My Tactile Girl

In the last week, Sydney has gotten into powder, vaseline, torn up a book, and poked holes in a bar of soap. I try really hard to listen to what she has to say, even when she doesn't have the words to express herself. So although part of me heard "I need a spanking," there was another part of me that heard my tactile girl saying, "I need more chances to play with different textures." Or something like that.

I wasn't really sure that I knew how to give her what she was asking for, though, so I went to an expert. See, Elementary Art teachers are really special people. They know all about the kinds of artist stuff that most artsy people know about, but the really good ones also know about kids and how they like to explore with different materials.

The one at my school is one of the good ones, so when Sydney started this texture-deprived/terrible two business, I thought of her (the Art teacher, not Sydney). She immediately rattled off a list of things that are fun for little fingers to play with that are (mostly) not a choking hazard. So this evening, it was off to WalMart to buy new textures for Sydney.

Pom Poms -- very fuzzy and strangely light weight.

Feathers -- soft and feel good on your face.

Pasta (uncooked) -- confusing at first, since it is a favorite meal (when cooked), but very fun and the different shapes will lend themselves to sorting later.

Right now, though, she's Sydney Pasta Fingers!

Lima Beans -- fun to run your fingers through!

Shells -- Sydney thought these were for stacking, like her nesting cups and the game was to find a shell that would fit inside the one she had picked.

Rocks -- her current favorite because they both feel neat and they make NOISE!

A few disposable containers and the whole experience fits on a single shelf. The tray she was sitting with fits on the shelf below. I'm hoping storing them together says, "keep these really cool things on this tray and not all over the kitchen floor." All in all, playing with these kept Sydney's attention for about forty minutes. Which, I might add, is about thirty-five more minutes than her big Christmas gift. Now, time will tell whether this remains a favorite activity, but I'm thinking it might.



And because still pictures really don't convey how much fun all of this really was: