Sensory Bins

Bath Time Sensory Bin with Ice and Gelatin

I love how this sensory play activity came together. I was at the Dollar Store (where I find a lot of my sensory inspiration) when I saw the cutest mini bath toys. It gave me an idea for a bath time themed sensory bin. I made the “water” out of gelatin that I dyed blue. When I added the bath toys, it looked good, but I felt like it was missing something. I wanted to create the look of bubbles in the “water” and I also wanted to add in another sensory dimension.

After considering a few ideas such as adding a layer of shaving cream to add another sensory element and to create the look of foam, I came up with a different plan. I decided to make round ice cubes and dye them blue. This would create the look of bubbles in the bath.

It would also add another sensory rich experience by adding cold and by allowing kids to explore different states of matter as the ice melted. I really love the way this sensory bin turned out!

Bath Time Sensory Bin:

Materials needed:

plastic bin
4 packs of gelatin
blue food colouring
water
round ice cube holders
small bath toys
optional: plastic knives, spoons, or scoops

Directions:

Make the gelatin according to the package directions, adding a few drops of blue food colouring to the water. Stir it directly in the bin. Allow to set. I put ours in the fridge to set.
Mix some blue food colouring in a pitcher of water and pour into the round ice cube mould. Freeze.
Add the bath toys to the bin on top of the gelatin once it has set.
After the ice balls are fully frozen, place them in the bin.
Let the play begin!

My kids enjoyed exploring in this bin. One of my daughters wanted to cut the shape of a fish out of the gelatin. She used a plastic knife and was easily able to cut out a jello fish. She later wanted to taste it. Since there’s no harm in that since it’s a taste safe sensory bin, she went ahead and took a bite. I hadn’t added any sugar to the gelatin, so she wasn’t a fan of the taste!

Sensory and Learning Opportunities:

The contrast of the moist, gummy gelatine and the cold, hard ice creates a really awesome sensory experience! This activity engages the visual, tactile, and gustatory (taste) sensory systems.

As kids explore through their senses, they learn about the world around them and about how to engage that world. They improve their communication by talking about what they are seeing, tasting, and feeling and by asking questions. Their vocabulary increases as they learn to describe certain textures, colours, or tastes.

Join thousands of others who have signed up for our Sensory Solutions and Activities email series and get a free sample from our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Here are some other toddler sensory activities you may be interested in:

Calming Bedtime Sensory Bottle

Condensed Milk Painting

Edible Shark Fluffy Slime

Over 100 Sensory Bin Themes

By Sharla Kostelyk

I always find that it’s easier to come up with creative sensory bins if I choose a theme. If you are a teacher or homeschooler, it is nice to have sensory play that corresponds to the current unit study. For these reasons, I’ve compiled a list of sensory bin themes.It’s easier to spark your creativity when you have a head start. These sensory bin themes will give you the inspiration and ideas to create your own! You’ll find things for toddlers, preschoolers, and beyond.

You can find examples of sensory bins for each theme by clicking on the link.

Sensory Bin Themes:

Seasons

Science

Some of the animal sensory bins could work as science units also.

Animals

Sensory Bins Based on Books

Alphabet and Reading

Social Studies

Math

Holidays

Other Sensory Bin Themes

This list includes every theme you can imagine (and some you never would!) from A to Z.

Join thousands of others who have signed up for our free sensory solutions and activities email series and get a sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Dig for Fossils Sensory Bin

By Sharla Kostelyk

Kids will love to dig and explore in this dinosaur fossils sensory bin. It’s great for fine motor practise as well as supplementing science learning. It pairs well with a dinosaur unit. There are a variety of textures for kids to explore in this sensory play activity because of the grittiness of the sand, the smoothness of the glass beads, and the rough dinosaur skulls. This provides great tactile input. The bin also allows for visual and proprioception sensory feedback.

