Contact Paper Sticky Collage for Babies

Clear contact paper (a 12-by-18-inch piece works well)

Tape for securing the contact paper

Fabric scraps in different textures

Large pom-poms (oversized only, to prevent choking)

Tissue paper sheets torn into big pieces

Felt shapes

Cut a large piece of clear contact paper and tape it sticky-side-out to a wall at baby's reach height, a window, or the high chair tray.

Gather soft, baby-safe items to stick — fabric scraps, large pom-poms, tissue paper, and felt shapes. Everything should be too big to fit in a baby's mouth.

Show your baby how to press a piece of fabric onto the sticky surface. Press it on, then peel it off dramatically.

Hand your baby one item at a time and encourage them to press it onto the contact paper.

Let them pull items off and stick them back on again. The peeling and pressing is the real activity here.

Name the colors and textures as your baby works with each piece — "That is the blue fuzzy one!"

When your baby is done, peel the contact paper down and look at the collage together.

Use only oversized pom-poms (2 inches or larger) for babies. Standard craft pom-poms are a choking hazard.

Contact paper on a window is magical — the light shines through the tissue paper and creates a stained glass effect.

The sticky surface is fascinating for babies because things actually stay where they put them, which is rare at this age.

Start with fewer items and add more as your baby figures out the sticking mechanism.

This activity is great for practicing the release part of grasp-and-release, which babies are actively developing around 8 to 12 months.