sensory play Archives

Easy Alphabet Acorn Sensory Bin for Kids

October 27, 2020 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

When you want to keep preschoolers engaged in a lesson for more than…three minutes or so, sensory bins are the answer!

Every time I’ve put a sensory bin together, I’ve had to practically drag my early learners away from it.

There’s just something about having so many different textures and colors to explore that keeps little ones interested.

And that makes sensory bins a wonderful medium for introducing early literacy skills – like in this alphabet acorn sensory bin!

This is such an easy, low-prep, and engaging literacy activity for autumn!

And it doesn’t make a mess, so you won’t have to clean anything up afterwards. Win!

Read on to see how to put this fall sensory bin together yourself.

And, for more fun with fall letters, take a look at our easy Name Acorn Necklace Craft!

Use this alphabet acorn sensory bin for some fun sensory play and letter recognition practice during fall!

Easy Alphabet Acorn Sensory Bin for Kids

To assemble this alphabet acorn sensory bin, you’ll need the following: (This post contains affiliate links. For details, see our Disclosure Policy.)

Container (I used a straw basket I already had, but a clear shoebox or a bin is fine too)
Acorns (Real acorns are the best, but I used these artificial acorns since we don’t have an oak tree nearby. This bin uses about three bags.)
Colored artificial leaves (Our bin uses these colorful acrylic leaves and acorns.)
Fall-themed foam pieces (This foam bead harvest mix with leaves, scarecrows, pumpkins, and candy corn is what I used.)
Printable Acorn Alphabet Cards (available in this post)

To start, print out the acorn alphabet cards and laminate them.

You’ll need them to stand up to frequent use by little hands.

Then fill the bin with acorns.

Mix in the colored leaves and acorns, as well as the fall-themed foam beads.

Finally, add a few of the acorn alphabet cards.

You don’t want to put them all in at once, because you want the letters to be part of the acorn sensory bin, not the entire focus.

One way to use them is to add in pairs of uppercase and lowercase letters (capital A and lowercase A, for example).

Then students can talk about the difference between the letters.

Or you can have a quick find the matching letter activity by picking up the capital letter and asking kids to find its lowercase mate.

Be sure to talk about the different textures, colors, and shapes of each item they pick up.

See this autumn sensory bin in action below!

If you use this alphabet acorn sensory bin with your early learners, I’d love to hear how it worked out for you!

Stop by to see some of these other fall early learning ideas!

Use the digital or printable version of this Spanish Counting to 10 activity to practice number recognition in English and Spanish!

Teach early learners how to recognize same and different objects with these fall themed acorn same or different worksheets!

DIY Kinetic Sand Recipe for Kids

April 2, 2020 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

Sensory play has always been a big hit in our family.

As soon as our kids were old enough to stand up, they loved playing with sand, mud, and playdough – like most other toddlers.

We’ve made edible playdough, moon sand, slime, and lots of other sensory materials at home.

And that’s why I wanted to share this DIY kinetic sand recipe too!

If you have kids who love sensory play and building, this kinetic sand is perfect.

It’s soft enough to mold, but also firm enough to hold its shape. Great for little builders!

Get the full kinetic sand recipe instructions below.

And, for more fun with sensory input, check out our scented Apple Pie Playdough too!

This easy DIY kinetic sand is such a fun way to play indoors with little ones! Perfect for sensory input too!

DIY Kinetic Sand Recipe for Kids

To make this DIY kinetic sand recipe, you’ll need:

Sand
Baby oil
Cornstarch

This sensory recipe is so easy that the kids can help you make it.

Once you’ve measured out the right amount of each ingredient, just mix them all together.

It actually works best if you mix it with your hands.

So the kids can get some sensory play before they even start playing with the kinetic sand!

After you’re done mixing, toss a few sand molds and building toys into the sand.

The little ones can play as long as they like!

NOTE: This DIY kinetic sand is NOT edible. Please use caution with toddlers and very young children.

Scroll down to get the printable DIY kinetic sand recipe!

Check out other sensory play ideas!

This fun and easy snowman slime is so fun for sensory play during winter! Mix up a few jars and hand them out as gifts for little ones!

DIY Kinetic Sand

This DIY kinetic sand is a simple sensory play idea for young ones!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

2.5 cups sand
1 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup baby oil

Instructions

Pour the sand into a mixing bowl or loaf pan.
Add the cornstarch and mix well with your hands.
Pour in the baby oil and mix well.

Recipe Notes

If the mixture is too dry, add a few drops more baby oil until you reach the right consistency.
If the kinetic sand doesn’t hold its shape, add a bit more cornstarch.

