Bubbles are a simple and fun way to play with your little one, even when they are still young. This summer classic is actually very beneficial for a variety of developmental skills. There's a reason so many of our therapists use bubbles while playing with our Sherwood clients! Your child is working on a number of developmental skills when playing with bubbles including: communication, social skills, visual tracking, fine motor skills, gross motor skills, hand eye coordination, and oral motor skills.
Here’s a few ways to play with bubbles this summer:
Practice words like “more” and “pop”. Right before you blow a new bubble, look at your kid with an expectant look and ask “more”? If they make a sound, try to say “more”, gesture, or make any indication they want more, blow more bubbles. When you pop the bubbles, be sure to say “pop”!
Practice baby signs. Show your kid how to make the signs “more” and “bubbles” while you play outside. This is a great activity if your kid isn’t talking just yet or only has a handful of words.
Bubble stomp. Allow the bubbles to float to the floor/ground and then stomp on all the bubbles. Say “stomp” or “boom” while you are popping the bubbles.
Take turns. You blow the bubbles and then offer the wand to your kid and encourage them to blow bubbles (or try their best). Then say “my turn” and blow bubbles again. This is a great way to practice sharing and taking turns.
Use goofy sounds instead. Instead of using words, model goofy sounds like “uhoh”, “woah”, “boom” and “ooooh!” Goofy sounds are often easier to imitate than words.
Describe the bubbles. Talk about size concepts (big, small) or count the bubbles! You can talk about their location (so high!, up, down, behind you) and their texture (shiny, sticky).
We love bubbles year round, but know that they’re especially fun in the sunny summer months! Need some other ideas for summer games? Check out our previous blog posts on water play and sidewalk chalk.