Alphabet Puzzle: Tissue Paper Unwrap

Toddler activities should be simple and provide hands-on learning and fun! This activity is exactly that and gets bonus points for an easy set up with materials you likely already have on hand.

Supplies:

• Wooden Puzzle of any kind
• Tissue paper or crepe paper streamers
• Tape (Optional)

This activity has been such a hit with my toddler, that we have been doing it on repeat and have tried a few variations.

Skills your child is practicing:

• Fine Motor Skills
• Hand-Eye Coordination
• Spatial Awareness
• Cause and Effect
• Concentration
• Letter recognition (if using alphabet puzzle)

Set up and implementing:

Tissue Paper

Tissue paper is an easier and quicker option and is how we started. I cut some extra tissue paper into large squares then set the puzzle piece in the center and wrapped the tissue paper up around the letter. So quick and easy! You could add tape if you wanted, but this does make it slightly more difficult for your child to unwrap and also less likely that you can reuse the tissue paper (which we did countless times). My son thought this was the greatest thing ever, like unwrapping 26 tiny gifts! He yelled surprise when he unveiled Every. Single. Letter. He asked to repeat this activity for weeks! I happily agreed and was able to have it ready to go again in minutes!

Crepe Paper Streamers

Another variation is to wrap the puzzle pieces with crepe paper streamers. I happened to have some orange and black streamers hanging around from some old birthday supplies and wanted to use them to give this activity a festive Halloween vibe. I set the letter at the end of the streamer and started rolling, changing directions as I went. I rolled until I felt the letter was wrapped well enough that it wasn't peeking out of the paper streamer. This was usually about a foot long. The streamers don't have to be taped but were a bit more likely to unwrap on their own so I did add tape this time around.

Things to keep in mind if you go this route:

The crepe paper streamers do take a bit longer to prepare and in our experience ripped a bit easier when taped. The streamers are also a bit more difficult to unwrap, which is great if you want to challenge fine motor skills a bit, but could also cause some frustration. We ultimately ended up rolling the unwrapped streamer pieces into a ball which started a whole new activity.

This puzzle unwrapping has been one of his favorite activities! I urge you to make this activity your own and use any puzzle you have around the house. If your child isn't interested in letters, use a shape puzzle or an animal puzzle. Wrap the puzzle pieces in whatever material you have on hand: wrapping paper, tinfoil, newspaper, etc. I hope puzzle unwrapping brings your little one just as much joy and concentration as my little guy. Enjoy!