The Chaos and the Clutter

4th of July Stars and Stripes Sensory Bin

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There’s something that I should probably get out of the way before we start. I’m Canadian. I actually had someone else make this sensory bin for me and take the photos of it because it just wouldn’t be authentic for me to have my kids playing in this 4th of July Stars and Stripes Sensory Bin! In the top part of the image, a young child's hand holds a red paintbrush and is brushing aside white sand to reveal red paper underneath. There is a pile of blue popcorn kernels in the corner. The words "4th of July Sensory Bin" are in the middle of the image. On the bottom is a sensory bin with red stripes in white sand, a pile of blue popcorn in the top corner, and stars sprinkled on top of the popcorn kernels.

Rest assured that the sweet little hands you see in the bin are 100% American! I wanted to be as authentic as possible, so I want to be up front about the whole US thing!

Even though I’m Canadian, I wanted to have an example of something like this for my American friends and readers. This sensory bin would be great for your 4th of July celebrations. It imitates the USA flag.

I love how interactive this sensory activity is. It doesn’t look like the American flag until the child begins to use their paintbrush to create the stripes. They will love seeing the stripes appear.

Stars and Stripes Sensory Bin:

Materials needed:
  • popcorn kernels
  • hand sanitizer
  • blue food colouring
  • white craft sand (or salt if you don’t have white sand)
  • red card stock paper
  • star confetti
  • small glow in the dark stars
  • paint brush
  • plastic bin with lid
  • scissors
  • resealable plastic bag
Directions:
To make the blue dyed popcorn:
  1. Place 1/2 a cup of unpopped popcorn kernels, 2 generous drops of hand sanitizer and several drops of blue food colouring in a resealable plastic bag and seal.
  2. Shake well.
  3. Allow the kernels to dry in the bag overnight or spread them out on a paper towel on a cookie sheet to dry for several hours.
To assemble the sensory bin:
  1. Cut a sheet of red card stock so that it fits inside the bin. Place it in the bottom of the bin.
  2. Pour white craft sand (or salt) over the red paper.
  3. In the upper left section, pour the blue dyed popcorn kernels.
  4. Add a paint brush and an assortment of stars.
  5. Invite your child to brush some of the sand away to create the stripes.
  6. Encourage your child to add the stars to the area where the popcorn kernels are.
  7. When not in use, replace the lid on the bin for easy storage for future play!

This patriotic sensory play activity is also a good way to talk to kids about the American flag and its history. You can read a book such as F is for Flag together.
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Check out these other fun Summer sensory bins:

Sky Sensory Bin

Insect Sensory Bin

Summer Sensory Bin

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