sensory bin

Winter Sensory Trays

January 10, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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Snowflake confetti makes an eye-catching base for three simple winter sensory trays. Combined with a few accessories, it sets the stage for sparkly sensory play experiences your little learners will delight in.

The find: shiny snowflake and dot confetti in a blue, silver, and white color scheme.

Basic Winter Sensory Tray

Supplies to collect:

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snowflake confetti
turquoise gems
silver and white bead garland strips
large silver snowflakes
star cups
clear spoons

Set in a tray, these pieces make the perfect hands-on sensory activity for your little ones to celebrate winter with.

Snowflake studded winter sensory tray filled with shiny pieces.

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Shiny pieces rule in this snowflake confetti based winter sensory tray.

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Polar Bear Sensory Tray

In this tray, the star cups and spoons are replaced with cube-shaped “ice cube” acrylic gems and an ice floe cut from styrofoam. Polar bear figurines are set on and around the ice floe.

Polar bear winter sensory tray with a snowflake confetti base and shiny loose parts.

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Polar sensory tray with a snowflake confetti base and shiny loose parts.

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Polar animal-themed loose parts tray. — **Polar Sensory Tray Loose Parts**

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Penguin Sensory Tray

The bears are out and a variety of penguins are in! Styrofoam packing chips are added to the mix. The penguins are propped on the ice floe and ice chunks, or swimming in the water. Cotton balls would also be a good fit for this tray.

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Penguin sensory tray with a winter-themed loose parts in a snowflake confetti base.

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White rice or paper snowflake confetti can be substituted as the base in these glitzy, easy-to-set-up winter sensory trays your little learners will love.

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Snowflake Cafe Dramatic Play Center Printable Set

Bring wintertime fun into your classroom or playroom with this Snowflake Café Dramatic Play Center Printable Set! Perfect for cold-weather learning, this cozy café invites children to step into imaginative play as bakers, servers, and customers—offering winter-themed cookies and warm cups of hot chocolate.

This engaging, winter-themed pretend play resource

is ideal for preschool, kindergarten, and early elementary classrooms
supports dramatic play, counting, writing, and social skills
is great for winter units, indoor recess, or learning centers
is perfect for a play date
is excellent activity to pack on trips
is easy to prep—just print, cut, and play
is easy to store

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What’s Included in This Printable Set

9 winter-themed cookie choices
Cookies in cookie pans
3 hot chocolate choices
Snowflake Café signs
Open & Closed signs
Price list/menu
Daily Special sign
Two styles of order forms (perfect for different ages and skill levels)
Store labels for organizing your café setup
Play money
Recipe suggestion form
40 printables in all

Whether you’re creating a seasonal dramatic play center, adding fresh excitement to your winter curriculum, or introducing a fun winter activity at home, the Snowflake Café printable set is a delightful way to keep children learning and playing throughout the season.

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More Winter Activities

Winter Playdough Recipe

Blue Candy Cane Science Experiment

Igloo Camping Pretend Play

Polar Bear Small World

Painting Ice and Snow

Winter Wreath Paper Plate Craft

Ice Drum Musical Instruments

Frozen-Inspired Shadow Box

Scissor Skill Snow Cutting Activities

Spray Paint Snowflake Silhouette

Kid’s Winter Wonderland Play Tablescape

Snowman Sensory Play

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Sunflower Seed Sensory Bin Activities

November 21, 2020 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

Three sunflower seed sensory bins. Dinosaurs, sunflowers, pumpkins, sand toys, and loose parts are highlights of the bins.

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A sunflower seed sensory bin is a fantastic way for early learners to explore these edible seeds, and use them in play. The seed base is a natural fit for fall and pumpkin-themed accessories. Here are three sensory bin suggestions brimming with these dramatic seeds.

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Sunflower And Sand Toy Bin

Sand toys, sunflowers, and fall-themed gems in a sunflower seed sensory bin.

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Add shovels. pails, sieves, watering cans, leaf gems, round fall-themed gems, and craft sunflowers in different sizes and colors to a sunflower seed base. This bin works well as a spring gardening center. Or extend summer into fall by offering the bin to your little learners in September.

