The Chaos and the Clutter

sensory play

Simple Bugs Fun Hand Soap for Kids

soap dispenser with clear soap and blue and green plastic bugs in it

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By now, we all know how important hand washing is for our health. But getting your kids to wash their hands often is sometimes easier said than done. Instead of constantly reminding your kids to wash their hands, why not make handwashing fun? This fun bugs hand soap for kids will keep your kids engaged as they wash, ensuring they never forget to wash their hands again.clear dispenser with plastic toy bugs in it and clear hand soapIf your kids are struggling with some of the pandemic protocols such as wearing masks and frequent hand washing, this fun soap can make it a bit easier for them (and for you).

Bugs Hand Soap for Kids

Supplies needed:

blue beads, hand soap dispensers, and plastic bugs

Instructions:

  1. Fill the clear container with hand soap, leaving around one inch of space at the top of the bottle to make room for the bugs and beads.
  2. Push the bugs into the bottle, then add the beads to the top.
  3. Place the lid on the bottle and tighten it to keep the soap from leaking out. Turn the bottle upside down to mix up the beads and bugs inside.

collage of photos showing putting plastic bugs in hand soap dispenser

Handwashing Tips

Placing this fun soap for kids near the bathroom sink is a great way to remind your kids to wash their hands more frequently. They’ll have a blast squirting bug soap on their hands!soap dispenser with clear soap and blue and green plastic bugs in it

And since we know how important having clean hands is to our health, it’s always a good idea to remind your kids about proper hand washing techniques. After you make your bugs soap, give your kids a quick lesson in hand washing so they wash their hands the right way every time:

Follow five simple steps. Start by teaching your kids the five steps, then demonstrate the best method for getting their hands clean. There are five basic steps for handwashing:

  1. Wet
  2. Lather
  3. Scrub
  4. Rinse
  5. Dry

Wash for 20 seconds. They key to killing germs is to wash your hands for at least 20 seconds. One fun way to count down the time while scrubbing is to sing a song. Singing Happy Birthday twice is a simple tune your kids are sure to know. Or you can make up your own hand washing song.

Scrub everywhere. Another important lesson to teach your kids is to scrub all over as they wash, including between each finger, along the top and bottom of the hand, and under the fingernails.

When should kids wash their hands? After learning how to wash their hands, your kids may be wondering when they should take the time to use their bug soap. The best answer is simply whenever their hands feel dirty. But if they’re still unsure, remind your kids that it’s always important to wash their hands:

  • after using the bathroom
  • before and after eating
  • after touching a pet
  • after coughing, sneezing, or wiping their nose

You might also like these fun bug sensory activities:

Easy Easter Slime Recipe

slime that has coloured mini beads and small bunny toys in it

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Slime is fun to play with regardless of the occasion. Pull, stretch, knead, push, and play using this easy Easter slime recipe. This provides great sensory feedback while having fun.

hand stretches out white slime with bunnies. Text reads "Easter stretchy slime"Homemade slime is great for any occasion. In the video below, you’ll see just how easy it is to make this slime at home.

Easy Easter Slime Recipe:

Supplies Needed:

  • 1 cup Elmer’s Clear School glue
  • 2-3 Tbsp. contact lens saline solution
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • purple/pink, blue, and green metallic mini beads
  • Easter bunny erasers

supplies such as baking soda, clear glue, and saline solution for making slimeInstructions:

  1. Pour the glue into a large mixing bowl and stir the baking soda into it.
  2. Begin to add the contact lens solution a few drops at a time as you stir.
  3. When the mixture begins to pull away from the bowl, begin kneading.
  4. Add the beads. Continue kneading.
  5. Fold in some of the bunny erasers or offer them to your child to add to their sensory play.
  6. If the slime is still too sticky, add one or two drops more of contact solution and continue to knead.
  7. When you’re not playing with it, store it in an airtight container.

collage of photos of whitish slime with toy bunnies in itBe sure to use adult supervision with this or any other sensory play activity.