Dig for Fossils Sensory Bin:

Supplies:

sand
plastic bin with lid
dinosaur skull fossils Toob
glass beads
decorative rocks
paint brush
tongs, plastic shovel or anything else your child can use to practice fine motor skills and excavate dinosaur skulls with
optional: magnifying glass

Dinosaur Skulls TOOB Glass Beads Natural Sand

Directions:

Fill a plastic storage bin about halfway up with sand.
Begin adding the rocks, glass beads and dinosaur skulls to the bin.
Bury them in the sand.
Add a few dinosaur skulls to the top and loosely bury them in the sand.
Place tongs, a paint brush and sand toys in the bin.
Invite your child to explore the sensory bin and excavate the contents.
When playtime is over, replace the lid on the bin and give it a good shake so that the next time your child wants to explore the bin, the contents are buried in the sand again!

Learning opportunities:

If you want to expand the learning, you can set out a few books about dinosaurs and dinosaur fossils. This will allow your child to compare the dino skulls with the pictures in the books and determine which type of dinosaur it is.

You can also put out a book about excavation. Children can learn how archeologists uncover their finds. They can then mimic some of what they’ve learned in the excavation sensory bin.

Kids can dig with their hands or with the shovel or scoops. They can use the paintbrush to carefully brush sand off the fossils. The tongs can be used to examine things more closely. You can also include a magnifying glass for closer inspection of the fossils. Check out these other sensory bins:

Dinosaur Sensory Bin Citrus Sensory Bin History Sensory Bin

4th of July Stars and Stripes Sensory Bin

By Sharla Kostelyk

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:

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.
Shake well.
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:

Cut a sheet of red card stock so that it fits inside the bin. Place it in the bottom of the bin.
Pour white craft sand (or salt) over the red paper.
In the upper left section, pour the blue dyed popcorn kernels.
Add a paint brush and an assortment of stars.
Invite your child to brush some of the sand away to create the stripes.
Encourage your child to add the stars to the area where the popcorn kernels are.
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.
Looking for some great sensory play recipes? Join for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Check out these other fun Summer sensory bins:

Sky Sensory Bin

Insect Sensory Bin

Summer Sensory Bin

Bright Butterfly Sensory Bin

By Sharla Kostelyk

The inspiration behind this butterfly sensory bin was actually a package of pasta! I was at the store and spotted brightly coloured bow tie pasta. As soon as I saw it, I thought “those look like butterflies”. So of course I bought it so that I could make a butterfly sensory bin.

The pasta looks so much like little butterflies that the other butterflies in this sensory bin blend in with it. The kids enjoyed exploring with this activity.

Butterfly Sensory Bin:

Materials needed:

brightly coloured bow tie pasta in a variety of colours*
clear silicone butterfly stamps
butterfly shaped cookie cutter
butterfly shaped foam piece
small magnifying glass
plastic butterflies from the butterfly Toob
glow in the dark butterfly wand (I find a 3 pack of these at the dollar store)

*If you can’t find bow tie pasta that’s already coloured, you can buy regular bow tie pasta and colour it yourself. You can find a tutorial on dying pasta for sensory play here.

Directions:

Pour the dry pasta into a plastic bin.
Add the other items.
You can also add small cups or bowls as scoops.
Invite your child to play!

This sensory bin provides visual, auditory, and tactile sensory input.

I always find it interesting the way that each of my kids approaches a sensory bin differently. This one was no different. One of our sons just scooped around in the bin, hiding butterflies and finding them and even mindlessly running his fingers through it to hear the sound of the dry pasta moving. One of our daughters took her time examining the butterflies with the magnifying glass while commenting on their features. She also enjoyed squishing the silicone stamps and foam piece.

Another of our daughters went about her play very differently. She carefully picked out individual pasta shapes and methodically built a large butterfly on the counter. She planned out the colours and had everything just so. Later, she brushed the pasta into her hands and put the pieces back in the bin.

Ways to expand this and make this sensory bin part of a unit on butterflies:

I bought the shaped foam piece that went in the sensory bin in a large pack. If you do this, you can use the remaining foam to have kids decorate their own. They can use glitter pens, markers, sequins and glue, or stickers.

Use pasta, beans, leaves, a twig, and paper plate to create a butterfly life cycle visual.

Raise your own butterflies. We did this one summer and the kids were absolutely fascinated. You can purchase butterfly raising kits that walk you through how to do this. My kids were in awe when the butterflies emerged from their cocoons.