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Pumpkin And Sunflower Seed Sensory Bin

Pumpkin-themed loose parts and sunflowers shine in this sunflower seed sensory bin. Spiders and mice add fun to the tray.

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Rubber mice and spider gems liven up this pumpkin and sunflower seed sensory bin. Other items in this sure to delight bin are:

craft sunflowers in different sizes and colors
pumpkin gems
pumpkin ice cubes
leaf gems
orange, black, and clear gems
black and orange cups
pumpkin-shaped dish
pumpkin cookie cutters
orange spoon

Fall-themed tinker tray with sunflowers, mice, spiders, gems, and pumpkin loose parts.

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Dinosaur And Sunflower Sensory Bin

Dinosaurs and sunflowers may seem like an unlikely combination. The inspiration for this bin came from viewing Lewis Lavoie’s stunning works of art entitled “Sunflower Beast”, and “Sunflower Bed.”

Easy to put together sunflower seed sensory bin with sunflowers and dinosaurs.

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The bin was introduced to my preschoolers a few years back. I made sure there was a stegosaurus or two in the mix. The children had a blast playing with dinosaurs, sunflowers, and loose parts in the seedy base. Your early learners would embrace this bin too.

Below, a volcanic mountain adds interest to the play.

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Note: For these sunflower seed sensory bin activities, I used striped sunflower seeds. I purchased two 7.5 lb bags at a local pet store, which filled a large sensory table. For a smaller bin, one 7.5 lb bag would be enough.

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Which bin is your favorite? Share below in a comment.

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Thanksgiving Printables

Shop Thanksgiving printables in my Etsy shop “Skills N Smiles“:

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Flower Theme Activities

November 8, 2020 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

Flower theme art, sensory, and pretend play activities. Early learners will love the winged creatures (dragons, unicorns, and an angel) featured in the theme.

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Last spring I picked up two voluminous begonia plants that had large wing-shaped leaves. One plant was called “dragon wing begonia,” and the other was a double pink-flowered variety with similar wing-like leaves. The vigorous plants inspired dragon and flower theme activities for early learners, and angel and unicorn play.

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Nonstop Pink Begonia Flower Activities

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Nonstop pink begonia still blooming after Canadian Thanksgiving Day. — Nonstop Pink Begonia

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Begonia “Through The Seasons” Sensory Tray

Around Canadian Thanksgiving Day, the nonstop pink begonia was still blooming profusely. At the same time collecting pine cones was on my list of tasks to do. By the end of the week, snow was in the forecast. Our area didn’t get snow, but many places in our province did. The mingling of elements of summer, fall, and winter in that week was the inspiration for this sensory tray for little learners. Included are flower leaves and blooms, pine cones, and cotton ball snow. Rocks, stone eggs, and a show-stopping dragon round out the tray.

Three seasons sensory tub with pine cones, begonia leaves and flowers, and cotton ball snow. A dragon and stone eggs complete the tub

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Flower Angel

Puffy begonia flowers and leaves arranged in an angel craft are a pretty way to highlight the blooms of the plant. The angel can be a table decoration and conversation piece during snack or lunchtime.

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Flower angel made with nonstop pink begonia blooms.

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Mud Kitchen Sensory Table

A piece of cardboard with stove elements drawn on with a black permanent felt pen and crayon works magnificently for flower-themed “indoor mud kitchen” play. Set it out on a table with flowers, leaves, spoons, and a mortar and pestle. Or offer the blooms and accessories outdoors for kitchen play.

Flower-themed indoor mud kitchen. Nonstop pink begonia leaves and flowers, mortar and pestle, pots and pans, and a cardboard stove top complete the play invitation. — Cardboard Stove Top

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Flower Petals And Playdough

Offer the leaves and flower petals with scented playdough for your little ones to use.

Coconut and strawberry playdough with nonstop pink begonia leaves and flower petals.

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Unicorn Water Play

Float begonia leaves and flowers in turquoise colored water in a tub filled with rubber unicorns and pink and white loose parts. The items in this inviting sensory tub are:

begonia leaves and flowers
ice cube flowers and fish
shells
pearl gems
buttons
rubber unicorns

Unicorn and nonstop pink begonia sensory tub. Gem pearls, fish and flower ice cubes, shells, and buttons are part of the water tub.

