The Chaos and the Clutter

Sensory

Bug Action Cards for Kids

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Help kids get their wiggles out using these bug action cards with prompts for fun gross motor play. Kids can use these inside or outside. This is such an easy activity for parents to set up. You can easily add some exercise into your child’s day in a fun way.

girl in swing with arms outstretched. Text reads "Bug Action Cards for gross motor play"With prompts for climbing, marching, hopping, and more, kids can get some all important sensory input. These actions engage the visual, auditory, tactile, vestibular, and proprioceptive sensory systems. 

Bug Action Cards:

Supplies needed:

Directions: 

  1. Download the action cards.
  2. Print them.
  3. Cut them apart.
  4. Create a small stack with them. Each child can pull one from the pile and act out the instructions on the card.

These action cards make a fantastic brain break. You can use them right in the middle of schoolwork to have a five minute break before they get back to their task. This will help them refocus and have better concentration.

Get the whole body moving in a fun way. Help kids burn off some of that extra energy they have from being stuck inside or from sitting for too long. These action cards are also a cute activity to add in to a unit on insects. Kids can take the learning a step further by reading up on each of the bugs on the cards. 

Another great way to expand on this activity is to have kids create their own cards with ideas they come up with. You can have them stick with the bug theme or choose something else. 

Type your email in the box below to get your bug action cards so that the learning and fun can begin!

Check out these other gross motor activities for kids:

Dinosaur Action Cube

5 Trampoline GamesTrampoline Games and Activities

Outdoor Sensory Scavenger Hunt

Easy Indoor Sensory Activities at Home

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Sensory play is so important. It helps not only with fine and gross motor development, language and communication, and boredom, but it also improves mood and lowers anxiety. And I would say that right now, those things are very needed. I wanted to provide you with a list of easy sensory activities at home that you can do starting today.

No matter how old your kids are from toddlers up to teens, sensory play can make a big difference in how your days go. If you incorporate sensory play opportunities at regular intervals throughout your day, you’ll be surprised at how much calmer the house will be. I encourage you to participate in some of the play yourself as it will also help lower your anxiety.

These sensory activities don’t need to be complicated. A lot of the supplies you need are probably already in your home. 

Easy Indoor Sensory Activities at Home

Dinosaur Fossils in Playdough

Scented Bubbles: Calming Lavender Bubble Recipe

Condensed Milk Painting

How To Make Squishies

How to Make Sensory Balls

How to Colour Moon Dough

How To Make Kinetic Sand At Home

Rainbow Soap Foam

Seek and Find Sensory Bin

Squishy Shark Sensory Bag

Tactile Sensory Play with Texture Balloons

Sensory Smell Bottles

How to Make Slime - A Comprehensive Guide

Lemonade Oobleck Summer Sensory Play for Kids

Nature Inspired Spring Sensory Soup

Sensory Sound Eggs

Lego Sensory Bottle

Seaside Sensory Bin

Tactile Sensory Cards

Calming Lavender Scented Playdough

Photo Credit: teachingmama.org

Homemade Puffy Paint

Photo Credit: www.steampoweredfamily.com

Hide and Seek Oobleck: Sense and Chemistry Science Challenge

Photo Credit: busytoddler.com

Salt Writing Tray Activity

Photo Credit: www.growinghandsonkids.com

Sensory Processing Play: Laundry Basket Push Game

Shaving Cream Painting


Get your free printable alphabet playdough mats by entering your email address below. You’ll also be signed up to receive our email series Sensory Activities and Solutions.

Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse Sensory Bottle

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In case, my matching Minnie purse and wallet weren’t evidence enough, I’m a big Disney fan. I’m especially partial to Mr. and Mrs. Mouse! That is the inspiration behind this Mickey and Minnie Sensory Bottle.

clear bottle filled with liquid, gold glitter, white beads, and Disney figures on red background with text reading "Mickey and Minnie Sensory Bottle"If you’re also a Disney fan, you’re going to love this adorable sensory tool. It’s easy to make yourself. In the same spirit as our Minnie Mouse Slime, you can bring a bit of that Disney magic right into your own home.

If you’re hosting a Mickey Mouse themed birthday party, these would make adorable party favours for your guests to make and then take home.

Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

Directions:

  1. Pour clear dish soap into the container until it’s 2/3 full.
  2. Add the glitter, beads, mini elastics, and Mickey and Minnie Mouse buttons.
  3. Fill the remaining space with water.
  4. Replace the lid. If you’re going to be using this jar with younger kids, then I highly recommend that you Superglue the lid in place and allow the glue to dry before giving it to your child to play with. You can instead secure it with hot glue.

As with all sensory activities, adult supervision should be used at all times. Even if you have glued the lid in place, it can come undone and the small parts inside are potential choking hazards.

Sensory and Learning Opportunities:

While the main sensory system targeted with sensory bottles is the Visual system, children also engage their tactile and proprioceptive sensory systems when interacting with this activity.

This activity presents many math opportunities. Kids can compare if there are more Mickeys than Minnies or vice versa or if there are an equal amount. They can count the number of characters inside or the number of one specific character. They can also guess how many white beads there are by counting them in one section and then multiplying that by the number of same size sections there are.

Thanks to the slow falling movement, this can also serve as a calm down jar, helping kids regulate their breathing and behaviour.

