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Sensory play

Rice-Filled Balloon Stress Ball

Here's one to try together!

Fill a balloon with rice, add a silly face, and squeeze your worries away.

20 min5 min prepAges 8 and upmedium mess

Reviewed by our team.

Safety first
  • Balloons and balloon scraps are a choking risk for children under 8; pick up every scrap
  • Scissors are a sharp tool
  • Small loose rice or lentils could be a choking risk if a balloon bursts

What you need

  • Paper, 1 sheet, if you have no funnel
  • Kid scissors, 1 pair
  • Crayons or markers, 1 marker
  • Rice, 1 cup per person, or lentils
  • Bowl, 1 per person
  • Balloon, 2 per person
  • Spoon, 1 per person
  • Funnel, 1 per person (optional)
  • Towel, 1 old towel, or a tray
  • Paper bag, 1 small bag for scraps
  • Painter's tape, a small piece, for the paper cone (optional)

How to do it

Grown-up prep: Gather the supplies and lay a tray or towel on the table to catch stray rice. Keep a bag nearby for balloon scraps.

  1. Blow up a balloon, let the air out, and do it twice.
  2. Put the funnel or paper cone into the balloon's neck.
  3. Spoon rice into the balloon until it is as big as a small orange.
    Ask: What do you think it will feel like when it is full of rice?
  4. Tap the balloon on the table to settle the rice.
  5. Squeeze the air out, then tie a knot in the neck.
  6. Trim the end of the neck with scissors.
  7. Optional: cut the neck off a second balloon and stretch it over the first.
  8. Draw a face on your ball with the marker.
  9. Squeeze slowly for five seconds, let go, and notice your hands.
    Ask: How do your hands feel after squeezing? Warm, tired, or relaxed?
  10. Make another one or share yours! Which silly face will come next?

Play it again

  • Squeeze count: see how many slow five-second squeezes you can do in a row.
  • Silly faces: draw a different mood on each ball and guess each other's feelings.
  • Filling test: make balls with rice, lentils and another dry filling, then rank them from softest to firmest.
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