Sensory Play Ideas for Kids
Messy sensory play activities are crucial for toddlers. Besides giving them endless ways to develop and learn, these activities improve their gross and fine motor skills, co-ordination and concentration. Encourage kids to indulge in sensory play activities and help them develop their imagination, creative thinking and ability to solve problems and experiment with solutions.
The Bubble Bath
Playing with bubbles has always been a great sensory game for the kids. Get started with this bubble activity and allow your toddler to soak in the fun.
You will need:
A large bin
Water
Liquid soap (preferably a mild one with a fruity fragrant)
A whisk
Glitter
Food color
Small plastic cups
Rubber ducks
How to play:
Gather your materials and fill up the bin with soap and water. Add food color and glitter. Hand over the whisk to the children and let them explore. Let them whip up bubbles, burst them, blow them and in the end pour the soapy water into small cups. Have them pour the water from the cups back into the basin and see fresh new bubbles forming. Encourage them to ditch the whisks and dive right into it! Float the rubber ducks on the bubble water for additional fun.
Dough of Snow
Here is a recipe for homemade cloud dough that can engage the little ones in a great sensory activity.
You will need:
4 cups of flour
1 ½ cups of vegetable oil
Blue and white glitter
How to play:
Invite the kids to start mixing all the ingredients in a bowl till they create crumbly-textured dough. Cloud dough is different from other play dough in the sense that they are lighter, crumblier, and a great deal softer. Therefore, it works wonderfully well if you want the kids to develop their fine motor skills and hand strength. Show them how to use your fists to knead the dough into round balls and then crumble it in a second with just a finger tip. Make imaginary creatures, snowmen, and other structures of art with the play dough.
Faux Chocolate
Enjoy this simple sensory play of making faux chocolate ice cream with kids. Have them sink their fists into the chocolate mix and pull out handfuls of the gooey texture and enjoy its touch, fragrance, look, and everything else.
You will need:
Cornstarch
Cocoa powder
Liquid watercolors
Food color
Chocolate essence
Silicon heart shaped molds
How to play:
Mix the cornstarch and cocoa powder to get a nice, rich brown color. Add liquid water colors to the powder mix and invite the kids to mix all up with their fingers. Add a few drops of food color and chocolate essence and have the kids re-mix the crumble. Add water gradually to make the dough soft and moldable. The amount of water depends on what consistency you want – gooey molten chocolate or just squashy soft chocolate.
We know it will be quite a task to clear the mess after the activities with the kids, but the learning and fun will certainly be worth it!
Author Bio:
Corinne Jacob is a wannabe writer who is convinced that kids learn best when they’re having fun. She is constantly on the lookout for new and exciting ways to make learning an enjoyable experience. Corinne loves all things that scream out un-schooling, alternative education and holistic learning.
