Saturday, June 21, 2003
Either indoors or outdoors, making a mess is well worth any cleanup time.
By SUZANNE PEREZ TOBIAS
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
If you're the type who goes nuts when your child has mud on his hands or paint in his hair, don't read this story.
On second thought, read every word. For your child's sake -- and your own sanity -- it's time to rethink that moratorium on messes.
"It's important for children to be able to explore the world with all their senses," says Shannon Scholler, director of early childhood education at Exploration Place in Wichita, Kan., and a former preschool teacher.
"If we don't allow them to touch and feel things, they're not going to learn. They need to have the freedom to get messy once in a while."
That doesn't mean they have to destroy your furniture or their Sunday clothes. And it doesn't mean spending a single penny on new toys.
This time of year, outdoor fun can be as simple as splashing in a puddle or making a mud pie.
Some suggestions
Inside, fill a container with sand, rice or birdseed. Use plastic cups and spoons to move it around.
Put on some old clothes. Leave your feet bare. Find a place that's easily cleaned, should anything splatter -- on the kitchen floor, the driveway, even in the bathtub -- or spread newspapers around.
Then get out the finger paints (washable, of course), chocolate clay, slimy goo or play dough -- you can even make your own -- and have fun.
"You have to have the right mind-set," said Loris Theovin Bree, author of the "Kid's Squish Book" (Marlor Press, $8.95), a guide and recipe book for all sorts of messy activities.
"Don't worry so much. Get messy. It's healthy for children to learn that they can't always be clean."
Bree's book includes directions for splatter painting, T-shirt decorating, papier-m & acirc;ch & eacute;, water balloons and edible (chocolate pudding) finger painting. There's even a chapter titled "A Messy Party," with ideas for throwing an unforgettable, sloppy bash.
Keeping it clean
If you're a neat freak who cringes at the thought of your child playing in mud, there's still hope, says Scholler:
"Make some clean dirt."
Clean dirt?
"Potting soil mixed with a little vermiculite -- it makes the best mud pies," she said. "And that way you don't have to worry about whether the dog's been in there."
There are ways to make cleanup quick and easy. For instance, reserve the hour before bath time for messy play. Then just stick your child in the tub. Hot summer day? Use the hose.
Scholler says one of her favorite memories of childhood was the summer all the neighborhood kids got together and dug a huge hole in her back yard. They worked on it for three days, digging down over their heads and getting really filthy.
"My parents weren't too pleased, but they let us go," she said, laughing. "We spent a long time filling that hole back up."