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Many adults have an aversion to mud. It sticks to your shoes, inevitably finds its way onto your living room carpet or gets spot welded to the floor of the car and can be guaranteed to make a mess of the lawn you’ve spent all summer cultivating.
So why is it that children absolutely love the stuff! They squelch it between their fingers, they make mud pies and experiment with it, mixing it with water or sand for different textures. They splash in it and revel in seeing how far the mud can get up their wellies before it actually disappears over the top.
As adults we are well used to the saying “Don’t make a mess”, when really, as a group of people who are passionate about education, in all it’s forms, we should be saying “Make as much mess as you like”. Not only is mud huge fun, but it is an outdoor material, so it combines fresh air and exercise with cognitive development. Playing with mud also exposes children to bacteria. A certain amount is good for us as it helps build immunity within the body.
Messy play has a huge role to play in contributing to young children’s learning and development. Very often, messy play is social play so it is perfect for encouraging children to play together, helping them get to know each other and make friends. Playing with mud allows the boundaries of creativity and imagination to fly unlimited. There is a lack of focus on the children having to produce something specific so messy play leaves the child free to explore all sorts of possibilities.
Now Autumn is upon us, nature provides a rich bounty for the children to incorporate into their messy play creations. How about a mud pie, decorated with leaves from the beech or birch, and maybe some acorns to adorn the top? Or some mud soup, with twigs and seeds added for texture? The different consistencies of mud present the children with the joys of early science lessons as they soon discover thicker mud is needed for their pies, and sloppy mud for the soup.
Dirt, sand, mud, water and the abundance of natural ingredients make mud play an uplifting educational delight. Our outdoor wooden play kitchen provides the perfect stimulation for messy mud play. Mud kitchens are enjoying a resurgence and if your budget is limited you can make your own. Upturned crates can become kitchen worktops, trays become baking sheets, old utensils found in the back of a kitchen drawer at home, pans that have lost a lid, pots that are cracked and chipped provide endless opportunity for children to experiment. Very soon, they are enjoying the wonders of cooking and having huge amounts of fun in the meantime.
Mud is messy but it is in its mess that enjoyment and wonder can be found. Maybe as adults we should shrug off our reservations about “the mess” and embrace the magical wonders mud can provide children.
In the spirit of messy play and to acknowledge that protecting the children’s clothes is important we are offering a FREE Pk 10 Water Play Aprons worth £35.95 + VAT
when you purchase either of the following:
Indoor / Outdoor 6 Sided Easel 30 Shelf Spring Loaded Drying Rack
Code: AE26051 Code: AD26022
£259.95 £149.95
Originally written 14 October 2015