The many learning benefits of blowing bubbles!

There’s no denying the delight that bubbles can bring for children and adults alike!

As an adult it comes naturally to us to be able to blow bubbles, but have you ever thought about the different skills it takes?

First you need to unscrew the lid of the bubble mixture, holding it up the right way and being careful not to spill it- this uses a lot of hand eye coordination and helps build those all-important muscles in hands that are needed for future handwriting.

Then you lift the wand to your lips- not too close though or you get a mouthful of bubble mixture- that’s also a lot of hand-eye coordination with a sprinkling of cause and effect if you go too far!

Then it’s time to blow bubbles- breathing in a lungful of air then blowing it out through pursed lips in front of the wand- this process requires quite a lot of general coordination transitioning through steps.

If you’re successful then you get bubbes, which you can watch as they float away- this is fantastic at supporting visual tracking (a much-needed skill when learning how to read).

If you aren’t successful, then you have to really theorise why- did you blow too hard? Not hard enough? Was there enough bubble mixture? Was there too much? Then you have to try again- that takes perseverance!

There’s also a lot of science involved in blowing bubbles – to create one you need to mix the flexible molecules of soap with the stretchy molecules of water to create a lightweight and stretchy film. Then you need to blow into the film to stretch out these molecules and trap the air inside. It’s pretty cool stuff!

And for those that see a rainbow within their bubbles this is because bubbles are made up of water with a thin layer of soap on each side, light waves hit and bounce around these inner and outer layers of the bubbles and some of them reflect back to your eyes. The colours that you see are dependent on the thickness of the water. How mind blowing is this?! Science really is everywhere.

That’s a lot of skill mastery packed into a seemingly simple activity, and the best thing is, there are ways that you extend it even more:

• Counting the bubbles as you go (numeracy skills in action)
• Bringing in songs (verbal and non-verbal communication)
• Chasing and popping the bubbles (gross motor skills)
• Creating your own bubble wands (problem-solving, creativity and imagination)

Over and above all the skills that can be mastered when blowing bubbles, the pure joy and delight that can be had means this is a fantastic learning experience to do with your child!