The slime created with this recipe is nice and stretchy. This activity offers tactile, proprioceptive, and visual sensory feedback. slime that has coloured mini beads and small bunny toys in it

Easter Slime Gift:

If you want, you can make this slime recipe as a gift. It’s great for adding to an Easter egg hunt or Easter basket. All you need to do is put the slime inside a medium or large size plastic egg and close it.

Check out some of our other Easter sensory activities:

Easter Egg Hunt Sensory Bin

yellow and purple with toy sparkly eggs and the letters to spell Easter Egg Hunt

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Sensory bins are perfect for interactive play. And when you add in seasonal elements, they’re a fun way to celebrate a holiday with your little ones too. This adorable Easter egg hunt sensory bin is filled with unique ways for your kids to explore using an Easter theme, whether they’re learning at home or in the classroom.

yellow on one side, purple on the other with sparkly eggs and a fluffy chick. Text reads "Easter Egg Hunt Sensory Bin"Using common Easter themed items in your sensory bin is the perfect way to get your kids playing and learning by using their senses. Each item on the bin is designed to help your child learn as they play by engaging at least one of their senses – sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste.

Easter Egg Hunt Sensory Bin:

Supplies needed:

yellow and purple with toy sparkly eggs and the letters to spell Easter Egg HuntInstructions:

  1. Spread the yellow and purple Pluffle in the bottom of the bin, placing one colour on each side.
  2. Place the letters in the bin. You can use the letters to spell out words (like Easter Egg Hunt) or simply let your kids play with the letters and spell words on their own. Kids love to spell out their own names and familiar words. 
  3. Spread the sequin eggs and baby chick toys around inside the bin.
  4. Place the magnifying glass on top of the items for the kids to use.

collage of photos of a yellow and purple Easter sensory bin

Easter Sensory Bin Activities

Once you have your sensory bin set up, your kids can explore each item inside the bin as they play. These sensory bin activities are fun ways to encourage your kids to explore:

  • Use the magnifying glass. Move the magnifying glass over each element in the sensory bin and explore the different colours and textures up close. Compare the fluffy chick’s feathers to the smooth letters to see how they are different.child's hand holding a magnifying glass over a sequined egg
  • Touch the different items in the bin. Use your fingers to touch each item in the bin and describe what each one feels like. Which items in the bin are soft? Which are hard?
  • Squish the Pluffle. Use your hands, a spoon, or a scoop to move the Pluffle around. Squish the Pluffle in your hands or combine the colours to see what happens.
  • Sort or spell with the letters. Put the letters in alphabetical order, sort them by colour, or spell Easter words with them inside the sensory bin.
  • Play hide and seek. Hide the eggs or chicks under the Pluffle and dig around in the bin to find them. Or play a game with a friend or sibling by hiding items inside the bin and asking someone else to find the hidden treasures.hand squishes purple and yellow Pluffle

Check out our other Easter sensory ideas:

Easter Sensory Bottle

blue plush mini chick and pastel sequins in a bottle with clear liquid and glitter

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One of the simplest forms of sensory play for young children is a sensory bottle. And when you add holiday elements to your bottles, you have the perfect way to celebrate an occasion. This simple Easter sensory bottle features classic holiday elements, allowing your child to celebrate Easter and have a little bit of educational fun at the same time. clear bottle with sequins and glitter and eggs and chicks. Text reads "Easter sensory bottle"

Easter Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

Instructions:

  1. Pour the clear soap into the sensory bottle until it’s around 2/3 of the way full.
  2. Add the glitter, baby chicks, foam eggs, and pastel sequins to the bottle.
  3. Fill the rest of the container with water.
  4. If you plan on gluing the lid to keep the bottle from reopening, add hot or Superglue glue to the inside of the lid, then replace the lid on the bottle. Otherwise, you can simply put the lid back on.

Easter Sensory Bottle Play and Learning Activities

This sensory bottle is perfect for encouraging interactive play with young children. But keep in mind that your child should always be supervised by an adult as they play. Even if the lid is glued to the top of the bottle, it could come off. And since the pieces inside could be a choking hazard, it’s important to keep an eye on your child as they’re playing with their bottle.

