A Little Project

I stayed up until the wee hours of this morning googling schools, speech therapists etc. I woke up this morning very tired and full of regret! I was falling asleep on the sofa and thought, I need to go out before I flake out!! So, I took the kids to the hardware store to get some supplies for a project.


There's an activity at preschool that E is drawn to, so I thought I would make a home version. It is basically a... Shape board? I have no idea what it's called, but this is what you will need
A square piece of wood
Nails (flat topped are best)
A hammer
Measuring tape/ruler
Lead pencil
Rubber bands or similar

We got our wood from Bunnings. We bought a 1.2m length of pine for around $9, which we got my Dad to cut in to 5 squares. We only need one square, but can use the rest for other projects.
Sand the edges of the wood if you need to, then using your ruler and pencil, mark the wood with equally spaces dots to create a grid, like so

Next, you need to hammer a nail in to each pencil mark. How deep you go is up to you, but don't flatten it. I hammered them in to start then let E give them a whack for good measure. Great fine motor activity, also wonderful for concentration! But parental supervision is a must with littlies like E.

When you have finished hammering, you are done! Grab your elastic bands (or hair bands, in our case!) and you can start creating shapes, pictures, patterns, or whatever your heart desires.

This is a good activity for learning shapes, copying shapes, mirroring, pattern creating, developing fine motor skills, encouraging table top play and extended periods of concentration.
E has also had fun removing some nails and hammering them back in to the holes.