Category Archives: Sensory Bins

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

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Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

Since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, I decided to create an inexpensive sensory bin inspired by the holiday. We love sensory play in our household!

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

SUPPLIES FOR VALENTINE’S DAY SENSORY BIN

Rice

Food Coloring

Scoops and Cups

Muffin Tin

Fun Valentine’s Day Fillers (gems, hearts, beads, etc.)

The great thing about this sensory bin is that all of the supplies, and I mean ALL, came from the Dollar Tree. I love to shop at the dollar store for sensory and craft supplies!

Just a reminder to use your judgment on what items are age appropriate for your child. Some of these items may be choking hazards.

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin
Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Dye the rice seasonal colors, such as pink and purple, along with some plain rice. I use a little white vinegar and food coloring to dye my rice. I will be making a post about how to dye rice in the near future. Keep an eye out.

2. Fill your container with the rice. This is your base layer. I then added some heart shaped containers and little white buckets.

3. Next, I used a muffin tin to separate out different fillers. I used glittery hearts, beads, plastic diamonds, and red kiss and heart gems.

4. Finally, I set out additional scoops and silicone heart cupcake holders.

One of the best things about this sensory bin is that I can reuse all of the materials to recreate this sensory bin or make new ones. I love to keep and reuse my sensory bases and fillers. I store my rice in a sealed ziplock bag.

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

INVITATION TO PLAY

I love setting out activities such as this Valentine’s Day sensory bin and letting Ben discover it on his own. As you can see, he dove right in and started to play. For this particular sensory bin, I did not have a specific purpose, and I did not give any directions to Ben. Therefore, I left him in control of his play and allowed him to use his imagination.

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

Today, he pretended that he was working in a bakery. The different fillers and rice were used as the ingredients to make cakes. I love seeing where his imagination takes him!

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin
Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

When his cousin came over to play, they pretended that they were mining for diamonds in the rice. This shows you how sensory bins create opportunities for open-ended play.

Valentine’s Day Sensory Bin

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

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How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

I will start by saying that I have never made oobleck before. Therefore, I began by doing what everyone else does when looking for information and searched on Pinterest. As a result of my search for oobleck recipes, I came across the blog, Little Bins for Little Hands, and their post called, Evergreen Oobleck Science Winter Sensory Play.

Their oobleck was perfect! So, I decided to recreate it and add a few things of our own. If you haven’t checked out their blog yet, please do. They have lots of great ideas for STEM activities, especially slime.

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

In our household, we absolutely LOVE sensory play! I have been wanting to try oobleck before, but never have. Now was the perfect opportunity.

Making oobleck is a fun STEM science experiment. It is an object that is both solid and liquid. Have you played with oobleck before? If not, I highly recommend it.

Nature Inspired Goop

Oobleck Recipe

1 cup of Cornstarch

1/2 cup of Water

The instructions are very simple. All you need to do is mix the cornstarch and water together. I used a pie pan for this activity.

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

SUPPLIES

Pine Branches

Pinecones

Cranberries

Pie Pan

Spoon

Optional: Beans and/or Wood Blocks

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

On Ben’s little craft table, I set out the pie pan with the oobleck along with the pine branches, a bowl of cranberries, and some pinecones.

Nature Inspired Goop

INVITATION TO PLAY

At first, Ben just experimented with touching the oobleck. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. Then he started adding cranberries and pinecones.

He loved watching the cranberries sink into the goop. He also liked pushing the pinecones into the oobleck and pulling them out.

Nature Inspired Goop

Next, he involved a spoon. He tried to scoop the cranberries out of the oobleck. He discovered that it was hard to do. I also encouraged him to put his hands into the goop.

He tried pushing on the oobleck with his fist and found out that he had resistance. Solid. He also scooped some up with his hand and watched it drizzle between his fingers. Liquid.

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

As with any open-ended sensory play, Ben decided that we needed more materials to experiment with. He started by adding some wood blocks.

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

He discovered that if he pushed the end of the wood blocks into the oobleck that it would help support them. Then the building commenced.

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck
Nature Inspired Goop

Last, but not least, he added black beans to the pie pan. He had a blast trying to get them out of the oobleck. This was great for his fine motor skills.

Nature Inspired Goop

As you can see, Ben had a great time exploring his winter oobleck sensory play. For being the first time ever making oobleck, it was super easy and simple to make and led to lots of fun. I am encouraging you to try this activity with your little ones. Happy Exploring!

How to Make Winter Pine Oobleck

As I said before, please check out the blog, Little Bins for Little Hands. It is full of great content. I want to thank them for sharing this activity on Pinterest. We had so fun fun recreating it!

For another oobleck activity, check out my blog post “How to Make Muddy Oobleck for Dinosaur Sensory Play.” Comment below with your favorite way to play with oobleck.

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult9 supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.

Snowflake Sensory Bin Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

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Snowflake Sensory Bin Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters of the Alphabet

For Christmas this year, I created three smaller sensory bins for our son, Ben. I picked up three clear 6 quart containers with latching lids from Target and filled them up with lots of fun items. Today, I am sharing the snowflake sensory bin that I created for Ben to practice his uppercase and lowercase letters.

