February's material is Styrofoam at Project: Recycle & Create. What do your kids like to do with Styrofoam? Here's what we tried...and the should-have-been-expected results!
Don't try this at home.
Sure, Kay had a great time, and she got to use her new real tools from Santa. But Styrofoam is horrible to clean up - gets everywhere! We've played with packing peanuts before and Styrofoam packaging too, but nothing on this scale of destruction - or this level of clean-up.
Worse part - it was all my idea. I don't even have someone else I can blame! How annoying!
Sure, Kay had a great time, and she got to use her new real tools from Santa. But Styrofoam is horrible to clean up - gets everywhere! We've played with packing peanuts before and Styrofoam packaging too, but nothing on this scale of destruction - or this level of clean-up.
Worse part - it was all my idea. I don't even have someone else I can blame! How annoying!
Now technically, this isn't a creation with Styrofoam. More of a destruction of Styrofoam. Still using the material though, right? Using Teach Preschool's Fix-It Box as inspiration, I thought it would be fun to give Kay free reign to use her tools on packaging left over from Christmas presents. I had to do something with it. I set everything out, even - wisely, I thought - putting a shower curtain underneath to catch the little pieces that were sure to go flying.
Ahh. So naive.
Ahh. So naive.
At first she banged with her hammer, happy to be hitting something and not getting into trouble for it, I think. Then she hammered in a wrench and accidentally tapped it with another wrench. (I think they're wrenches - I'm hardly the tool expert!) She noticed that they made an attractive "clink"-ing sound. She she jammed some more into the Styrofoam and tapped away, noticing that the sounds of each were a little different.
When Daddy came home from work early, he got a free show of her new-found music skill. Then she was done. Well, clean-up was simple, because I just picked up the shower curtain and shook it gently over the barrel and all the little pieces landed in there. Oh, no - wait. That's what I thought would happen.
Just a sample of the aftermath...
In reality, the little pieces of styrofoam were now statically charged and clung to the curtain with all their foamy might. Not to mention the pieces that got on the floor, or clung to our clothes...and the dog.
Yes, Kay had fun, but I will not be in a hurry to do any more Styrofoam activities!
Yes, Kay had fun, but I will not be in a hurry to do any more Styrofoam activities!
Note: There's Just One Mommy tried a similar activity with no problems of a mess. So by all means try this at home - just skip the shower curtain drop-cloth and simply vacuum up afterwards!
