animals

Dinosaurs are an oh so popular topic among young children, and they absolutely LOVE sensory bins.  This post combines the two interests. featuring three dinosaur sensory bins that are bound to captivate your little learners. A bonus is that the activities are super simple and quick to set up.

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Children adore anything dinosaur, so I try to include dinosaur activities in my yearly rotation of themes. It’s not hard to do, as there are thousands of activities to choose from.

Sensory activities are also a favorite of children and offer a host of benefits. They provide multi-sensory learning through play experiences.

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Dinosaur Rice Bin

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The sensory bin for this first activity is a white kitchen bus tub, which accommodates two or three children at a time. If you’ve seen some of my other sensory blog posts, you’ll know that this is one of my favorite choices for bins. An under-the-bed storage tub also works fantastically. It is slightly bigger in size and accommodates more children.

Rice is an economical sensory base and is reusable. Brown rice is the base for this first sensory bin.

Other supplies in the bin include:

• large and small dinosaur figurines
• glow in the dark dinosaur skeletons
• dinosaur skull figurines
• marbles
• fillable eggs

Exploring rice is a calming activity, and children love to pour it, bury items in it, and create shaker musical instruments using it as a filler.

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In addition to adding rice to the fillable eggs, children eagerly hide smaller dinosaurs and marbles in them.

Larger dinosaur figurines, dinosaur skulls, and glow-in-the-dark dinosaurs contribute to the theme and add excitement to the bin.

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Follow me on Pinterest for more early learning activities.

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Dinosaur Egg Rice Bin

This second dinosaur sensory bin is simpler and features a few variations.

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White glutinous rice is the base. Its bright white color helps the accessories stand out.

An edged, square metal serving tray is the bin. It is smaller in size than a kitchen bus tub, accommodating one to two children at a time.

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Fillable eggs with dinosaur spikes were the inspiration for this bin, and are a feature supply.

Various sizes of rocks are natural materials in the bin.

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Dinosaur Noodle Bin

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This third sensory invitation is similar to the one above. The only difference is that the base in the bin is thin, yellow noodles. The bright, cut uncooked noodles add a pop of color and novel texture to the bin.

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Benefits of the Dinosaur Sensory Bins

Sensory bin invitations are non-threatening, open-ended activities for children to participate in. There is no right or wrong way to explore them, and that means zero pressure to meet certain standards.

The rice in the first two bins is relaxing for children to touch, sift, and pour. This helps children regulate their emotions.

As children add little dinosaur figurines and marbles to the fillable eggs, they gain hand-eye coordination and fine motor control.

Children take delight in making shaker musical instruments by adding rice to the eggs. This includes a musical component.

When two or more children play in the same bin, they practice sharing and turn-taking. Their discussions during the play enhance social development.

The sensory invitations have a collection of unique accessories that are new to the children. This encourages the little learners to be creative and use their imagination.

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More Sensory Activities

Flower Planting Sensory Play

Flower Potion Sensory Tray

Airplane Rice Sensory Bin

Cozy Gingerbread Sensory Bin

Plaid-themed Christmas Rice Bin

Chinese New Year Chickpea Bin

Easter Bunny Lentil Sensory Bin

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