Ben is fairly consistent with being able to identify all of the uppercase letters of the alphabet. Recently, the focus has turned more to identifying the lowercase letters. So, I thought that this would be a fun activity to bridge the gap.

Snowflake Sensory Bin Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

SUPPLIES

Plastic Bin

Rice

Snowflakes

Glittery Styrofoam Balls

Recycled Water Bottle Caps

Paper

Markers

Optional: Scoops and/or Tweezers

I purchased most of the materials at our local Dollar Tree, which is one of my favorite places to shop for art supplies and sensory bin fillers.

Snowflake Sensory Bin Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Begin by assembling the snowflake sensory bin. This could not get any easier. First, dump a bag of rice into the clear container. Then, add the snowflakes and small glittery styrofoam balls.

Snowflake Sensory Bin

2. Next, using a black permanent marker, write the uppercase letters of the alphabet on the recycled water bottle caps (one letter on each cap). After you have finished, add the bottle caps to the sensory bin.

3. Once the sensory bin has been assembled, it is time to draw snowflakes on the paper. The center of the snowflakes should be a circle that you can write the lowercase letters of the alphabet in the middle. I used three pieces of paper to get all 26 letters in snowflakes.

Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters
Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters
Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

4. Finally, set everything out for your child. Explain how to find the bottle caps in the snowflake sensory bin and match the uppercase letter to the lowercase letter on the paper. Then let them take it from there. I also gave him a few different scoops to use in the sensory bin.

Snowflake Sensory Bin with Water Bottle Cap Letters

INVITATION TO PLAY AND LEARN

Ben absolutely loves sensory bins! He really enjoyed digging in to find the different letters. He did a great job matching the uppercase letters with the lowercase letters. However, he did need help with some of the harder lowercase letters.

Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters using Recycled Water Bottle Caps
Snowflake Sensory Bin

This was such a fun activity. After Ben matched the letters, he continued to play with the snowflake sensory bin. He even built a maze out of blocks and had the styrofoam balls navigate their way through it.

Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters
Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters using Water Bottle Caps

I hope that you give this sensory bin a try with your little ones, since it is both educational and fun. Yay!

Snowflake Sensory Bin Matching Uppercase and Lowercase Letters

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.

Polar Express Small World Play with Fake Snow

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Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

I know that in most houses, ours included, reading The Polar Express is a holiday tradition. This wonderful book is written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg. If you have not read this book, you definitely need to. Both you and your child will love it.

Full Bloom Creativity is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

The Polar Express

My four-year-old son, Ben, is train crazy. Every year at Christmastime, we ride on a steam engine at the Wilmington and Western Railroad where Santa Claus visits each of the children. Last year, my son picked out a wooden Polar Express train set from the gift shop as his souvenir.

This year, my sister gave my son the little figurines from The Polar Express. This got my wheels turning…. So, I decided to make a Polar Express Small World Play with fake snow. First, we read the book and then he got to play with this set up.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

Fake Snow Recipe

2 1/2 cups Pure Baking Soda

1/2 cup White Hair Conditioner

Pretend Snow Recipe

This instructions are very simple. All you need to do is mix the baking soda and hair conditioner together until combined. That’s it!

Pretend Snow Recipe

Safety Information About Fake Snow

WARNING: Children should be supervised by an adult while playing with the fake snow. Keep the pretend snow away from their mouths and eyes as it can irritate their eyes and is not safe for consumption.

Immediately wash your child’s hands after using this pretend snow to avoid getting any residue in their eyes should they touch their face or rub their eyes.

Storing Fake Snow

The pretend snow should be stored in an air tight container and stored in a cool area. Accordingly, it should last up to five days. Out of personal preference, I discard the snow after its been used.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

SUPPLIES

Wooden Train Tracks

Polar Express Wooden Train

Silver Bells

The Polar Express Figurines

Fake Pine Trees

Fake Snow

Plastic Platter

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow
Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

How to Assemble the Polar Express Small World

First, I set up some wooden train tracks into a circle and added my son’s Polar Express wooden train set.

Next, I sat a shallow plastic serving dish into the middle of the tracks. I made the pretend snow in this container.

Then, I added a small building, trees, silver bells, and figurines on top of the snow. This created a little vignette for Ben.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow
Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

Invitation to Play

Finally, I invited Ben to play. He took over from there.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow
Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

The snow is moldable. It it cool to the touch and somewhat wet feeling. This makes pretend snow great for sensory play.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow
Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

I let Ben have free rein with his play during this activity. At first, he started by playing with the train. Then, he played with the people by having them interact and making up conversations.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

After awhile, Ben started to really dig in and explore with the pretend snow. He made mountains and buried things in the snow.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

After that, he brought in more trains and cars to play with.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

Next thing you know, monster trucks were running over everything, and snow was piled onto the train tracks.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow
Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

And here’s the aftermath! Ben played with this small world set up for hours.

Polar Express Small World Sensory Play with Fake Snow

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.

