Pipe Cleaners Magnetic Grab

Did you know pipe cleaners are magnetic?

It opens up a whole new world of activities fun knowing that little tid-bit of information. My kids learned just how much fun in this simple pipe cleaners magnetic grab activity.

Magnets are a big concern with little ones. Never use small magnets around small children. This activity, as always, was done under close supervision and with large magnetic wands.

Setting up a simple pipe cleaners magnetic grab

Materials:
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• Cut up pipe cleaners
• Magnetic wands
• Curious toddlers

To set up this easy activity, I grabbed a handful of pipe cleaners and cut them into 1 to 2 inch pieces. Hindsight: I should have thrown them all into a storage tub for playing. Instead, I threw them on the floor to start this activity. Oh well. It still worked brilliantly and it was easy to clean up at the end.

What happened in this easy activity

This was a very open ended activity for both my toddlers (ages 3 and 21 months) and just a chance for exploration. They loved this opportunity to work with the materials without parental intervention or many parameters.

I gave them each a magnetic wand and also some cups/jars just in case they wanted to try transferring the pipe cleaners from the floor to the cups. My son called this “magnetic crane” – lifting the pipe cleaners off the ground and into the jars.

Mostly, they just wanted to goof, mess and play around with the wands and pipe cleaners. They experimented with different techniques for picking up the pipe cleaners and tried to get as many as possible in one “pick up”.

My 21 month old got a giggle out of making the pipe cleaners tickle her face – what a ham! I will not soon forget her sweet laughs while she played this activity.

What are my toddlers learning in magnetic grab?

This may look simple, but plenty of learning is happening here:

• Understanding of magnetic properties
• Cause and effect
• Trial and error

Activities like this magnetic grab are always fun for those quick, random times when you need a little something extra and fun to do.

Think your kids would like pipe cleaners magnetic grab?