Oats - OTPlan

Sensory Balloon Squeeze Pairs

Steps:

Fill two balloons with dry beans, two with rice, and two with oats.
Squeeze some water into two final balloons and tie all of them securely.
Place all the textured balloons inside a large bowl.
Have your child close their eyes and pick up one balloon.
Ask them to squeeze it gently with their hands to feel the texture.
Challenge them to find the matching balloon in the bowl using only their sense of touch!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise children during balloon play. Uninflated or broken balloons can be a choking hazard. Keep materials away from mouths.

The Paper Cup Secret Sounds

Steps:

Line up six empty paper cups on a table.
Put a small handful of rice into two cups.
Fill two more cups with dry beans and the last two with oats.
Place an index card over the top of each cup and secure it tightly with masking tape.
Use markers to draw a small secret symbol on the bottom of each cup to mark the pairs.
Mix the cups up and ask your child to shake them one by one.
Challenge your child to find the two cups that make the exact same sound!

Safety Tip:
Supervise your child closely when using rice or beans to prevent them from putting items in their mouth.

Sticky Sludge Squeeze

Steps:

Mix about half a cup of oats with a small amount of water in the plastic container. Stir until you have a thick, resistant, soupy mixture (the ‘sludge’).
Secure the construction paper vertically onto a wall or door using masking tape. This is your target canvas.
Tear off several small pieces of masking tape. Place them on the paper, sticky side facing OUT, to create a simple shape or path.
Hold the eyedropper using your thumb and pointer finger. Squeeze the bulb hard to draw up the resistant oat sludge.
Stabilize the paper with your helper hand. Aim the dropper at the sticky tape targets.
Squeeze the dropper forcefully to release the thick sludge onto the sticky tape. Continue this until all the sticky spots are covered.

Safety Tip:
Constant and direct adult supervision is required. Ensure the child only uses the mixture and eyedropper as intended. Oats pose a potential choking hazard if ingested.

Squish Bag Stomp

Steps:

Fill several Ziplock Bags about halfway with dry oats (or rice/beans). Ensure all the air is squeezed out before sealing them tightly.
Use masking tape to secure the filled bags flat onto a low, stable floor surface, like the kitchen floor or a sturdy rug, creating a short path or line.
Encourage your toddler to take off their shoes and socks, and gently step onto the taped bags. Use encouraging language like, “Stomp! Can you feel the squish and crunch under your feet?” (For safety, hold hands if they are new to standing/walking.)

Safety Tip:
Due to the use of small materials (oats) in the bags, constant, close adult supervision is essential. Ensure the Ziplock Bags are taped completely shut before starting the activity to prevent the contents from spilling or being ingested.

Your Very Own Fish Tank

For this activity, you need to use blue, orange, and yellow construction paper. You would also need to use a single hole puncher.

On a piece of blue construction paper, draw a square (in a size that will fit inside the ziplock bag) with wiggly lines. Ask the child to cut the square that you drew and stay within the wiggly lines (thickness of the line depends on the child’s skills and development).

Draw a fish on the orange or yellow paper and have the child cut it out. Depending on the child’s skills, you can have the child trace a picture of a fish or draw his own fish.

Glue the fish onto the blue sheet. Ask the child to draw eyes, fins, gills, and mouth on the fish and add any plants on the blue paper. Use a hole punch to punch bubbles in the blue paper (coming out of the mouth of the fish and above). Place the blue sheet into the ziplock bag. Place the oats on the table or in a small shallow plate and ask the child to pinch the oats and drop into the bag, to represent the floor of the tank. Repeat this activity a few times, until there is enough oats on the bottom of the bag. Seal the bag nice and tight.