5 Minute Friday - Tissue Boxes!

Let’s face it, cold and flu season is still upon us! As you stock up on tissues, it’s worth knowing that they can serve a purpose beyond wiping runny noses.

Tissue Box Play for Babies

Encourage your baby to pull tissues out of a tissue box to promote their pincer grasp. Hold the box steady and demonstrate how to pull tissues out. Once the box is empty, repurpose it by filling it with scarves, tissue paper, crinkle paper, or other engaging items to keep your little one entertained.

Tissue Box Play for Toddlers

Toddlers will also love pulling tissues out of the box. You can also incorporate sequencing by encouraging them to follow up tissue pulling with other tasks, like wiping down a table or engaging in a “snowball fight” by crumpling tissues and tossing them into a container. These activities help improve upper extremity strength and proprioceptive processing, as well as fine motor coordination and bilateral coordination.

Tissue Box Play for Older Kids

For older kids, consider creating smaller holes in the sides of the tissue box to place small items such as toothpicks or cotton swabs inside. Make the holes just big enough for the objects to fit partially through to promote fine motor strength. You can also enhance visual motor skills by creating patterns or designs with the objects, or use thumb tacks to trace a design you create. For an added challenge, have your older child place golf tees on the sides of the box and balance small objects like marbles, tiny erasers, or candies on top. This activity improves fine motor precision and helps develop the tripod grasp (essential for pencil grasp).

As we near the end of cold and flu season, you may find yourself with a surplus of tissue boxes. Why not repurpose them for these engaging activities? After all, a little fun amidst the nose-wiping can make the season more bearable for everyone!