

Ideas for guiding discovery:

1. Ask your child to find all of the red (or purple, green, etc.) pieces, and then all the blue pieces…

2. Ask your child to find a circle, square, star, etc.

3. Encourage your child to build a path in one color.

4. Suggest that your child build monsters or animals with the pieces.

5. If you have older children like Lindsey, give them some foam sheets and safety scissors…in the tub…so they can invent the shapes they want as they go.