Sand & Water Table

1276 Views 29 Replies 24 Participants Last post by JessSC, Jul 18, 2007

PMolly

Discussion Starter · Jun 26, 2007

Who has one? Do you love it, are you indifferent, hate it? I read about how great they are, but there's part of me that wonders if that's just marketing. We don't have a yard. We live in an apt and have a deck out back. I saw this one: http://www.step2.com/product.cfm?pro...2A5AD660309281
at the store today that would fit in our space. Right now we have an inflatable pool out there (which will store compactly). DS is 15 months old, and I am wondering if he is too young? He loves to play in the water, and enjoys when we play in the sand at the park. Should I just get a sandbox when the pool comes down, or is that much better to have sand AND water?? TIA!

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jtbuko

· #2 · Jun 26, 2007

That's the one we have. At first I had some crazy compulsion to keep the sand on the sand side and the water on the water side, but once I let go of that it has been great. It was a hit with DS and his co-op friends when we first got it, and is now appreciated by both my little ones. I like that it is easy to close up when things get out of hand, and also that it is easy to keep cats out. Also, since it is off ground and no one sits in it It can accomadate more kids.

gnutter

· #3 · Jun 26, 2007

we have one-it came from target and is much smaller. It is a huge hit with my ds who is 13 mths and all the other kids who come over. MY 7 yo likes it even. I had it on our deck and you have to be ready to brush the sand off the child and sweep so it doesn;t get tracked in but that wasn't too bad. Ours has a lid too-which is nice to keep bugs a rain out when it is not being used.

quirkylayne

· #4 · Jun 26, 2007

We have a water table and my 13 month old loves it. Easy clean up too - I only put a little water in it and then dump it into my flowers afterwards, I don't want the bugs. He especially likes the water wheel.

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index...entPage=search

North_Of_60

· #5 · Jun 26, 2007

We have the water rable too. My OCD-tendencies would make me crazy trying to keep the sand and water sepperate. But DD LOOOOOOOVES the water table! I got her some wind up fish that swim and she loves them. Big summer hit!

ryansma

· #6 · Jun 26, 2007

We have the Step 2 table as well and ds (15 mos) LOVES IT! I looked at other ones and the umbrella was definately a selling point for me. My ds is pretty fair and I wanted him to play outside for as long as he wanted without worrying too much about too much sun. I have friends with older kids who really enjoyed playing with it too so it should last. HTH

MommaCrystal

· #7 · Jun 26, 2007

I want one SO BAD! I KNOW my DS would adore it. But this is something I know he could use well into childhood. I've used them with 3,4,5,6,7,8 and up year olds.

So I want one with expandable legs. I've yet to find one!

Jay'smom

· #8 · Jun 26, 2007

DS- 16 months- LOVES water play.

When I taught Pre-K the sand/water (or "sensory" table as we called it) was a favorite, plus built lots of skills.

Don't forget that you can fill it with more than just sand and water. I actually have a two hour training I do just on sensory tables and their function in Early Childhood classrooms.

PMolly

Discussion Starter · #9 · Jun 26, 2007

2

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jay'smom

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Don't forget that you can fill it with more than just sand and water. I actually have a two hour training I do just on sensory tables and their function in Early Childhood classrooms.

Ooo, what else can be put in them? Can we have a mini lesson on sensory tables?

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berkeleyp

· #10 · Jun 26, 2007

I have one but so far we haven't put any water just sand. I don't want a mud table. My dd loves it but i think she would have preferred a sandbox as she climbs inside it and sits in it anyway.

Bee21

· #11 · Jun 26, 2007

My 12-month-old loves her water table. She likes it much better than her pool. She's definitely not too young for it.

I agree with the pp though, I didn't want a mud table so we just stuck with water and avoided the sand. My OCD would have gone rampant trying to keep the sand/water apart.

BensMamacita

· #12 · Jun 26, 2007

We have the water table from Step 2. (http://www.step2.com/product.cfm?pro...A5AD660309281). DS and his friends love it! It doesn't get very warm where we live, so we have a rain coat we put on him - otherwise he'll stand there at the table with his teeth chattering.

We live in an apartment too, and have a small outdoor space and this has really been worth it for us. We got it when ds was about 12 mos.

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Ladybug92405

· #13 · Jun 27, 2007

My dd LOVES her water/sand table! She is about 21 months old but we've had it since she was about a year and she has always loved it. It's perfect for hot summers and it's like having your own little sand box in the backyard. I think it would be perfect for a deck of an apartment, although you might want to think about putting some kind of a tarp underneath the table so sand doesn't fall below if there are people living under you. My suggestion is to try it out! I'm sure you're dc will have tons of fun.

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Babytime

· #14 · Jun 27, 2007

We *love* our sand and water table. My daughters, ages 2.5 and almost 6, play with it daily and their friends all love it too. We have a Little Tikes one where the sand side looks like a crab and the water side looks like a fish. We have it on a covered Farmer's Porch, but it also came with an umbrella for sunshade which I loved.

jtbuko

· #15 · Jul 17, 2007

In response to PP's "what else can you put in them?"

We have a bin of rice and beans with some treasures (stones, plastic monkeys, etc.) that I would love to transfer to a sand or water table. I just need to clean out a closet to "create space" and find a cheap one with a secure lid.

Rice & bean play is easy to clean up inside (vacuum or sweep) than outside where it can get wet.

OGirlieMama

· #16 · Jul 17, 2007

I have one, but I only put water in it. The girls love to splash around and it's much easier to clean up from water than from sand, to me.

limabean

· #17 · Jul 17, 2007

2

Quote:

Originally Posted by MommaCrystal

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So I want one with expandable legs. I've yet to find one!

Would something like this work? They're bed lifts -- I've seen them on display at Bed Bath & Beyond and always thought they looked silly, but maybe elevating kid-sized stuff as they grow is the perfect use for them! It says they'll raise a bed by 7 inches, and that they fit a post up to 3 inches in diameter.

Edit: Hmmm, most kid furniture probably has legs that are larger than 3 inches in diameter, huh? Ah well, it was a good idea while it lasted.

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redpajama

· #18 · Jul 17, 2007

We have one (from Little Tikes)--it's more of a "Mud Table," really, because my guy likes to mix the two together. As in, that's *what* he does with his sand-and-water table. But he likes it a lot.
I'm a little OCD, and I felt like it was a really big step for me to get over trying to make him keep them seperate. So now when I walk out on the deck and see the mud table, it's a sort of simultaneous horror and pride that I feel.

glorified_rice

· #19 · Jul 17, 2007

I'm glad I'm not the only one who goes crazy over the mixing of the sand and water. It bugs me, but I've just sort of let go now. We have the Step 2 model also and ds loves it.

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coobabysmom

· #20 · Jul 17, 2007

Ds son loves it and it's small so it fits into our tiny urban garden, aka-the backyard.

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