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Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Pipe cleaner activity

A couple of weeks ago I purchased a pack of pipe cleaners, I was going to do an activity with my son I had seen on Pinterest. 
It was the one where you cut up the pipe cleaners, place them in a bottle, and use a magnet to move them around.
It looked really fun, but I couldn't find a magnet anywhere.
So, this is what I came up with instead.
Supplies
pipe cleaners
empty bottle (I just used an orange juice bottle)
a sharp knife
a push pin
a nail

Using the sharp knife, cut off the bottom part of the bottle. (Be careful!!)
 The easiest method I found for making the holes was to first poke the push pin though, 
 and then poke the nail through the same hole, and move it around a little to make it larger. Poke holes around the whole bottle.
 It probably only took about 10 minutes to make all the holes.
 At first I tried to have my son push the pipe cleaners through to the other side, but that took A LOT of concentration and patience. Something an almost 4 year old doesn't always possess :)
 He got a couple through all by himself, but I could tell it might not hold his attention much longer, 
 so I told him to just poke the pipe cleaners through any holes to make it look 'crazy'
 He loved it! 
 There was a lot of thought as to where he was going to put certain colors
 The finished 'design' :)
 Once he was all done we pulled out all the pipe cleaners, straightened them out a little, and 'stored' them in the bottle.
I love the flexibility of this activity, and that it can look different each time!
Do you have any pipe cleaner activities?

25 comments:

  1. That looks like fun! I bet my 3 year old would like that :)

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  2. This is such an awesome idea!! It's great how entertaining simple things can be for a child :)

    Thank you for linking up to Raising Imperfection Sunday Link Up!!
    Come back Friday to see if your post was featured.

    Lanaya
    http://www.raising-reagan.com

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, I know, I love finding things I don't have to spend a lot of money on that will keep my son's attention :)

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  3. This is such a great idea. I love your kids crafts ideas. I would love for you to come over and check out The new kids crafts blog called The CSI Project Kids. I am the owner of the cSI Project and now a blog just for kids. I would love for you to do a tutorial with your kids too. This challenge is crafting with toilet paper rolls so come link up next week.
    Email me if you would like to do a tutorial and I will let you sign up.
    dee@thecsiproject.com
    www.thecsiprojectkids.com
    www.thecsiproject.com

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    Replies
    1. Thank you! We actually made a Thanksgiving craft last night using toilet paper rolls :) I'll head over and check it out!

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  4. Very cool activity!

    Found you on the Mommy brain mixer! Following and commenting from http://fluffimama.blogspot.com/ I hope you'll do the same! Be sure to enter my giveaway for for a free Gold Canyon candle :)

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  5. Cute project!


    http://brownsistacrista.blogspot.com/

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  6. Great for hand eye coordination..I have a 4 yr old boy too that would probably enjoy this!

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  7. Ooh, my 3 year old would love this!

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    Replies
    1. It's fun to just watch their creativity and see how they approach it :)

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  8. Fun! I think my almost 4-year-old would like it too.

    I'd love for you to come link up at my link party this week! http://www.gingerlymade.com/2012/11/show-and-tell-2.html

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  9. Hi! I am your newest follower and was hoping that you'd stop by and follow me back!

    www.enjoyingtheepiphany.com

    Thanks,
    Sarah

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the follow! I'll make sure to stop on by :)

      Delete
  10. What a great idea! Stumbled upon your post while looking for something to do with pipe cleaners with my 13 month old! :)

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  11. What a great idea. I love the colours.

    Thanks for link g to the Sunday showcase.

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  12. Thanks for sharing such a wonderful post.. You have shared unique ways of using pipe cleaners and I will surely try this..
    bond cleaning sydney

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  13. I've been browsing your blog and love all your kid activities. Please link-up with Entertaining and Education on Fridays whenever you can. It's a small blog-hop, and my readers are almost all homeschoolers. I think they will love your ideas.

    http://highhillhomeschool.blogspot.com/2013/12/christmas-crafts-for-children.html

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  14. I use a dish strainer and the kids love to design. Some call it a hat, monster, space ship and they are practicing their fine motor skills and problem solving skills!!

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