Creative Sensory Play Ideas: Fantasy Maps
- Amy Godfrey
- 20 hours ago
- 4 min read
Suggested age: 3 years + with adult supervision
Difficulty: EASY
Time: 20 minutes to brew and cool the tea to stain the paper plus creativi-time!
An example of the amazing results you can get from this playtime!
We LOVE fantasy fiction in our family. Do you? One of my favourite parts of the books are the wonderful maps at the start. Immediately your imagination gets to work upon seeing those maps:
Who lives here? What happens at that mountain? Do these families have a rivalry? Who has the most powerful land? And in the case of Tristan's map up here; who is Jonesy and what is going to happen with that enormous wave in the west?! (You'll find out when his short story collection is published! COMING SOON! Sign up to emails so you don't miss it! There's a button at the top of the page here.)
This blog shows you how you can create your own unique map outline to create a fantasy (or treasure) map.
WHAT YOU NEED:
Paper - any kind! Bear in mind that thicker paper will be able to absorb more tea and will be sturdier to draw on BUT if you want to create an authentic, ancient-looking treasure map, thinner paper is better. I'll explain why below!
Teabags (or coffee if you don't have tea)
Boiling water
Heat-proof bowl
Baking tray
Rice/lentils
Black pen - ideally permanent/waterproof/acrylic paint pens. Ball points may tear the paper. (Though a few rips and holes would look quite cool for an ancient treasure map!)
How to Make A Fantasy Map
Boil a kettle
We boiled about 400ml of water to create enough strong tea to stain 2 A3 sheets of paper and 2 postcards and there was loads left over.
Add a few teabags to a heat-proof bowl. (Ceramic or pyrex is best, metal will get very hot and be unsafe for young ones.) Pour the boiled water onto the teabags, stir and leave to brew and cool for about 20 minutes. TIP: It will cool quicker in a wide, shallow bowl/tray.
Meanwhile, scrunch up your paper (unless you're using thick paper or card) and flatten it out again.
Put your paper inside a baking tray large enough to hold it entirely.
Dab the teabags over your paper until it's all covered. It will sink into the creases and dry some patches darker than others.
Let the paper dry. (It took a matter of a couple of minutes for us this Summer as it was SO HOT outside!)
OPTIONAL: Tear the edges of the paper to add to its ancient appearance.
Tip your rice/lentils onto the paper. (For an A3 sheet of paper we used about 1 full cup of rice.)
Using your hands, move the rice to create a land mass. (TIP: You can push the rice to create holes in the shape that can be lakes/lagoons/pools and have little piles of rice around the outside to be little islands.)
When you're happy with your shape, get your black pen and draw around the edges of the rice. (By the way, using rice in this way is a really old technique; I didn't discover it, and the internet can't seem to tell me who did, but well done to them, whoever they are because it really works!)
Tip the rice off to reveal your fantasy map outline!
This shape is now yours to fill with all kinds of amazing geography and fantasy features!
A couple of little tips for parents/carers/teachers:
Prepare for mess: Use trays or waterproof mats to catch drips.
Supervise younger kids: You need boiling water to make the paper stain.
Encourage questions: Ask about their ideas for their map as you go along if they appear to get stuck, but if they're in a lovely flow state - leave them to it!
Adapt for abilities: You do not have to stain the paper. You may use whatever paper you have. Brown, reycyled wrapping paper looks great as well! If tearing the paper is a challenge, by all means help them. Your child may also struggle with fine motor skills to hold a pen in which case, if they are able, ask them to describe to you what they would like to be drawn where. It can be really fun to collaborate on these!
Adapt for sensitivities: This is another multi-sensory JOY of an activity, but bear in mind that some sensory-sensitive folks may not like the smell of tea or coffee. You may of course stain the paper instead using very watered-down brown acrylic paint or watercolours.
Combine with stories: Obviously, the creative activity to partner with this one is Supporting Short Storytelling
Why This Experiment Works for Sensory-Sensitive and Neurodivergent Kids
Many sensory-sensitive and autistic children benefit from activities that engage their senses in a controlled, gentle way.
Fantasy Maps offer:
Tactile exploration: The smooth surface of the paper before it's stained invites touch and curiosity. The cool, wet teabags will be a joy to some - some teabags may be torn in the process so bear this in mind.
Visual stimulation: The unique patterns created by the tea drying in the creases of the paper are so cool!
Scents: As I wrote earlier, the smell of the tea/coffee may be a positive or a negative. Try a small bit to start and see how the respond to it.
Creating more opportunities to play: You can create a batch of tea-stained paper with or without the landmass outlines for future creative play sessions.
There's a little lesson in patience for this one for the waiting time for the tea to brew and cool and the stained paper to dry. Some will be fine with this but some may struggle, so have something prepared for the waiting time if you feel it necessary for the creative having a go at this.
I hope you enjoy this activity as much as we have!
Amy
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