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Sensory bins have been the talk of parent blogs for a while. You can find a wealth of sensory bin ideas on Pinterest, from play gardens made with black beans and toy vegetables to winter wonderland boxes filled with cotton balls, bells, and pinecones. Sensory play isn’t just an internet fad; it is a fundamental part of early childhood development. Creating sensory activities for your kids enriches their learning.
What is sensory play?
Sensory play is any type of game or activity that engages children’s senses. While we usually only think about the five senses of taste, smell, touch, hearing, and sight, we have two other senses: body awareness and balance. Toddlers and preschoolers learn best through activities that stimulate these seven senses. Sensory bins are wonderful sensory learning tools, but there are many other types of sensory play. You can incorporate sensory play into craft time or playtime outside.
Your child benefits from sensory play in 4 key ways.
#1. Sensory play strengthens connections in their brain and develops their complex learning skills.
When your kid puts down the tablet and explores the world through their senses, it creates new nerve pathways in their brain. Unique textures, tastes, sounds, and experiences literally expand their minds. Sensory play allows children to be little scientists, discovering how the world works through trial, error, and experimentation. Using these scientific processes and their senses helps them learn how to problem solve and complete complex tasks. For example, using a measuring cup to pour beans into an egg carton improves kids’ fine motor skills while also teaching them rudimentary measuring.
#2. Sensory play develops and enhances children’s memory.
Children learn and retain information best when it is linked to their senses. Much like a particular smell or song can bring up a poignant memory. Stimulating their senses as they learn new letters, numbers, or words will help the information to stick in their minds.
#3. Sensory play teaches children valuable life skills.
Children learn a wide range of skills that they will carry into the rest of their lives through sensory play. Your child can learn everything from problem-solving and basic math to social skills like sharing and planning. Sensory play also helps them develop valuable motor skills like cutting, scooping, and pouring.
#4. Sensory play helps children adapt to new textures, tastes, and experiences.
We all know that children can be picky about new tastes and textures. At times, they can be resistant to trying new things. Playing with sensory tools—like cold jello, sticky noodles, warm grains of rice, etc.—can help them grow comfortable with new textures, tastes, and experiences. Making the process fun can help them associate trying new things with good memories. Most of all, it creates a safe space for them to engage with smell, textures, or tastes without expectations. If you have a child who struggles with particular textures, like spaghetti noodles’ slimy texture, playing with them might help them adjust to it.
If you are looking for more ways to enrich your child’s learning at home, incorporate sensory play! Sensory play is an essential tool for developing complex reasoning skills, remembering new information, developing valuable life skills, and adapting to new things. You can find a wide range of fun, sensory bin ideas on Pinterest. Scavenger hunts and craft projects using supplies with different colors, textures, and scents are also enriching sensory activities. We have compiled some of our favorite sensory learning activities in our classrooms on Kids’ R Kids Avalon Park’s Distance Learning page. Check it out! Get in touch if you want to know more about how we incorporate sensory learning into our curriculum!