Material: Spaghetti

Cactus Needle Push

Cactus Needle Push

Steps:

  • Press the Theraputty firmly into the bottom of the container. This creates a stable, resistant ‘desert floor’ for your cactus garden.
  • Break the dry spaghetti into short, 2-inch pieces. Breaking the spaghetti gives the hands extra feedback and motor planning practice.
  • Hold the container steady with your helper hand. Use your dominant hand to pick up one spaghetti piece (a ‘needle’).
  • Push the needle straight down into the putty. Encourage a strong, controlled push to insert it without breaking it.
  • Plant many needles close together to make a spiky cactus texture. Fill the entire putty surface!
  • Select a small pom-pom using your precise pincer grasp. Carefully place the pom-pom onto the top of a spaghetti needle to create a colorful ‘cactus flower’.

Safety Tip:
Spaghetti pieces are sharp when broken. Always supervise closely. Uncooked spaghetti, small pom-poms, and putty are choking hazards for children who still place objects in their mouths. Ensure all materials are collected immediately after play.

Noodle Tower Thread

Noodle Tower Thread

Steps:

  • Use the hole puncher to create several holes across the cardboard surface. Ensure the cardboard is stable.
  • Place the uncooked spaghetti sticks into the holes, creating tall, thin towers. Push them in just enough to stand up straight.
  • Put the macaroni pieces into a plastic container. Challenge your child to pick up one macaroni piece using a pincer grasp.
  • Carefully slide the macaroni onto the top of a spaghetti tower. Continue threading until the tower is full of “noodles.”
  • Try grading the task by stacking multiple cardboard layers for more resistance during step one.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise to ensure small materials are not put in the mouth. Ensure the cardboard stands firmly on the table for safe play.

Spaghetti Stringing

Using a paper cup, a styrofoam plate, or a piece of play dough, instruct the child to place the spaghetti vertically.

Provide the child with cheerios or beads and have him string the small objects onto the spaghetti.

If using different color beads or cheerios, you can have the child either sort the items into the different color groups or work on patterns (e.g. yellow-red-yellow-red…)