Bright Idea: Rice Box

This is a fantastically fun activity for anyone who doesn't have the space or luxury of having a sandbox (i.e. apartment living, deathly allergic to sand, whatever). Get a large, shallow box and fill it halfway full with rice. I bought the big store brand bag of rice on the bottom shelf at the local grocery story. Then buy a small bag of "jewels" from the craft section at Wal-Mart.

Then add sandbox toys and a large tablecloth and voilà! A rice box. I used to put it either outside on the patio or in the kitchen. When the kids are finished, you just move the rice box, pick up the four corners of the tablecloth and let the rogue pieces of rice fall to the center of it, and then dump it back into the rice box. Put the top back on and you're done! Well, okay, unless your kids threw rice around and then you may need to do a little sweeping. But my kids used to spend hours picking every jewel out of the rice, putting them in the bucket, and pouring them back into the rice. Over and over. This is a great winter-time activity when they can't get outside much, or a great summertime activity when it is too hot to be running around outside!

Bright Idea: Rice Box

http://laugh-learn-love.blogspot.com/2008/07/bright-idea-rice-box.html