Step-by-Step Guidance
1. Prepare the space: choose a wipe-clean floor area or a table with a protective mat. Place the tray where children can reach comfortably without leaning across others.
2. Make the moon sand: combine cornflour (or flour) with a small amount of oil until it holds shape when squeezed but still crumbles when released. Adjust gradually so it is not wet or runny.
3. Present the materials: place the moon sand in the tray and add a small number of astronauts and rockets. Keep extra tools (scoop/bowl) nearby rather than in the tray at first.
4. Invite exploration: allow children to approach in their own way. Offer a smock and show where cloths are for wiping hands, without interrupting play.
5. Support early play: if a child hesitates, model a simple touch (pressing fingertips or making a small mound) and pause. If a child is ready, add one tool to extend transferring or filling.
6. Follow children’s ideas: respond to what they do with the figures (burying, making tracks, standing them up). Add language for texture and position linked to their actions.
7. Manage the flow: keep the tray uncluttered by rotating figures or tools if play becomes crowded. Offer a second wiping cloth or a separate “clean hands” spot for children who need it.
8. Close the activity: give a clear, calm ending. Support children to tap sand back into the tray and place figures into a container. Wipe hands and surfaces.
Learning Objectives
Children may develop sensory awareness and fine motor control as they squeeze, pat, scoop, and release the moon sand (Physical Development). Children may build early vocabulary for texture, quantity, and position as they describe what they notice and where objects are placed (Communication and Language). Children may practise sharing space and resources, and begin to develop simple play narratives with the figures (Personal, Social and Emotional Development; Expressive Arts and Design).
Adult Role
Stay emotionally attuned to children’s comfort with mess. Notice signs of hesitation, sensory overload, or excitement, and offer choices such as using a tool, touching with one finger, or wiping hands without comment.
Model simple, accurate language linked to what children are doing: texture words (soft, crumbly), action words (press, squeeze), and position words (in, under, on). Keep language short and timed to the child’s focus.
Scaffold lightly when a child is stuck or frustrated, for example by demonstrating one action and handing control back. Step back when children repeat actions, concentrate, or begin their own small world ideas.
Observe in action by watching how children approach touch, how they use hands and tools, and how they include others. Use these observations to decide whether to simplify (fewer items) or extend (add a scoop or extra figure).
Maintain safety by supervising closely, keeping materials away from mouths, checking the size and condition of figures, and managing the space to reduce slipping or crowding.
Observation Cues
Reaches in confidently or tests with fingertips before committing to touch.
Uses different hand actions (pinch, press, pat, rub) and repeats actions to check what changes.
Moves astronauts/rockets through the sand and notices resistance, tracks, or buried parts.
Uses or attempts descriptive words such as soft, dry, sticky, smooth, heavy, more, less, in, under.
Shows preferences (avoids mess, seeks deep pressure, requests wiping hands) and returns to play after support.
Negotiates space or resources (waits, offers, watches others, copies ideas).
