The above photo shows some lovely animal models that my daughter created using the Spring Time Animals foam clay play kit sent to her by FoamClay.co.uk.
The kit costs £14.00 and it contains everything you need to make the 4 animals – a pig, a cow, a horse and a sheep. The play kits from FoamClay come packaged in a tube and would make a great gift to wrap up for Christmas.
A FoamClay play kit would be an ideal craft kit to do on Christmas day as it is not too messy, it requires very little space (so your child can do it in a corner of the table while you are busy preparing Christmas dinner) and they will have fun creating the little models using the kits.
There are loads of different kits to choose from! This is a list of the £14 sets they have available in their online shop :-
The £14.00 kits all make 4 models with the exception of the Chinese New Year kit that makes one larger sized Chinese dragon and the Nursery Rhyme kit that makes two models but also comes with a downloadable story for storytime and free play. Each kit contains enough FoamClay to make the models, detailed modelling instructions, colour mixing information, a modelling tool and other accessories that are needed for each kit (this will differ depending on the models that are to be made) such as googly eyes and polystyrene balls (for the bodies of the Spring Time Animals).
The Seaside Adventure kit also requires driftwood, a rock, a bit of sand and a shell so that kit in particular would be great to use after or during a beach holiday or after a trip to the seaside. I love the idea of your child having the additional fun of hunting down the treasures to use in combination with the FoamClay kit.
I home educate my daughter so I really like that these kits come with factual information about the topic of the kit – in this case, Spring Time Animals and there is also a guided EYFS observation sheets ready to be completed.
This was the first time my daughter had ever used FoamClay and she really loved it! It was easy to create with, enjoyable to play with and most importantly it enabled her to create lovely, detailed models that she was proud of. I photographed her creations so that I can keep them with the EYFS sheet that lists my observations of her playing with the kit.
The process of making the models promotes discussion with your child as you can chat about the details of each model and how to create the colours needed. You can also discuss the topic/theme associated with the models – so spring time for the kit I received for review or Christmas for the Christmas decoration kits. With so many different play kits available to buy there really is something to suit every child! They even sell a pack of 9 x 20g FoamClay pots (£14.00) so that your child can have a go at free play and use their imagination to create whatever they like!
The kits are not particularly cheap at £14.00 but it very apparent that they have spent a lot of time and effort deciding on what to put into each set and how best to make their kits appealing to young children. The instructions were very clear and that is worth a lot! There is nothing worse than a kids craft kit with instructions that basically explain nothing! It frustrates the child (and the parent) plus more often than not the kit ends up getting binned because things go wrong as instructions are incorrect and then the child doesn’t want to bother with it any more as the fun has been taken out of it. That is certainly not the case with the FoamClay kit…my daughter was very eager to get creating and there was nothing stopping her!
If you work it out each model costs £3.50 (in the case of there being 4 models in a pack) which is not a bad price for the amount of enjoyment your child will get creating it. They will also be experimenting with different techniques on each model they create so they will be learning new things each time they craft. 🙂 Don’t forget that once your child has used up all the FoamClay they will still have the modelling tools to put in their craft box to use on future modelling projects.
It is great that there are play kits available for lots of different topics / themes and we found the FoamClay to be a very unique modelling material. It feels soft, easy to mould and is extremely lightweight. The finished animal models that my daughter made hardly weighed anything and they looked super cute sitting on the sideboard in my lounge.
My 6 year old daughter followed the instructions very carefully and she was able to make these animals all by herself.
This is the description of FoamClay from their website :-
FoamClay produce an exciting range of educational activity kits designed around seasonal themes, world celebrations and national curriculum. All our products target the governments Early Years Foundation. We are constantly developing our range, FoamClay has lots more to offer for all age groups . . .
- Discover & Play focuses the creative play on a specific topic, engages with the child while creating the models and then exploring the kit topic.
- Create & Play focuses on role play playing out nursery rhymes, adventures and imagination.
- Free Play supplies raw materials and clay to encourage creativity.
The prime areas of learning are:
- Communication and language
- Physical development
- Personal, social and emotional development
The specific areas of learning are:
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the world
- Expressive arts and design
My daughter loved playing with the FoamClay kit and she would certainly recommend it to you all! She loves to be creative so this kit was just her cup of tea!
The kits are ideal for parents, grandparents, home educators, teachers and childminders to buy. The kits are a fun way of getting children crafting whilst also encouraging them to learn about new things and discuss seasonal topics such as Halloween and Christmas.
Please stop by and follow FoamClay on social media. You can find them on twitter, facebook and Pinterest.