“Squishy Balls” aka good old stress balls, have had their fair share of You Tube fame recently, the latest trend in the toy world. I’ve been seeing the most amazing tension relieving creations filled with different concoctions and decided I HAD to try this with my boys.
Firstly, Stress balls are hugely beneficial for children and help relieve worry, tension and aid in concentration. They are also advocated by many OT’s as squeezing a stress ball can help to rehabilitate and strengthen your hand. Typically, a child’s hands are weaker, learning to hold a pen or pencil can be tricky. The repetitive action of squeezing the stress ball makes the muscles stronger and aids in writing skills.
I wanted to do a little more than the traditional “flour” or “rice” filled stress balls, and i thought it would be a great experiment for the kids if we compared the different types of fillings and then chose their favourite.
The fillings I chose were:
Water beads (soaked in water overnight)
Floam
Floam mixed with Slime
Plain Slime (You can find my slime recipe here)
Corn Flour and Water
Together with your choice of filling you will need:
Clear, latex Balloons (I got mine from PartySpot)
A few plain coloured balloons (If you choose cornflour and water)
A funnel (I took a 2L Coca-Cola bottle and cut of the neck section, it was the perfect size)
A spoon/long stick for poking the filling through.
Attach your balloon to the bottom of the funnel, add in your choice of filling, as much as you can. You want a nice rounded shape for your ball. Keep enough space to securely tie the neck of your balloon. Cut off the extra end to make a nice round shape.
If you chose to do the Cornflour and Water (Gloop) mixture, double up two plain coloured balloons. As this mixture is heavier the balloon is more likely to pop so you need to make sure the gloop doesn’t get everywhere. You can also cut the neck off a deflated balloon to “cover” your ball to ensure extra coverage.
Have fun with your kids! Our favorites by far were the water beads, purely because it was just so pretty and pretty satisfying, as well as the slime mixed with Floam. They were so successful I decided to create a Clubhouse Adventure with Adventure Clubs with it, showing other kids how to make their own squishy balls.
Have you made your own stress balls before? Do you find them beneficial?