In this BLOG post I will share six different festive sensory bins for Valentine's Day!
What better way to celebrate Valentine's Day then with these fun and festive sensory bins! They are perfect for February (or really anytime!).
Sensory bins are an engaging and motivating way to work on a TON of skills and the fine motor benefits are HUGE!!! While they scoop, pour, dump and dig they will have opportunities to enhance their learning, strengthen language skills, practice social skills, explore textures, sounds and MORE!
They are also easy to differentiate for all ages, abilities and interests. If your kiddos favorite color is blue, add in blue! If they love trucks, race them through the rice. Do they love dinos? Perfect...stomp them through the bin! Truly, anything goes!
Sensory play is also ageless. This is NOT JUST FOR TODDLERS!! Kids and adults of all ages can benefit from sensory play. It can be so calming and support self-regulation skills. I know for me, I enjoy smooshing play dough, running my hands through sensory bins and even getting messy in a bin like Oobleck. There is so much research behind the calming effects of sensory play.
Here are six of our favorite Valentine's Day sensory bins.
This is dried CousCous and it is SO fun to explore. It is small, soft and round. It is easily scooped up and dumped out. It can go in a cup or a bowl or get pushed around by a digger. It is fun as is, and extra fun when dyed different colors.
Sensory bins are fun, engaging and a great way to activate the senses. Exploring sensory bins works on a ton of skills and each is unique and beautiful.
This is anellini pasta and it is one of our favorites...think SpaghettiOs! It is round and soft and perfect for making patterns, sorting, counting and playing!
Not sure what to add into a sensory bin? Shop your kitchen!
Here are a list of some of our favorites to use:
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Mixing spoon
Fruit juicer
Strainer
Tongs
I try really hard not to have favorites, but our Love Letter bin is AMAZING. It is colorful, fun and SO good for incorporating phonics skills into your play. You can scoop, dump and pour all while exploring letter names, letter sounds and even creating beginning words!
Hide wooden or magnetic letters into the bin and search, find and identify them.
Dye them lots of colors or one color or use them as is! There is SO much learning going on!
There are also so many ways that sensory play can support self-regulation. It is calming. It is purposeful. It provides something to focus our attention on, which calms and supports regulation.
Each of these sensory bins is dyed with metallic paint. It is the perfect blend of shimmery and shiny and it makes a simple, long-lasting sensory base!
Squirt in a few drops or paint and mix well. You want it to fully coat the pasta. I like to do this in an old take-out container or Ziploc bag. Then, lay it out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil and let it dry.
I like to stir it every 10 minutes or so. This keeps it from clumping together and sticking while it dries!
Once it is fully dry, pour it into your favorite sensory bin or tray and PLAY!!
There is SO much I can say about chickpeas. They are round, small, hard and make the most unique sound when they hit the tray. You can use them to drive your trucks through, stomp your dinos around in or swim your sharks in.
You can sort them.
You can make patterns with them.
You can use them to form the lines of letters or numbers or shapes.
You can use them to strengthen fine motor skills by pushing them into a bottle.
Literally endless ways to play!
Store it in an airtight container and keep it clean and dry and it will last for YEARS!
One of my favorite ways to explore texture is through monochromatic sensory play. Lots of different kinds of pasta, all one color!
Lots of sizes and shapes to explore, all one color.
This is magical because it makes the texture SHINE. You can see the unique size and shape of each pasta. You can feel the ridges and bumps and rounded edges.
You can see what is the same, what is difference and how each of those attributes complement each other.
Not to mention, it fits perfectly into any color unit. They can learn the names of colors, as they play!
You don't need multiple types of pasta, but if you have them and want to use them, you make bins like this!
The colors, textures and sounds are an absolute DELIGHT for the senses. They are beautiful separate and even more beautiful together.
The language opportunities are SO good.
You can observe things like color, size and shape.
You can observe how things feel: soft, hard, bumpy, sharp.
You can listen for how things sound: loud, soft.
You can ask questions to help problem solving such as:
"I wonder what would happen if the chickpeas fell out of the bin?"
I want to fill up my cup but it keeps spilling, what should I do?"
I want the scoop but my brother has it. Hmmm...what should I do?
Not to mention you are working on concepts such as full, empty and half full.
Truly endless opportunities for learning and play.
You get to decide what is safe and manageable in your home. Always monitor young children.
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