One of our all time favorite sensory materials is shaving cream for three reasons: it is such an interesting texture, a big crowd pleaser, and an easy clean up (compared to other sensory things like rice and sand). Bonus: it also doesn’t smell terrible! đŸ™‚
For my daughter’s Frozen II party, I overestimated how much shaving cream would be needed for the “snow” for the party. Since the quarantine, we are finding all kinds of ways to use it up!
Shaving Cream on a Table Top or Cookie Sheet
The kids’ favorite way to play with this is just slathering it over the table with their washable toys like legos or action figures. Remember, easy clean up means WIN-WIN. More recently I have implemented the cookie sheet method, where they are encouraged to keep the majority of the mess inside the pan. Doesn’t contain the mess 100%, but much less gets in weird places like the floor and the walls.
Shaving Cream Snow Sensory Bin
This might be my personal favorite! The shaving cream actually makes this “snow” cool to the touch. It has a really fun consistency, and can be thickened with more shaving cream, or more of a kinetic sandy feel with more baking soda. The only two ingredients needed are baking soda and shaving cream. You mix these two with a 2:1 ratio of baking soda to shaving cream, or tweak it as you see fit.
Shaving Cream in a Zip Lock Bag
This method is brilliant for little ones with tactile defensiveness to get tactile play into their routine. Tactile defensiveness comes in all forms and as OTs we help children get used to certain textures with small doses of these textures throughout time. Common aversions include clothing tags, grass, dirt and whipped cream.
Simply take a large zip lock bag, and spray shaving cream into the bag. Next, drop a few drops of paint or food dye into the bag and squeeze as much air out of the bag before zipping it shut. If you are afraid of the bag opening again, you can tape it shut with duct tape. The fun is moving the color around with your finger to create a marbled look. You can also tape this against a large window and “paint” with your finger on a vertical surface through the zip lock bag.
Marbled Paper Painting
Painting with shaving cream requires: a cookie sheet that will fit the size of the paper you are wanting to paint, thicker-than-typing paper paper (if you can), acrylic paint, a spoon, a towel, and shaving cream. Spray some shaving cream into the pan. Drop a few drops of several colors of paint throughout the shaving cream and “swirl” the spoon or utensil to get a marbled look.
When you are satisfied with the marbled look, press your paper into the shaving cream. Use your towel to gently wipe off the shaving cream. This is why thicker paper helps. Hang to dry, and enjoy your marbled design all on it’s own or use this as a backdrop for another art project!
Marbled Eggs
This one is one my kids are very excited about! What you need: a cookie sheet, shaving cream, food dye, eggs, and a towel.
As with the marbled paper, spray some shaving cream onto a cookie sheet. Sprinkle a few drops of food dye into the shaving cream and using a utensil, “swirl” the colors into the cream for a marbled effect. Once you are satisfied with the colors in your pan, gently roll your egg into the shaving cream until the cream is covering it entirely.
Remove the egg, and use your towel to gently wipe off all the shaving cream, leaving behind a beautiful marbled look!
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