The New Toy in Town: Slime
Is Slime Good for My Kid?
Ahh… The ever-evolving world of children’s toys. A new sensation has recently hit the market— ooey-gooey, multi-coloured dough that squelches and pops and is the bane of many a school teacher: Slime.
However, distracting as it may be in the classroom, when placed in the right hands at the right time, toy slime can actually teach a child some valuable lessons in patience, perseverance and leadership through play.
During the December school holidays, a youth volunteer was extremely kind to take time off her busy schedule to teach the children in our NOVA Learning Labs the acquired art of making their very own toy slime.
While making the slime, one child added too much of an ingredient and her slime became too tough to pull. She grew upset and was about to give up altogether, but with the NOVA facilitator’s coaching and going through the deep breathing steps to calm down, she managed to accept her mistake and find the solution to her problem. She grew in her resilience and effective problem-solving that day.
The child managed to fix her slime and stretched it to her heart’s content
The children also practised taking turns and helping one another pour ingredients and remove the little pieces of slime that got caught between their fingers. This helped them learn about the importance of teamwork and caring for one another.
At the end of the craft session, the children were happy with their personalised slime and packed them home in little tubs. Some were peppered with foam beads, others had streaks of colour, and still others sparkled with glitter in the sunlight— you can see that slime is a great way to help children express creativity!
This little one stared back at us with three googly eyes
So in conclusion: Yes, slime can be beneficial for your child when given the right space to play with it. Slime is a great tool for children to take a break from regular schoolwork and relieve their stress, as well as to practise focusing on the task at hand. So try out for yourself from this new marvel for children. It can teach a valuable lesson or two in social-emotional learning!
Carmelle Chua
Facilitator, NOVA Learning Intervention Programme
NOVA Learning Intervention Programme is a school-based programme that provides support to mainstream Primary 1 and 2 children with Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) difficulties. Learn more about NOVA Learning Intervention Programme here
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