Frozen Ocean Animal Rescue: How to Make a Frozen Sensory Play Set-Up

Gina
May 25
3 min read

In this BLOG post I will teach you how to make frozen ocean animals and explain the benefits of sensory play.

I have been a parent for 10.5 years and frozen treasures have saved my sanity more times than I can count. They seem simple, because they are...but don't confuse simple for boring because they are ANYTHING but that!

There are approximately 343497238439 reasons why they are the best.

Here are a few of the biggies:

They literally take minutes to prep. This is not an exaggeration. Take anything that you have, that is freezer/water safe: plastic ocean animals, farm animals, legos, craft pom poms, gems, rocks, shells- literally anything that you have- and dump it into an ice cube tray or bowl. Fill it with water (food coloring is optional, but fun!) and freeze it.

You can make them ahead of time. I usually make them at night, so they are ready in the morning. They are the perfect little something to pull out on a rainy day or when you just need to get some play going. You can pull out a few at a time, you don't even have to empty the entire ice cube tray. A couple will keep them playing and you will have more for next time! At this point, my kids make their own...yay!

They're engaging. They seem simple to us, but they are magical to our little people. Their favorite things are stuck, and they have to problem solve a way to get them out!

Once your frozen treasures are solid, put them in a sensory tray, a bowl or a baking dish- whatever you have!

Give them a pipette (or medicine dropper), a wooden spoon, a wooden mallet or even a paintbrush. Give them a bowl of warm water.

That's it...the rest is up to them.

Maybe they use the pipette to squeeze water over the top, slowly and methodically until the ice melts and the sea animals are free.

Maybe they take the entire cube and drop it in the bowl or warm water and watch it spin and melt.

Maybe they take the wooden spoon or mallet and smash the ice cube bit by bit until they crack it open and free the fish!

THERE IS NO WRONG WAY TO PLAY.

That is one of the greatest benefits of sensory play. You can play any way that you want.

It can be slow and calming or it can be a safe way to release big emotions.

I have to mention a few other amazing benefits before you rush off to try this one!

Fine motor skills. Fine motor skills are the tiny muscles in your hands, fingers and wrist that help you do big tasks such as feeding yourself, zippering your coat and buttoning your pants. They also help you with tasks like holding a pencil and writing your name. They are important and we can help to strengthen those skills through play. It is a beautiful thing!

Focus and attention. Time on task is tricky for little ones. Their brains and bodies are moving fast. Activities like this help to hold their focus and allow them to practice sustaining their attention, again, through play!

Language and vocabulary. Think of all of the amazing language and vocabulary opportunities here. You can talk about color, about sea animals and about temperature. You can talk about squeezing and smooshing and pouring. You can talk about what you will do first, second and third. You can talk about water and ice and the process that makes each.

Social/Emotional Skills. There are SO many social/emotional skills hard at work here, especially if kids are working together. They will have the opportunity to work on problem solving, patience and frustration tolerance. They will learn to share space and also share materials. They will practice how to use their manners, respectfully request materials and advocate for themselves.

Inclusive. There is no wrong way to play, which makes sensory activities like this incredibly inclusive. Kids of all ages and abilities can play together, but at their own individual and developmental levels. They can play based off of their own plan, even if that plan is different than the person next to them. Kids of all ages and abilities can play together, separately.