Try these play activities to give your kids a chance to use their visual, tactile, and proprioceptive sensory systems as they learn:

  • Seek and find. Shake up the Easter sensory bottle and let your child search through the items as they float to find different elements inside. Ask your child what they see and let them point out the different pieces inside the bottle.
  • Count the eggs and chicks. As the eggs and chicks float around the bottle, let your child count each item to see how many eggs and chicks are inside.
  • Calm a busy mind. The Easter holiday can often cause sensory overload for young kids. Creating this Easter sensory bottle is the perfect way to calm your child when they’re feeling overwhelmed. Simply shake the bottle to mix up the elements inside, then let your child watch the pieces as they float around inside.

Some other Easter sensory activities:

Easter Oobleckdrips of pastel colours of goo coming down into a sensory bin of oobleckEaster Fluffy Slime

Nature Inspired Easter Sensory Binplush bunny sits by a sensory bin filled with moss, grass, and toy butterflies

Eggs and Carrots Sensory Bin

Easy Easter Oobleck Recipe

drips of pastel colours of goo coming down into a sensory bin of oobleck

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Using just two common household ingredients, you can create a fun science experiment your kids will love. And when you mix in holiday elements, this cool activity becomes a great way to celebrate. Make this easy Easter oobleck recipe with your kids to have some messy fun as they learn during this holiday season.blue, pink, and yellow goo in a baking dish with toy bunnies and eggs. Text reads "Easter Oobleck"We love finding interactive ways to learn. And with the help of this quick and easy science experiment, your kids can explore and learn in unique ways. As your kids play with this squishy goo, they’ll learn all about the properties of matter and have a little messy fun, too!

Easter Oobleck Recipe

Supplies needed:

bunny cookie cutter on pink and blue oobleckInstructions:

  1. Stir some pink food dye into 1 cup of water.
  2. Mix the pink water with 2 cups of cornstarch to make pink oobleck.
  3. Put the pink oobleck in one section of a baking dish.
  4. Follow the same instructions to create blue oobleck and then again to create yellow.
  5. Drop some Easter cookie cutters, stretchy bunnies, and plastic eggs in.
  6. Invite your child to play!

collage of photos of Easter holiday themed oobleck play

The Science of Oobleck

After making and playing with oobleck, you may be wondering if it’s a liquid or a solid. The answer to that question is a little more complicated than simply picking one quality or the other. In fact, oobleck is what’s called a non-Newtonian fluid or a suspension. That means it can mimic the qualities of both a solid and a liquid.

All fluids have a state of viscosity, which describes how the fluid flows or how thick the fluid is. Since oobleck can change between a solid and liquid state, its viscosity is not constant. That means it’s a non-Newtonian fluid, which has an inconstant viscosity. And oobleck is just one example of this type of material. Other non-Newtonian fluids include silly putty and ketchup.

Since oobleck is made up of two ingredients, it’s the combination of those ingredients that creates a unique substance with its own unique properties. Since cornstarch particles are so much smaller than other substances, like sand or dirt, they are more susceptible to thermal forces. When the substance is sitting still, the granules of cornstarch are surrounded by the water molecules.

The surface tension of the molecules keeps it from flowing out of the cornstarch. And the lubrication from the water allows the cornstarch granules to move more freely and behave like a liquid. But when friction occurs, the particles move more like a solid.

Oobleck can also be made with other solids such as baby powder, tapioca flour, potato starch, and more. You can find those unique oobleck recipes here.
two hands covered in multiple pastel colours of goo

After explaining this cool scientific concept to your kids, they’ll probably be ready to start exploring! Use different tools and toys to experiment with the Easter oobleck for tons of educational fun. Try these experiments with your kids:

  • Place the oobleck inside a glass. Let the oobleck sit in the glass for a few hours and see what happens. As the goo sits in the cup, you’ll see the liquid and solid elements begin to separate.
  • Stir it with a spoon. Stirring the oobleck with a spoon will force the ingredients to mix, causing the oobleck to stiffen. See how long it takes before the spoon becomes “stuck” in the oobleck.
  • Hit the oobleck between your palms. When you apply pressure to the substance, it becomes less viscous. Notice how hard the substance becomes each time it is hit.
  • Squeeze and release. Watch the oobleck change states right before your eyes. As you squeeze the goo in your hand and apply pressure to the substance, it will become solid. But when you release the pressure and open your hand, it will turn into a liquid and flow between your fingers.
  • Use cookie cutters. Try using the cookie cutters while the substance is in different states. How do the cookie cutters work when the goo is in liquid form? How do they work when the oobleck is solid?
  • Compare oobleck to plain water or plain cornstarch. Compare the two ingredients in the recipe to the completed recipe and record the observations. How does oobleck differ from plain water and plain cornstarch? What happens when you slap each ingredient compared to slapping oobleck? What does each item do when held in your hand? See what you can discover.

