5 Minute Friday - Party Beads!

Happy mardi gras season! If you are looking for something to do with all of those left over beads, look no further!

Mardi gras (or party beads) are a great tool for any age. They are shiny, interesting, and make fun sounds and can be used in a variety of beneficial ways.

• Place them over your young baby’s feet as they lie on their back to encourage reaching. This will promote core strength as your little one attempts to pull his feet towards his body. It also promotes a ‘mini milestone’ bringing feet to the mouth, which helps with body awareness, sensory integration, and provides a precursor to dressing milestones like taking on and off socks.
• Use them as a way to motivate during tummy time. Place a few beads in front of your baby and shake them. The sound and visual input will encourage your baby to explore what is in front of them and encourage them to lift their heads. It also provides a great distraction from the hard work they are doing.
• Using a hard surface such as the floor or a cookie sheet, place the beads gently down and make a sound. This can help introduce cause and effect, an essential skill for cognition.
• Lots of beads in a tub make a great sensory bin. Hide some smaller toys in them and have your baby reach and pull them out. This will encourage tactile processing and tactile discrimination skills. In addition, lifting strands of beads will promote development of a pincer grasp. Best of all, the clean up is so easy! No need to pick up single grains of rice or beans.
• Party beads are great for helping your toddler learn to put on a shirt overhead or step into pants and pull them up. Simply model putting the beads overhead or stepping into them, and have your child repeat. This encourages body awareness and uses motor learning to encourage independence in dressing skills.

Enjoy this activity through the many stages of childhood! As parents, we can have fun and let our kids benefit from the party. I do recommend only playing with beads under adult supervision.