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Bubbles, Bubbles, Bubbles

Okay people! Who is ready for some warm weather????? We certainly are! Mobi Headquarters is located in Toronto, and in Canada we do winter!  Winter is now a thing of the past (fingers and toes are currently crossed). The kids are itching to get outside. As you probably know we have two kids: age 2.5 and 6. Although their ages are different we try to do activities that both can enjoy as it is just easier for the family as a whole and nice for the kids to have fun together.

One of our favourite “Fresh Air” activities that you can do right in your backyard = BUBBLES! Not only are these great for entertainment …. but they are also great for development! At Mobi, you know we are all about kids’ development and open ended play. Bubbles are the perfect resource for both of these! There is no “right way” to play with bubbles and we’ve got a list of some amazing developmental benefits of bubbles below.

Developmental Benefits of Bubbles!

Fine Motor Skills: Pinching that skinny wand!? You got it – fine motor at its best! Opening and closing the little lid will also provide some fine motor work. There is also coordination at play with two hands: one holding the wand and one holding the bottle while the child dips the wand in it.

Parents: You can also encourage your littles to pop the bubbles in different ways: “Pop with your index finger!” “Try to grab the bubble and pop with your whole hand!” So many cues you can give your littles to get their brains and bodies doing different things.

Gross Motor Skills: Encourage your kids to jump, reach, run and skip to catch and pop the bubbles. Bubbles on the ground? Perfect for stomping or jumping on!!

Visual Tracking Skills: Following where the bubbles go will allow your littles to work on visual tracking. Some will go high, some will go low. Some move slowing, some move fast!

Sensory Processing Skills: Bubbles feel a little funny! They are wet and a little sticky! They are different from other toys kids are playing with and therefore provide great sensory play.

Oral Motor Skills: Blowing bubbles is hard work and great exercise for little mouths. Some wands are easier than others. The skinnier the want, the easier it is for a little one to make a bubble, but changing up the wand size is great for oral motor skills and also for focus and concentration skills.

Communication/Social Skills: If playing with others, taking turns will happen (or at least we hope it will J). I’ve got a two year old who isn’t so into sharing right now, but we are working on it! Also, kids will have to ask for more bubbles if their parents are blowing them. Kids will also learn spacing in groups as they don’t want to bump into each other or knock anyone down. These are all small and little things but they all add up. 

As you can see, there are so many benefits bubbles provide – hours of fun, plenty of laughs and a huge amount of developmental opportunities.