"Farm messes" probably seems like an odd topic for a day of activities. But since messes are my toddler's favorite thing and farms are full them, I figured it was a good way to start the week!
Messy (and Silly) Farm Books
We started off the morning with a book all about a messy farm animal - The Piggy in the Puddle by Charlotte Pomerantz. It was a fun, attention grabbing book written in rhyme. And it correlated really nicely with our messy farm activities for the day.
We have SO MANY farm books, it was easy to find several to fit in each day. Since today was all about farm messes, we read two more books throughout the day about general farm shenanigans: The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash by Trinka Hakes Noble and Giggle, Giggle, Quack by Doreen Cronin.
Muddy Pig Finger-painting
After reading The Piggy in the Puddle we made our own muddy pig. To be honest, the prep for this activity definitely took longer than the activity itself. But it was really fun for my toddler.
I printed a picture of a pig from a free coloring sheet online. I didn't have pink printer paper, so I printed on plain white paper, cut the pig out and then traced the pig on pink construction paper. I used a black marker to draw the outside border and the details on the interior like the eye, ears, etc.
For a child that doesn't put everything in their mouth, regular brown finger paint should be fine. But since my child must taste EVERYTHING I put in front of him (especially things in a bowl that look like food), I opted for chocolate pudding. He doesn't usually eat sweets like pudding, but I knew if he tasted it it would be safer than paint.
I gave him a bowl of chocolate pudding "mud" a pink construction paper pig and let him run with it. He had a lot of fun squishing the pudding and using it to "paint" his pig. We used the descriptive words from The Piggy in the Puddle to talk about how the mud felt "squishy-squashy" and more.
I printed a picture of a pig from a free coloring sheet online. I didn't have pink printer paper, so I printed on plain white paper, cut the pig out and then traced the pig on pink construction paper. I used a black marker to draw the outside border and the details on the interior like the eye, ears, etc.
For a child that doesn't put everything in their mouth, regular brown finger paint should be fine. But since my child must taste EVERYTHING I put in front of him (especially things in a bowl that look like food), I opted for chocolate pudding. He doesn't usually eat sweets like pudding, but I knew if he tasted it it would be safer than paint.
I gave him a bowl of chocolate pudding "mud" a pink construction paper pig and let him run with it. He had a lot of fun squishing the pudding and using it to "paint" his pig. We used the descriptive words from The Piggy in the Puddle to talk about how the mud felt "squishy-squashy" and more.
Farm Animal Baths
This one is not for the faint of heart. Simple to set up, fun for all ages...with the potential for some serious mess.
I set up two bins. One with mud...not the chocolate pudding kind, the real deal. I dunked some plastic farm animals in the mud in preparation for their "bath." The second bin had water and washcloths (my toddler is really into wiping things with cloths/tissues etc., so I tried to incorporate that).
I set up two bins. One with mud...not the chocolate pudding kind, the real deal. I dunked some plastic farm animals in the mud in preparation for their "bath." The second bin had water and washcloths (my toddler is really into wiping things with cloths/tissues etc., so I tried to incorporate that).
We did this activity with kids ranging from 16 months to 4 years and they all had a blast. T went to town, bouncing back and forth between the squishy mud and the water until you couldn't tell the difference between the two. He used the wash cloths to wipe the animals...and to fling muddy water everywhere (I told you it wasn't for the faint of heart!)
It might be worth doing this activity in warm weather, outside, with little to no clothing. But we managed indoors on our waterproof sheet with a smock covering old clothes.