Great fun!
When I saw this idea on Play at home mom (http://playathomemom3.blogspot.com/) I knew we had to try it. My twins love getting messy and exploring, like any good kids, so I knew there would be good times ahead! I found the Aqua Gems at JoAnn Fabric in the floral department (I paid $4.99); they can also be found on Amazon.
I put them in a plastic bin and used 2 quarts of water for half of the package. The directions said to let them sit for 4 - 6 hours, so I waited overnight. Here are some photos of the Aqua Gems at different time intervals before we started having fun with them.
I wanted the kids to see the beads at the beginning, middle and end. They were so excited about it, of course they wanted to dive in right away.
It was very easy to do and so much fun. These feel so cool! Of course I stayed right with the kiddos and supervised their play with the water beads, just like I would when they play with anything small, so use your best judgment and be safe. Even though these gems are biodegradable and non-toxic, I still don't want them in anyone's mouth!
I put the plastic bin on top of a make-shift light box (upturned plastic bin with Christmas lights underneath!)
They were so excited to try that they dove right in - "very squishy" was a response I got a lot at first. Finley also added, "I sing my favorite yippie song. It's my own song."
And Grey, "It's squishy. Drop. Drop. It's like a raindrop." They loved dropping them from high above the bin and watching them land.
It was great for interaction too. Fin to Grey, "Pick one; pick a color." So funny. I had a great time too don't you know!
"Look mommy!"
Today was the second day of fun with the gems, and they were in it up to their elbows. Again I reminded them that these were just for their hands and did not go in their mouths! The fun had to stop when the gems started spending more time rolling around on the floor than staying in the box, but it sure was fun. Needless to say we will do this again.
For more fun and ideas about water beads be sure and check out TinkerLab (http://tinkerlab.com/2011/11/water-bead-exploration/), The Chocolate Muffin Tree, (http://www.thechocolatemuffintree.com/2011/09/water-bead-fun.html), and Messy Kids, (http://messypreschoolers.blogspot.com/2011/10/creepy-crawly-water-beads.html), More than ABC's and 123's (http://morethanabcand123.blogspot.com/2011/08/sensory-table-aqua-gems.html).
Have fun!
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