Are you looking for more easy sensory play ideas? Join us for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Check out some of other sensory bottles:

Insect Sensory Bottle

Lego Sensory Bottle

Nature Sensory Bottles

St. Patrick’s Day Fluffy Slime

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Fluffy slime has such a great texture and stretch. Bring sensory play to your home or classroom in March with this green St. Patrick’s Day fluffy slime.

child's hands stretching green goo. Text reads "St. Patrick's Day Fluffy Slime"You can set out a Shamrock cookie cutter and some extra Shamrock play coins to expand the opportunities for kids to explore through play. Check out the video below to see the fluffy slime play in action.

St. Patrick’s Day Fluffy Slime Recipe:

Ingredients:

Directions:
  1. Add glue to a bowl.
  2. Mix in water and baking soda.
  3. Add shaving cream and mix.
  4. Stir in food colour.
  5. Slowly add contact solution. Mix.
  6. Add the glitter.
  7. Knead.
  8. If it’s still too sticky, add a drop more of contact solution and knead some more.
  9. Drop in a few shamrock play coins and fold them in.

Fluffy Slime Troubleshooting Tips:

You’ll need to use contact solution as the activator to create the right texture for your slime. Otherwise, the glue and shaving cream will just be a big blob of goo.

If your slime isn’t fluffy enough, try to fold in some extra shaving cream.

If the slime isn’t stretchy after a few days of playing with it, you can add a bit of hot tap water or a small amount of lotion to it.

Or if the slime is too sticky, add a drop or two more contact solution or a small bit of baby oil and knead.

These troubleshooting tips should help you to get the right consistency with your slime.Looking for more easy sensory play recipes to inspire creativity? Join us for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Here are some other St. Patrick’s Day activity ideas:

St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Bottle

Easy St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Bag

St. Patrick’s Day Fun Breakfast

Zoo Mini Sensory Bottle

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Recently, we discovered a new way to bring excitement to our sensory bottles by making mini ones in little play test tubes. This Zoo Mini Sensory Bottle is so cute.

small bottle with animals and text that reads "Zoo Mini Sensory Bottle"

Zoo Mini Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

Directions:

  1. Pour clear dish soap into a mini bottle until it’s about half full.
  2. Drop in the tiny animals.
  3. Add in sequins and glitter.
  4. If there’s any room left in the bottle, fill the the top with water.
  5. Replace the lid. If using with small children, you can secure the lid with hot glue.

With any other sensory play activity including this one, adult supervision is recommended. Even with the lid glued in place, it can be opened by determined kids or when the glue gets old. The bottle contains small parts that could be a choking hazard for kids.

This mini sensory bottle allows kids to bring it with them anywhere. It can be tucked into the seatback pocket of the vehicle, put in your child’s backpack, kept on their bedside table, or included in their calm down kit.

This adorable mini calm down bottle engages both the visual and tactile sensory systems. Because the glitter and sequins stay suspended in the dish soap and fall slowly as it is turned, it also produces a calming effect. Kids can watch the items fall slowly as they work on regulating their breathing.

If you’re looking for other sensory play ideas, join us for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions. You’ll also get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Check out our other mini sensory bottles for kids:

Football Mini Sensory Bottle

Baseball Mini Sensory Bottle

Transportation Alphabet Playdough Mats

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Alphabet playdough mats are a wonderful teaching tool to use with children. Whether you are using them with toddlers or preschoolers to introduce letters or with students in kindergarten or early elementary to help reinforce the letters and their sound, learning through play is the most effective way.

balls of different colours of playdough sitting on a paper that says "Transportation Alphabet Playdough Mats" with a picture of a red tractorWhen we first brought home two of our kids from Ethiopia, not only were they trying to learn a new language, they were trying to learn a new alphabet. I tried all of the usual methods to no avail. My kids weren’t making any progress.

It was then that I decided to try a more sensory rich approach. A big part of that was using playdough mats. We also used salt trays and sensory bins. That made all the difference!

When using playdough mats, kids can shape the dough into the desired letter which provides a sensory experience and reinforces what they are learning. In addition, they are receiving visual cues. They can also use their finger to trace the letter or can draw the shape with a dry erase marker.

How to use alphabet playdough mats:

  1. Print off the Transportation Alphabet Playdough Mats.
  2. Laminate the pages or place them into a plastic sheet protector.
  3. Have the child trace the letter with their finger as they say the name of the letter.
  4. Set out some playdough. You can find our favourite homemade playdough recipe here.
  5. They can then shape the playdough to form each letter of the alphabet and place it on the corresponding playdough mat.
  6. Have the child say the name of the transportation example that begins with that letter so that they can practise the sound each letter makes.

Ways to expand on this activity:

  • Use dry erase markers to trace inside the letter or colour the letter in.
  • Name words that start with that letter.
  • Set out cookie cutters in the shape of the letters. The child can then use that to press into the dough and reinforce learning of each letter.
  • Put out alphabet stamps which can be used to stamp impressions into the playdough.
  • Use slime instead of playdough to shape the letters.
  • Fill the letters with stickers.
  • Use bingo dabbers.
  • Make a collage of things that start with each letter and glue them on the plastic sleeve around the letter.

The benefits of using these playdough mats printable worksheets:

  • reinforcing the ABCs.
  • practise fine motor skills.
  • get visual, tactile, and proprioceptive sensory input (olfactory too if you use scented playdough!).

Get your free printable alphabet playdough mats by entering your email address below. You’ll also be signed up to receive our email series Sensory Activities and Solutions.

Check out some of our other free playdough mats for kids:

Pirate Emotions Playdough Mats

Birthday Party Emotions Playdough Mats