It’s squishy and white, has a pleasant, clean smell – ah the wonders of shaving cream, I just love it! If ever there was a fun and versatile medium to use for manipulative play its shaving cream. It’s one of those activities that make you want to jump right in with the kids and squish away! As an added bonus, clean-up is a breeze! And you know what? Once you use shaving cream in an activity with the kids they will be asking for you to do it again and again.
Some of the benefits of working with shaving cream~
- Children can build fine motor skills by drawing and writing in shaving cream.
- It provides a tactile experience for children, introducing them to different textures.
- It’s oodles of fun to play with!
Here are some of my favorite shaving cream activities for kids:
Shave the Balloon-
Materials Needed: Balloons, permanent markers, craft sticks, shaving cream
Directions: Give each child a balloon and allow them to decorate it with a “silly face” with permanent markers. Next, provide them with a craft stick and some shaving cream and let them have fun “shaving” the balloon.
Color Mixing Bags-
Materials Needed: Powdered tempera paint (red, yellow, & blue), Shaving Cream, Sealable sandwich sized bags
Directions: Pour a spoonful of powdered paint into bags for the kids (red/yellow, yellow/blue, blue/red.) plus approximately a handful of shaving cream. Allow the kids to be Little Scientists and hypothesize what colors will end up in their bags.
Puffy Shaving Cream Art- This project can be used seasonally or for a variety of thematic units ac repair chandler. Another neat thing about this activity is the texture when it dries. Its takes on a puffy, soft feeling that children will enjoy touching.
Materials Needed: Shaving cream, white glue, paintbrushes, plastic bowls, colored tempera paints, and construction paper
Directions: Mix 3 parts shaving cream (be patient as it puffs up a lot!) with 1 part glue and 1 part colored tempera paint in a plastic bowl. Let the kids using paintbrush to apply the mixture to their art projects.
- Use orange paint for Puffy Pumpkins
- Use blue and pink paint for Cotton Candy Art
- Use brown paint to make Marvelous Mud for Pigs to roll around in.