Make a batch of this simple DIY kinetic sand for a quick sensory play activity at home!

Fall Apple Pie Playdough for Kids

August 8, 2019 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

My kids have loved to play with playdough for as long as I can remember.

Of course, some of that is because I like to play with playdough and I basically insisted they did too. I make no apologies.

Working with playdough is such a soothing activity for kids (and adults) and it’s good gross motor and fine motor skill practice too.

So, since fall is just around the corner, why not try this fun apple pie playdough recipe with your kids for some fall sensory fun!

This is such a fun DIY playdough recipe to make with the kids. It smells amazing and it’s a fun way to get them ready for fall baking!

It would also be a fantastic sensory activity to try after reading some of your child’s favorite fall books for kids!

Read on to get the full printable playdough recipe while you’re here.

Want more apple fun for early learners? Don’t miss our Apple Alike! Same or Different Worksheets!

Fall Apple Pie Playdough

To make this fall apple pie playdough recipe, you’ll need the following:

Flour
Coconut oil
Salt
Cream of tartar
Food coloring
Apple scented oil
Green apple scented oil
Cinnamon scented oil

You’ll be following the same basic DIY playdough recipe to make each flavor.

You’ll just need to adjust the scents and colors to make each ingredient of the “pie”.

As a note, this apple pie playdough recipe is NOT edible. Please don’t allow small children to eat it. It smells good, but it’s just for play.

Start by mixing the flour, salt, and cream of tartar together.

Then add the coconut oil, food coloring, apple scented oil, and some warm water.

Cook the mixture over low heat while stirring continuously.

You’ll know it’s done when it starts to look “doughy”. Keep stirring until the dough no longer looks wet.

Then remove it from the pan and knead it with your hand until it forms a ball.

To make the green apple playdough, swap out the red food coloring for green food coloring.

And use green apple scented oil instead of regular apple.

When you’re ready to make the “crust”, just use brown food coloring and cinnamon scented oil.

Follow the same steps to cook the playdough on the stove.

Then knead it into a ball and you’re done!

The kids will love using playdough tools to mold each batch into a pie!

They can even use child-safe scissors to cut the lattice strips for the top of the “apple pie crust”!

Scroll down for the full fall apple pie playdough recipe!

Don’t miss these other fun ways to make playdough at home!

See more ways to learn with sensory fun on my Sensory Play Pinterest board!

Apple Pie Playdough Recipe

Get the full apple pie playdough recipe below!

If you plan to make it with your kids, let me know how they like it!

Apple Pie Playdough Recipe

Ingredients

2 cups flour
3/4 cup salt
4 tsp cream of tartar
2 tbsp coconut oil
2 cups warm water
red food coloring
green food coloring
brown food coloring
apple scented oil
green apple scented oil
cinnamon scented oil

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, and cream of tartar.
Add the coconut oil and mix well.
Pour the mixture into a saucepan and add the warm water.
Add a few drops of red food coloring to make the apple playdough. Add green food coloring if you are making the green apple playdough. Add brown food coloring if you are making the cinnamon playdough.
Cook the mixture over low heat, stirring continuously, until the mixture is no longer wet and looks doughy.
Remove the dough from the saucepan. Knead it with your hands until smooth.

Recipe Notes

Store the playdough in an airtight container for up to three days.

DIY Solar System Edible Playdough

May 21, 2018 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

Have you ever tried making your own playdough? We’ve done it several times and it’s always a big hit with our kids.

But, if you really want to take it to the next level, edible playdough is where it’s at. Remember always thinking that playdough looked good and then being disappointed when you tried to taste it (whenever your mom wasn’t looking, that is)? Edible playdough actually does taste amazing.

So for a fun astronomy sensory play activity, I thought my kids would love some DIY Solar System Edible Playdough! This is so simple and fun to make! And it’s a sweet treat for the kids to enjoy too. (Just don’t let them eat too much or they’ll be bouncing off the ceiling.) Read on to get the recipe for yourself!

Want more fun sensory play? Don’t miss our simple DIY flubber kids can make!

Solar System Edible Playdough

Basically, you’re going to make colored sugar frosting. Which is why the kids shouldn’t eat too much, you know?

You can use any color of frosting you like, but the Funfetti brand has some awesome brightly colored versions that will give you a lovely color for each planet.

To make Earth and moon playdough, we went with blue frosting (for Earth) and yellow frosting (for the moon).

Mix the two together to get the right consistency. You want it squishy, but still kind of firm.

Turn your mixture onto a wooden surface.

Let the kids mix it up with their little fingers!

This is great gross motor skill practice, by the way.

