Hands-on fun with messy play bingo

For the uninitiated, messy play bingo is a splashier, squelchier, squishier version of the classic game.

It mixes fun with early learning, and all you need is a bingo board full of messy play activities, and a little person to tick them off one-by-one. 

Circle In has a printable game board you can start with, but because more is always merrier (and messier), here are 16 messy play bingo challenges to keep the ball rolling: 

1. Make garden soup with leaves, petals, grass, seed pods and water
2. Dance in a sprinkler or shower in dry leaves
3. Get gloopy with homemade oobleck
4. Do a pavement drawing with chalk ice
5. Set up a sand kitchen, with dry sand to scoop and wet sand to mould
6. Paint your hands and feet, then stamp them on paper
7. Use cookie cutters on a tray of jelly 
8. Swish your hands through rainbow-coloured foam
9. Paint some rocks
10. Hunt for toy bugs in mud
11. Create splat art, using sponges and pom poms
12. Build a play dough volcano
13. Make pizzas from scratch
14. Dig for spaghetti worms in a tub of soil
15. Use toy cars and trucks as paintbrushes
16. Mix up sand and shaving cream to make sand foam

The aim is to cross off every activity on the board, and whether you do the lot or manage a couple, messy play bingo will be a winner with your under five. 

These kinds of challenges stimulate the senses, build skills and give children the giggles, so dig out some old clothes, mix up some materials and let the game begin! 

Additional reference

Petit Early Learning Journey