Let Your Toddler Play With Birdseed

Let Your Toddler Play With Birdseed
Photo: Anakumka (Shutterstock)

If you’re the parent of a toddler or preschooler, chances are you’ve discovered the joy (and the mess) that sensory activities can bring. When my son was that age, a bin full of strange material would occupy him for many minutes at a time—certainly more than plastic toys or games or puzzles ever could. The trick to a successful sensory activity is to find something that is fun to dig your hands into, isn’t a choking hazard and, most critically, won’t make a mess that takes longer to clean up than the time spent playing with it. Might I suggest: Birdseed.

The idea comes from Linda in our Offspring Facebook Group, who tried it over the weekend with her toddler son to great success:

Photo: Linda Barber Pike

Just give them a large bowl or bin partially filled with birdseed, some small cups, bowls or utensils to scoop and pour the seed and/or a few small toys to bury. The materials in birdseed are small enough to not be a choking concern, which can be an issue with some popular sensory play materials such as dried beans. If you let them play with it outside, the mess is essentially a non-issue—the birds will come clean up after them once they’re done.

Just keep in mind that, while not likely to be harmful in a little taste here or there, birdseed is not processed or packaged for human consumption, so supervise them while they’re playing and don’t let them totally chow down on the stuff.

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To be extra careful (and natural), you can make your own birdseed at home using a combination of sunflower seeds, millet, peanuts, cracked corn and dried fruit, and vary your recipe depending on any allergies your kids may have.

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