Sensory bins are a great way to play with your child! Why are sensory bins so wonderful? Here are a few key reasons why:
Fine motor skill improvement; hand strength can increase as children stir, scoop, dig and pour with various tools like measuring cups, bowls, and spoons. You can even include tweezers, as they encourage the development of grasp patterns used with handwriting, drawing, and food utensils.
Building social skills; if kids are playing together they can practice taking turns, cooperation, teamwork, and communication. This play also helps with language development, when playing with your child you can talk about colors, smells, texture, the list goes on!
Emotional skills; playing with a sensory bin can be a very calming activity, children can practice self-regulation and healthy coping mechanisms for every day stressors.
Cognitive development; this is supported when children sort items by size, shape, and color. When you include numbers and letters, children will also be practicing early math and literacy skills! The sensory bin we’re making today will be based primarily on color sorting, but we’d love to see the different spin you and your child take!
Materials:
- Recycled plastic water bottles
- Colorful markers
- Many colorful pompoms
- Measuring cups
- Tweezers
- A bin
- Anything else you want!
Start by writing color names in their corresponding colors on your recycled water bottles. Dump the pompoms into the bin and set out any manipulates you gathered. Let your kiddo scoop, dump, tweeze, and sort away. You can chat with your child about what they’re doing- allowing their vocabulary to expand, or you can even be more hands off, and let them learn independently. If they’re safe and having fun, there is no right or wrong way to play.
Have fun!
Ms. Jackie
