Let me tell you about Fletcher and his cousin, Ava. We call them cousin-siblings. Without sharing parents or residing under the same roof, they are as close to brother and sister as two children could possibly be. They are alike in the best, but most challenging ways – steadfast in their respective convictions, headstrong, sensitive and articulate. They don’t necessarily agree on most things, but they’re always the first to come to the others’ defense. They struggle with their own individual sensory integration challenges which means that usually the first twenty minutes of a visit is a roller coaster of emotions while they settle in. In time, they find their sweet spot and *usually* play with wild imaginations fueled by boundless energy. Watching them navigate their world of wonder when they find their stride is one of my greatest joys.
I discovered last summer that Fletcher and Ava are most successful when there is a neutral, guided activity to aid in their transition. Since we are in a shared pandemic bubble, we spend a lot of time together. In August I found myself preparing to home school them just in case virtual learning wasn’t a good fit – there were so many uncertainties then. As I found what I thought were fun and engaging activities, I’d give them a test drive. This is where fluffy slime entered our lives, made itself comfy and never left!
The first time we made it, I spread a vinyl picnic blanket out on the grass under the shade of a big tree in our backyard. It was a warm, sunny day in late summer. With fall looming, we were finding any reason to be outside. I brought out our ingredients – bowls, wooden spoons, measuring cups, Elmer’s glue, contact solution, baking soda, shaving cream, water. After some debate over who got which bowl, my little sensory scientists found their focus.
We followed the instructions exactly (there are a lot of recipes and videos online, we follow the version on The Best Ideas for Kids). And they were thrilled with the outcome. I was completely amazed when over an hour later, they were still completely enthralled with the end result of their experiment. Fluffy slime went down the slide, it went on the swings, it climbed, it ran, it was stretched and squished, and became an integral part of their make-believe play. They talked about how it turned from a liquid to a solid and dreamed of all the color combinations they would make the next time. They were completely regulated – with the help of all of the sensory input that beautiful fluffy slime provided. (They tend to like it better than traditional slime – it isn’t as gooey, slimy or super sticky after all the ingredients are incorporated.)
Since that summer day, fluffy slime has been the most highly sought-after activity from this pair of cousin-siblings. In fact, we made a fresh batch yesterday at Ava’s request (and to my delight). We made a last-minute addition of gold glitter to our green fluffy slime – after all, St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner.
During yesterday’s fluffy slime adventure, I was reminded of a few pro-tips…
- If you are making this with multiple kiddos, I recommend pre-measuring the ingredients so they can actively pour and mix at the same time and no one has to wait. (Waiting, while a wonderful life skill, is realllllllly hard for our bunch and too much of it can make an activity go south in a snap!)
- Pay close attention to the specifics about the contact solution and shaving cream ingredients. It’s make or break.
- This slime is fun with or without color. We’ve used food coloring which is super messy and gets all over hands and arms – that part isn’t my favorite. We’ve also made it without color. The natural white color can be just as fun. We haven’t experimented with food dyes, but you could try a natural dye from berries or beets maybe to see how that turns out! (If you do, let me know how it goes!)
- Fluffy slime lends itself to add-ins like glitter, sprinkles, or event that little confetti people use to sprinkle on tables for parties or in cards (it’s not paper) – anything, really. Use your imagination to add dimension and additional sensory elements.
- You can also experiment with the various sounds that fluffy slime makes. I’m sure you can imagine what the fan favorite is with my crew. Because apparently flatulence in any form is just never NOT funny. 🙂
Photos of our fluffy slime adventures can be found on Swinging in the Rain’s Facebook and Instagram pages.