Project Recycle and Create: DIY Activity Cube
Last month, I joined several bloggers for a year-long series on using recycled materials for learning, crafts, and activities for kids. I am having so much fun with this series. Last month we created a cardboard city, a box rocket, and a recycled mobile.This month the focus is styrofoam and we are having just as much fun! We have already made art sculptures, an ice castle, a puppet theater and a DIY Activity Center for Super B.
Creating a DIY Activity Cube
Ever since Super B started movin’ and groovin’, I have been nervous about what she is getting into. I needed something to keep her busy while I teach the boys, but interactive enough that we could all enjoy it with her at the same time. I contemplated buying a wooden activity cube like I had when the boys were growing up. However, after the boys built their ice castle with styrofoam, Super B could not stop playing with the pieces.
That is when I got the idea to make our own activity cube.
We Gathered Up:
* Styrofoam Square {we used the cover of a printer}
* Pipe Cleaners
* Pony Beads {optional}
Making this activity cube is really easy. In fact, the boys (ages 6 and 8) helped design and create the cube. I wish I could have taken pictures of how diligently they planned out the beads, the hoops, and bends.
They worked on their fine motor skills as they pushed the ends of the pipe cleaners into the styrofoam. There is no wrong way to do this.
Think of it as a sculpture or a piece of art…
You can add hoops, swirls, bends, and straights.
We even added some hearts {by putting both ends in the foam and bending over the top}
TIP: Fold over any ends, as the ends can be pointy for some brands {Ours came from the Dollar Store}
Next, comes the fun part…
Sensory Play in the Activity Cube
When I first put Super B in the cube she was in awe. She wasn’t sure what to think of it.
Then slowly she began to explore.
She touched each piece.
She examined the length, the textures, and the shapes.
She banged her hands on the top and repeated the rhythms I made.
She explored her language by making sounds as she touched the fuzzy pipe cleaners.
And as much as I wish she wouldn’t… she tried to explore it with her mouth.
She had so much fun!
She laughed and attempted sounds that I made. She explored cause and effect as she would bend one pipe cleaner down and watch it bounce back up.
Then the real fun began, as she pushed herself up on the side. She sat on the edge. She did this over and over again, as she strengthened her core strength and gross motor skills.
Baby Games with the Activity Cube
One of her favorite games to play with the activity cube is to hide behind it. She loves to reach through from the back and feel the items on the front. She loves to pull up onto her knees and look around. Her favorite thing is for me to sit across the room and she has to try to find me from around the cube.
What is so great about this cube, compared to the one that I contemplated buying… it is just as much fun, and completely free.
{Side Note: Please watch any child with this item, as it contains small parts and is not intended to be played with without adult supervision. If one of the pipe cleaners comes loose, I immediately remove it from the play area and I never leave Super B with the Activity Cube by herself}
Who knew so much fun could be had with recycled materials?
Actually, I did and so do several other amazing bloggers. I am thrilled to co-hosting monthly in P is for Preschool’s Project Recycle and Create. Each month the co-hosts listed below will post a project focused around a recycled material. This month was, as I am sure you could tell…
Styrofoam
Each month we will bring you a new material and a new project. Be sure to check out each Co-host as they have each done something very different. You are sure to find some amazing ideas. Every month we will be pinning our projects and our favorites to our Pinterest board.
I am excited to see all of the projects this month! Last month was amazing and full of ideas. You don’t want to miss out and will definitely want to check back again. I know I have at least 3 more projects to post. Want to stay connected and get updates?
Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Instagram or subscribe by email. I can’t wait to hear your ideas.
Want to Join the Fun?
Be sure to follow the creator of this project, P is for Preschool, and many others of the co-hosts to stay updated each month.
P is for Preschooler
Powerful Mothering
Afterschool for Smarty Pants
Still Playing School
Lemon Lime Adventures
Creative World of Varya
Mama Miss
There’s Just One Mommy
Little Bins for Little Hands
Peakle Pie
Sugar Aunts
Teach Me Mommy
Danya Banya
ALLterNATIVElearning
Widsom Knowledge Joy
Playtivities
Preschoolers Day by Day
Grab Some Styrofoam and Create
Make your favorite craft. Give your children a box and see what happens. Recreate your favorite play scene.
You choose.
Then we challenge you to share what you have done with that styrofoam. For non-bloggers, feel free to post to Facebook or Instagram and use the hashtag #createrecycle so we can follow along.
For bloggers, we are offering a link-up.
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Great idea! I love homemade toys! And I can’t get enough of the adorable faces your baby makes! 🙂
Me too! I love being part of this project! Thank you for the inspiration!
Wonderful to make something fun out of junk! Your baby is adorable too!
Thank you! We love creating with “junk”. I have had to devise a system for saving Junk though because it was getting to be overwhelming.
Very creative! I love Super B’s expressions in these pictures.
Thank you! She is a mess! 🙂
Love that her brothers helped make it!
They did too! I just wish I could have gotten a picture of it. Its fun that one activity can help such a wide age range 🙂 Vital when homeschooling all of them.
I love that the toy was homemade by the boys. And of course, Super B and those extremely historical faces. She has such a cute personality.
LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Oh thank you! I am so happy you loved it 🙂
This is SO fun and your baby’s facial expressions are absolutely precious! Awesome idea!
Thank you so much. We have a ham on our hands for sure! 🙂
Cute cute cute! And creative
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I am so happy you like it! Thank you!
She is adorable! And how much fun is she having??
How fun! I agree….her adorable expressions are priceless 🙂
Thank you! We think she is pretty cute 🙂
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Not being a hater, but I’m curious. Don’t you worry about using beads she could choke on in a toy like this? It’s a fun idea, this part just made me pause for a moment.
Love your ideas!!
Thanks for the concern. I never left her alone and would not advocate that either. I was always sitting right beside her when she played with this toy. 🙂