Friday, May 30, 2014

Favorite Summer Activity | Ice Cube Painting {+ blog hop giveaway!}

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I'm so excited to be teaming up with a great group of therapy bloggers to share some of our favorite summer toys and activities! And a giveaway! We have each picked out our favorite summer toy or activity, and since we're a bunch of therapists, of course we'll be sharing how these toys can be used to promote development! Summer fun AND learning. That's what we're all about! Read on for more details about how to enter the giveaway. Wouldn't a $50 gift card to Amazon be a great way to kick off your summer?

 

HERE'S HOW IT WORKS:
Step One:  Use the Rafflecopter below to enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card to purchase a favorite summer toy!
Step Two: Visit each of the 10 blogs below and COMMENT on their post about their favorite summer toy or activity.  Have you tried it?  Will you buy it?  Would your kiddos love it?  How would you use it? 
Step Three: After you comment, earn additional entries by "liking" each blog's Facebook page, straight from the Rafflecopter! (if they have a Facebook page).
***REMEMBER: You will only be entering the Rafflecopter ONCE ON THIS PAGE, not on every blog in the hop. The contest is open to anyone 18 years of age and older. Winner will be chosen at random via Rafflecopter and will be notified by email once entries have been verified (comments on each blog, Facebook likes on each blog). Please read full rules on the Rafflecopter before entering. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Giveaway closes at 12:00am June 6.


Participating therapy bloggers:


OT Cafe (that's me!) | The Inspired Treehouse | Golden Reflections Blog | Pink Oatmeal | Therapy Fun Zone | Your Therapy Source | Mama OT | | Playapy | Starfish Therapies | Playing with Words 365

My Favorite Summer Activity: DIY Ice Cube Finger Paints

Finger painting is such a fun sensory activity for kids and can be easily modified for those who are not quite ready to touch the paint. In the summer, finger painting with ice cubes is a great way to explore AND stay cool!

The best part about ice cube finger paints? They are so simple to make! All you have to do is fill some ice cube trays with your favorite finger paint. I fill mine about half way, because small cubes are perfect for small hands!


Pop them in the freezer for a few hours and you are ready to go outside and get messy!


For kids who aren't quite ready to touch the paint with their hands, never force them to do so. Just give them a paintbrush and let them explore at their own pace. If you're outside, you can use a stick, pinecone, or a leaf as your paintbrush! Have fun exploring with your senses this summer!

These finger paints can be made with any ice cube tray that you have at home, but if you win the Amazon gift card, you could pick out some fun ice cube trays. There are so many fun shapes to choose from: hearts, stars, and even hexagons, just to name a few. And I LOVE these little fish trays! Of course, the OT in me thinks these cubette trays would just be perfect for little hands.

**Amazon links throughout are affiliate. Thanks for supporting this blog!
 
ENTER THE RAFFLECOPTER BELOW AND THEN BE SURE TO VISIT ALL OF THE OTHER BLOGS THAT ARE PARTICIPATING FOR MORE SUMMER FUN!


a Rafflecopter giveaway




36 comments:

  1. We tried this last year - so great for those hot summer days!

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  2. Good for quiet times too. I must try that.

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  3. What a great idea! I might try this tonight!

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  4. Thank you for the great idea, passing this on to my fellow OT's and Sensory moms!

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  5. This is an interesting idea! Do kids react to the cold?

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    1. Yes! Some love the new sensation, while others don't like it at all., For those who don't like it, they can wear gloves or hold onto the ice cube paint through a towel. With tactile activities, it's all about introducing them at the child's pace.

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  6. I've tried this. Always a hit with the kids.

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  7. I live in AZ, so I'm always interested in cool, fun activities like this one!

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  8. Wonderful idea! This looks inexpensive to make as well.

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  9. Wow...this looks like a fun idea. I'll have to try it.

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  10. Looks fun. We're trying this activity for sure this summer!

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  11. We will have to add this one! Thank you!

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  12. This is a great idea for older kids, my 15 month olds would eat it! I will try this when they are older.

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  13. Great idea! I've never tried this at work at the school or with my own kids but I plan to this summer!

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  14. Way cool, gonna use this in our toddler playgroup!

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  15. Oh what a fun idea! Carter would love it and easy cleanup outside!!!

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  16. Love this idea of summer fun for kids.

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  17. Wow this looks great I would never have thought of this and it can easily be added to activities to use for therapy.

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  18. I have never seen this before! What a great idea for a fun summertime activity!

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  19. Awesome idea! I would have never thought about freezing the paint! What a fun way to work on the alphabet, color or shape knowledge as well!

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  20. This looks fun and easy! My toddler loves holding ice cubes!

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  21. I'm thinking this would get messy, but my kids would love it!

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  22. This is a great idea I am gonna try this :)

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  23. My kids would go crazy over something like this!

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  24. MY daughter would LOVE this. GREAT idea!

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  25. Wow I have never tried this but it looks like a great summer activity. Thanks for sharing.

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  26. What a wonderful idea! My little niece is coming for a visit next week so we will definitely be trying!

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  27. Awesome idea! My great niece is coming for a visit so this will be on our list!

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  28. Not only would my son love it, but I would too!

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  29. we are cretives...so this will be on the list

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  30. oh THIS looks so fun!! i can't wait to try this with my little one this summer! my first one at home alone with him :)

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  31. Great idea! I might go prep this right now for tomorrow's play date!

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  32. This was recommended to me by my son's OT last summer, but I never got around to looking for the steps so this summer we are going to try it! Thank you for this super easy tutorial :)

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  33. I love how easy this activity is! It's definitely something we'll be trying soon, thanks for the great idea!

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  34. My favorite summer activity is going to the beach.

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