Insect Lore Butterfly Growing Kit – With Voucher to Redeem Caterpillars Later

Set out books about butterflies:

Butterfly Butterfly: A Book of Colors Handbooks: Butterflies & Moths: The Clearest Recognition Guide Available Butterfly Activity Book for Kids Ages 4-8 My, Oh My–A Butterfly!: All About Butterflies Butterflies For Kids: A Children’s Picture Book About Butterflies From Caterpillar to Butterfly The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Butterfly Sensory Bag

Going on a Bug Hunt Sensory Bin

By Sharla Kostelyk

The contrast of the bright colours against the black beans makes this Bug Hunt Sensory Bin so visually appealing. If you’re brave, you can include real life bugs in this sensory activity as well!

clear plastic bin filled with black beans, bug net, dandelions, bright coloured toy bugs, and bug container with blue lid

If you’re like me, you can invite your child to add insects that they find but keep your distance and insist that they keep the bin outside! Adding real life insects allows a whole other level of exploration and discovery. This sensory bin encourages interacting with nature and can begin with a nature hunt.

This activity is perfect for classrooms or preschools or homeschools. It can be incorporated into an insect unit in science or be a sensory break option during springtime.

Bug Hunt Sensory Bin:

Materials needed:

plastic bin
dry black beans
plastic bugs (bright colours look best on the black background)
Outdoor Discovery Kit you can find it on Amazon or at Dollar Tree. The kit includes a bug net, bug catcher, tweezers, magnifying glass, and bug containers – perfect for catching and observing real bugs!
flowers, leaves, and grass

Outdoor Discovery Kit Plastic Bugs Dry Black Beans

Instructions:

Begin by putting half of the pretend insects in the plastic bin you plan to use.
Add half of the flowers, grass and leaves that your child has gathered.
Pour the dry black beans into the bin so that the items you have already placed inside are covered.
Add the remaining plastic bugs and flowers, grass, and leaves to the bin. You can push them down a bit into the beans so that they are slightly covered.
Add tweezers, a small bug net, magnifying glass, and a small container for examining specimens.
Invite your child to go on a bug hunt in the bin. Have them try to identify the types of insects they find.
Optional: Arm your child with the bug catcher and one of the bug containers and have them go on a real bug hunt. They can then add the bug container to the sensory bin or add the bugs themselves to the bin (be sure to do this outdoors!).

Learning and Sensory Opportunities:

This bug hunt sensory bin offers visual, tactile, and auditory sensory input. If kids carry the bin, this offers proprioceptive feedback as it will be quite heavy. Hands-on learning will be happening while their sensory needs are met. There are opportunities for communication and vocabulary expansion while they explain their observations and ask questions.

This sensory bin provides excellent options for fine motor practise. The tweezers and the bug catcher each give kids the chance to use and improve their fine motor skills. Children can learn about insects as they explore this bin. This can happen with the plastic insects only or with the addition of those found in nature. They can make observations in a nature journal or discuss what they learn. You can set out books about bugs that they can use as references.

Book Suggestions to go along with a Bug Sensory Bin:

Bugs Galore

This silly book will keep kids engaged with its retro illustrations and plenty of rhymes. Great introduction to bugs for little learners.

The Bug Book

This book is factual meets fun for preschoolers. Kids can explore all kinds of bugs in vivid photographs to learn more about the insects they might see this summer in their own backyard.

Some Bugs

With cute rhymes and vibrant illustrations, this book embraces the behaviours of backyard bugs and encourages exploration for preschoolers.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

In this classic book, a very hungry caterpillar (as the title suggests) munches his way through a variety of goodies to transform into a beautiful butterfly.

Big Bug Book

I’m a sucker for pop-up books. This one is packed with all kinds of creepy, crawly fun!

The Ants Go Marching

This book is a good segue into taking your insect unit into other subjects such as math for preschoolers. The repetition and counting up to 5 is a great early learning approach to math that kids can’t get enough of.

Bugs Galore The Bug Book Some Bugs The Very Hungry Caterpillar The Big Bug Book: A Pop-up Celebration The Ants Go Marching: A Count-and-Sing Book