Edible water beads sensory activity

It’s no secret that children just love sensory play. Especially the wet, messy, squishy sort of sensory play. The messier, the better! I’ve been very keen on getting some water beads for sensory play. However with babies around, I knew it wouldn’t be a good idea just yet.

Thanks to the wonders of Pinterest, I found the perfect alternative using this yummy ingredient: Tapioca pearls (used in making bubble tea) which you can get at any oriental supermarket.

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Anyway, instead of just pre-cooking the pearls for the activity, I decided to involve the kids in the whole process from the start. First I opened the package and poured the pearls out into a large bowl and let the children investigate and explore it with their hands and fingers. We talked about how the pearls felt and looked.

Then I poured the pearls into a pot of boiling water to cook for five minutes. While they were cooking, the kids helped to set up the table with a variety of bowls, cups, containers and spoons.

After the tapioca pearls were cooked. This is what they looked like…

The children were more than happy to play and explore the pearls as they were. But I decided to add a boost of colour to them with a few drops of food colouring.

The kids dove right into the stuff eagerly. They spent ages pouring and scooping the little tapioca pearls into different containers, and mixing and stirring them together.

They squished and smooshed them with their hands and laughed at the slippery texture. We talked about how the tapioca pearls felt now and how different they felt compared to before they were cooked.

After that Nathan asked if he could try one to see what it tasted like. I gave the okay and he immediately popped one into his mouth. He grinned at the squishy and chewy texture. The other kids soon followed suit and were popping them into their mouths one after another like candy.

The tapioca pearls actually taste very bland (no sugar or sweeteners in them) so I was surprised at how much the kids seemed to enjoy eating them. I eventually had to put a stop to it so as not to spoil their appetites for lunch.

Even the babies got into the action too after they had woken up from their morning nap. They squished and smooshed the stuff to their heart’s content and tasted it too of course (no drama about that since the stuff is completely edible).

If you’re looking for something fun and different to do with your kids, I definitely recommend giving this a go. It’s cheap, easy and really engaging.

 

Edible Water Beads Sensory Activity

Materials/Ingredients
Tapioca Pearls (available at oriental supermarkets for just around $2.00 a pack)
Water
Food colouring (optional)

Instructions/Preparation
Cook the pearls according to package instructions. Ours simply required cooking in boiling water for five minutes until the pearls floated to the surface. But check your package instructions to see if they vary.

Pour the cooked pearls into a colander to drain and run them under cold water for a few seconds to stop the cooking process and cool them down.

At this point the pearls are ready to be played with as they are.

If you like, you can add a boost of colour to make them more colourful. I just divided the pearls into different bowls (one for each colour) and poured some water and a few drops of food colouring in each bowl. I let them sit for 5-10 minutes to absorb the colour, then ran them under cold water again to rinse off the excess colouring.

I recommend adding a bit of water to the pearls during play to keep them moist and avoid the pearls from drying out and sticking to each other

I kept the pearls in a covered container in the fridge overnight and they were still good for another play the next day. I would say the max they would last is three days after which they would probably be too smooshy to handle.

>>More ideas for learning and play

 

Linking up to Jess’s for IBOT