All you need now are two empty jars with lids (baby food jars are perfect), colored ribbon, and some cute solar system stickers!

Fill each jar with one color of the playdough.

And add the lids!

These particular stickers came from a brick-and-mortar store, but if you want to get something solar system-themed online, try these solar system planet stickers. I actually think those are even better, because you can choose from specific planets with the planet names.

And with the different frosting colors, you could make a batch for every planet in the solar system!

These would make awesome party favors, but your kids will also love making up their own solar system edible playdough to play with (and taste!).

Click over to page 2 for the full recipe!

Pages: 1 2

Easy DIY Flubber for Kids

December 18, 2017 by Selena Robinson 3 Comments

My kids, like most children, love to play with playdough. So we’ve done a LOT of playdough activities for kids over the years. But for a new sensory experience, we decided to make something different: DIY flubber!

And it turned out really, really well. In fact, it worked out so perfectly that I…uh…played with it too. I regret nothing. 🙂

Read on to see how we made flubber using just a few household ingredients! And if you like this simple activity, check out our list of super easy preschool crafts you can make in just 10 minutes!

Easy DIY Flubber for Kids!

We decided to try out a very popular recipe for making flubber. If you’re not familiar with flubber, it also goes by the names “slime” and “gak”. It’s pretty much a stiff kind of “Magic Muck“, which we made a while back. But it’s very solid, so it’s easy to clean up after. Win!

The project was originally shared from Live Craft Eat and it turned out to be a great recipe for DIY flubber! It took about five minutes.

You’ll just need a few ingredients: (Affiliate links provided for convenience. For details, see our Disclosure Policy.)

The kids were fascinated at the various textures of the flubber. It felt slippery initially, but then it turned rubbery the more we used it.

We could even make handprints with it!

We also found that when we stretched the flubber out and then let it sit on the table for a while, it returned to a single flat puddle on its own.

It even breaks cleanly when you pull it, but it slowly returns to a flat blob in time.

But if you pick it up, it will run through your fingers! Super, super cool.

If you prefer to make DIY flubber without Borax, I found this great Borax-free flubber recipe from Little Bins for Little Hands. Works just as well! 😉

Have you tried learning how to make DIY flubber? Did the recipe work out? Let us know your experiences in the comments!

Try these other great crafts for kids!

And see even more sensory ideas on my Sensory Play Pinterest board!

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Easy DIY Taste Safe Slime Recipe

August 12, 2014 by Selena Robinson 4 Comments

Slime is all the rage for kids these days. But when you’re trying to arrange for sensory play with young kids, it’s nearly always best to have a recipe that won’t hurt them if they try to eat it.

Because, as we all know, kids love to taste playdough, floam, flubber, and nearly anything else they can find. (Spoiler: Playdough does NOT taste good. Trust me on that.)

So we decided to try an easy DIY taste safe slime recipe that only requires two ingredients and it was a blast! Read on to see how we made this simple orange slime!

By the way, if your kids also want to…ahem..taste playdough, they can totally eat our bright blue edible playdough! Plus, it’s dairy free! Give it a try soon!

Easy DIY Taste Safe Slime Recipe

To make this slime, we decided to use a taste safe slime recipe from Blog Me Mom. For this, you only need psyllium fiber powder (like Metamucil) and water. That’s it.

We added the nonpareil sprinkles just to see if the different colors would change the slime a bit. If you use a clear psyllium fiber powder, you may want to add some food coloring. But we used the orange flavor, so we already had a color.

After you mix the psyllium fiber powder and water together in the right quantities (check the Blog Me Mom recipe for exact amounts), you boil it for five minutes while stirring.

When it starts looking like this, you’re getting close.

When it starts stretching like this as you stir, you’re there!

After the slime cooled down, I plunked it on the table.

Note: It took a good 20 minutes for this mixture to cool down so that the kids could touch it safely. I ended up spreading it on a cookie sheet to get it to room temperature faster. We sprinkled the nonpareils over the top and mixed them in. The sprinkles turned the bright orange slime a burnt green-orange color. Definitely a good “ewww” color for slime.

Then it was time to explore!

The kids were hesitant to touch it at first, but once they found out they could taste it, they were definitely interested.

Interestingly, Pooh (who usually isn’t interested in sensory play at all), loved the slime! He played with it for about 15 minutes straight, which is a record for him. Naturally, he had to taste it. On the other hand, Tigger (who is the biggest sensory seeker in the house), hated it. Go figure.

This was such a good activity! It took about 30 minutes from start to finish and it was a cinch to clean up. Always a win!

Want to try more sensory activities?

See even more sensory activities kids will love on my Sensory Play Pinterest board!