Fall Sensory Bin with Oatmeal

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Fall sensory bin with oatmeal

In our household, we absolutely love sensory bins! Ben especially loved this Fall themed sensory bin. Who else loves the cool, crisp weather this time of year? The oatmeal added the perfect texture for the season. Even better, he played with it for at least two weeks.

Fall sensory bin

SUPPLIES

Oatmeal (rolled oats)

Fall Leaves

Fall Colored Pompoms

Acorns

Scoops, Cups, and Bowls

Clear Rubbermaid Bin (or a similar container)

During one of our hikes, Ben collected these acorns. The remainder of the sensory items were purchased at our local Dollar Tree. For something that was so quick and easy to assemble, it brought hours upon hours of play and enjoyment.

Just a reminder to use your judgment on what items are age appropriate for your child. Some of these items may be choking hazards.

Fall sensory bin

INSTRUCTIONS

Such a simple set-up, all you need to do is dump the oatmeal into a large container. Then add the leaves, acorns, and pompoms on top. Finally, set out the tools in or near the sensory bin.

Now it’s time to play!

Fall sensory bin
Fall sensory bin

INVITATION TO PLAY

I love setting out activities such as this Fall sensory bin and letting Ben discover it on his own. As you can see, he dove right in and started to play. For this particular sensory bin, I did not have a specific purpose, and I did not give any directions to Ben. Therefore, I left him in control of his play and allowed him to use his imagination.

If you would like to make this Fall sensory bin more educational, you could pair it with the CVC word activity that I will be posting later this week. I will add a link once it it posted. Stay tuned!

Fall sensory bin
Fall sensory bin

Ben did not disappoint me with his imagination. He pretended to make and drink milkshakes and shared them with Mommy. Then, he made soup. In addition, he loved filling the cups and bowl and stacking them.

Fall sensory bin
Fall sensory bin

Ben even use the scoop and cups as a drum set and sang a song that he made up. There are just so many possibilities!

With Ben’s developmental delays, one area that he needed to work on was pretend play. To see him today pretending and using his imagination, makes this Mom very proud.

Fall sensory bin

We will definitely be repeating this Fall sensory bin! Ben had countless hours of fun with it. It was his preferred toy for over a week. We hope that you try this activity with your little ones.

Fall sensory bin

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.

Halloween Sensory Bin with Colored Spaghetti

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We absolutely love sensory bins in our household! How about you? For Halloween, I decided to make a spooky, slimy Halloween-inspired sensory bin with colored spaghetti. I can feel the slimy noodles sliding through my fingers even thinking about it.

SUPPLIES

Cooked Spaghetti

Olive Oil

Plastic Zip Top Bags

Liquid Watercolors (you can substitute food coloring)

Halloween Items such as Googly Rings, Skeletons, Spiky Balls, Monster Finger Puppets, and a Small Plastic Black Cauldron

Scissors, Tweezers and Scoops

Clear Rubbermaid Container (or something similar)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Boil Spaghetti

Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Then add your spaghetti. I used one box. Follow the instructions on the box for how long to cook the noodles.

Once they are done cooking, drain the water and rinse with cold water. Next, add a few splashes of olive oil and mix. This will help keep the spaghetti from sticking together.

2. Color Spaghetti

Next, you need to divide the spaghetti into three equal portions. Put each portion into a zip top plastic bag. You can use three separate bags or one bag and you rinse between each color.

Add a few drops of liquid watercolor paint to each bag in your desired colors. I used orange, purple, and green. Seal the bags and mix the color with the spaghetti until it is evenly coated. Add more watercolor if needed. You can use food coloring in substitute of the liquid watercolor.

The benefits of using liquid watercolor paint is that it is washable and it tends to be more vibrant in color.

Spread the spaghetti out on a sheet pan or plate to dry. Allow at least 45 minutes for drying before use.

Please note that the spaghetti is inedible with the liquid watercolor paint. If you want to keep it edible, you will need to use food coloring to dye the noodles.

3. Assemble Sensory Bin

In a plastic bin, place the spaghetti separated by color. Then add your Halloween toys and tools. That’s it!

Just a reminder to use age appropriate toys. Some toys may be choking hazards.

4. Play Time

Now comes the fun part. It’s play time! Invite your child to play. This sensory bin will help them with textures and fine motor skills.

5. Storage

I recommend storing your sensory bin in an airtight container in the fridge. If stored correctly, it can last for up to a week.

REFLECTIONS

This was my first time using spaghetti for a sensory bin. Therefore, I wanted to share some of my thoughts on what I would have done differently.

– I would have cooked my spaghetti a little bit longer. I cooked it for about 3-4 minutes in boiling water. The noodles were bendable, but a little too firm that they were breaking while I was handling them. I recommend cooking them as their packaging instructs.

– I did not have orange or purple liquid watercolors, so I mixed colors to make them. Next time, I would probably use the actual color instead of blending two together.

– I would have laid the noodles in a thinner layer to dry. It took longer than expected for them to dry.

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child’s parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child’s pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.