drips of pastel colours of goo coming down into a sensory bin of oobleck

What is Oobleck?

Now that you know the science behind this fun substance, why not learn about its history? The concept of oobleck was dreamt up by Dr. Seuss in his book, Bartholomew and the Oobleck. In the story, the oobleck is a mysterious substance that falls from the sky when the king becomes bored with normal weather.

With this recipe, you can mimic the goo found in this fun kid’s book, making it a great activity to do with your kids when studying Dr. Seuss. But when you add in toys and seasonal elements, you can use this cool science experiment for any holiday you choose.

Here are some of our other oobleck recipes and activities:

Chocolate Ooblecka child's hands pull a brown sensory material over a bowlLemonade Oobleck

Candy Cane Oobleckred and white swirls in a dish with candy canes and cookie cutters

Nature Inspired Easter Sensory Bin

plush bunny sits by a sensory bin filled with moss, grass, and toy butterflies

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Using nature as inspiration for your sensory bin is a great way to provide your toddler or preschooler with educational interactive fun. And since spring is right around the corner, Easter is the perfect time to create a nature activity for your kids. With this nature inspired Easter sensory bin, your little ones can have some educational fun while exploring nature at home. stuffed bunny, moss, grass, sticks, and toy insects. Text reads "Nature Inspired Easter Sensory Bin"Nature provides your kids with tons of opportunities to explore and meet their sensory needs. From smelling the flowers to touching the soft grass, there are several ways your child can use their senses while playing outside. And that’s why nature is the perfect inspiration for an Easter sensory bin.collage of photos of a hand playing in a Spring sensory bin

Nature Inspired Easter Sensory Bin:

Supplies needed: 

plush bunny sits by a sensory bin filled with moss, grass, and toy butterfliesInstructions: 

  1. Add the Spanish moss to the tray. Add the artificial grass on top. Spread out evenly.
  2. Place the artificial plants, flowers, and mini birch logs around the bin. 
  3. Add the stones, rocks, and gems to the bin. 
  4. Add the butterflies and dragonflies to the bin. 
  5. Set the bunny near the bin. 

collage of photos of creating an Easter sensory bin

Nature Inspired Sensory Bin Activities

Once you have your sensory bin put together, it’s time to let your kids explore.

If you’re looking for ways to encourage your kids to play, try these fun activity suggestions:

  • Play with the bunny in the bin. Encourage pretend play by asking your child to play with the bunny in the bin. They can make the bunny interact with the different elements of the bin and use their imagination as they play.
  • Touch the different elements and compare the textures. Explore their sense of touch by touching each item to see what it feels like. Then, compare the different textures to see which ones are similar, like the rocks and gems, and which ones are different, like the logs and moss.

hand playing in an Easter sensory bin

  • Listen to nature sounds. In addition to invoking your kids’ sense of touch, this nature inspired sensory bin can also let your child use their ears to hear. Figure out what sounds the elements make when rubbed together or moved from spot to spot.
  • Encourage imaginative play. After child plays with the bunny, your child can also use the butterflies and dragonflies for play. Show them how the insects interact with the different elements in the bin, then let them use their imagination to play with the toys.
  • Sort and organize. Practice sorting and organizing the elements in the bin into different categories, like colour, shape, or size.
  • Compare to nature. Take a look at each element in the bin and compare it to items found in nature. Ask your child what each item looks like and then let them guess what it is and where in nature you can find it.

hands holding toy butterflies

Check out some of our other Easter sensory activities for kids:

Easter Fluffy Slime

Eggs and Carrots Easter Sensory Bin

Sensory Sound Eggs