Sensory ice play

Making ice and adding different flavours and textures is a wonderful sensory experience for babies and toddlers.

You will need:

• any container that can be frozen, such as an ice cube tray, lolly moulds, a freezable lunch box or even a latex glove.

What to do

Choose a range of ingredients, e.g. soft fruits like bananas and strawberries, herbs or blended vegetables, such as carrots, then add to the water and freeze. Once frozen, let babies and toddlers play with the ice and see how it feels and taste it to discover the different flavours.

Learning and development

Ice play is a much-loved experience for children, and this activity is no different. It is a great way to introduce the concept of delayed gratification – having to wait for the ice to melt before tasting what is inside. Ice play is also a good way to introduce toddlers to early science, as they explore the effect of the warmth from their hands and mouths when applied to ice.