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Related: Sunflower Unicorn

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Dragon Wing Begonia Flower Activities

Dragon wing begonia plant. — Dragon Wing Begonia

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When I saw the plant named “dragon wing begonia,” I knew it was destined for early childhood play. Here are two inviting activities this plant can shine in.

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Castle-Themed Sensory Tray

Begonia leaves and flowers, rocks, and stone eggs are included in this flower-inspired tray for little ones. A dragon, king, and princess figurine offer serious play potential in the tray.

Castle-themed sensory bin with a dragon, king, princess, and dragon wing begonia leaves and flowers.

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Cardboard Dragon Craft

Dragon wing begonia leaves are the wings in this painted cardboard dragon craft. Flowers accent the mythical creature.

Cardboard dragon with dragon wing begonia wings and flower accents.

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Note:

Begonia plants are not poisonous to people. But the plants are toxic to dogs and cats and should be kept in pots out of their reach.

Children require supervision while participating in the activities shown in this post. When play is finished, they should wash their hands with soap and water.

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These flower theme activities work well when frost threatens and the growing season is over. They allow early learners to explore the low-maintenance, show-stopping plants with loose parts in art and sensory play.

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New Year’s Sensory Tray

January 14, 2020 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

This New Year’s sensory tray shines bright with gold and silver accents. Two watch heads are the highlight of the bin, and children treasure finding them.

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New Year's sensory tray with gold and silver pieces. Two watch heads are the highlights. This tray offers math, language and sensory opportunities for learning.

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The collection of pieces below is all gold with a few silver parts added in. The musical instruments are black, only because the gold finish wore off in previous play! The alphabet letters are cut from “Happy New Year” necklaces.

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Gold and silver supplies to use in a New Year's sensory tray. Opportunity to sort and count pieces and make sets. Invitation to spell the wish "Happy New Year."

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The base ingredient is parboiled rice, as its yellow hue complements the gold tone of the bin. The ingredients are showcased in a silver metal square-shaped tray.

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A square-shaped silver metal tray is perfect for showcasing the gold and silver pieces in this New Year's sensory play center.

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Items In The New Year’s Sensory Tray:

parboiled rice
antique watch heads set to 12:00
tube confetti
confetti party hats and stars
sequins
foil pieces
tiny balls
beads
pom poms
bead garland strips
tinsel
bells
musical instruments
alphabet letters that spell the wish “Happy New Year”
star dessert cups
spoons

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Safari Toob musical instruments would be a stand out in this tray.

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Activities To Extend Exploration

Your early learner will enjoy sifting through the sensory tray and filling the star dessert cups with treasures. A few prompts will extend learning opportunities.

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New Year's sensory tray with gold and silver pieces. Two antique watch heads are the highlights. This tray offers math, language and sensory opportunities for learning.

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Search And Find Challenges

Challenge your child to…

find letter H, Y, etc.
collect five pom poms
shake bells in cupped hands to make music
search for watch heads
find three silver stars and two gold stars
add musical instruments to a star dessert cup

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Spelling “Happy New Year”

Cut necklaces into “HAPPY NEW YEAR” sections. Ask your little one to find the letters that make up the New Year’s greeting.

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New Year's sensory tray with an invitation to spell the wish "Happy New Year". This tray offers sensory, math and language opportunities for learning.

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The gold and silver pieces are not precious metals, but this New Year’s sensory tray has a rich feel that is sure to be inviting.

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To create a similar tray, keep an eye out for baubles to recycle from Christmas events or gift openings. As an alternative, you can put together a bright, colorful bin as seen at rubberbootsandelfshoes.

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More New Year’s Activities

New Year’s Eve Sensory Tray

New Year’s All Gold Sensory Activity

New Year’s Crafts

New Year’s Countdown Activities

New Year’s Art and Math Activities

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Chinese New Year Noodle Bin

January 10, 2020 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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Sensory bins are always welcomed by little learners, and this Chinese New Year noodle bin promises to be a hit. And with this bin, you’ll be ready to celebrate the next Chinese New Year, which is on January 25.

To add interest, the noodle-based bin features the Chinese zodiac animal for the year 2020 – a rat! The rodent is a metal rat and is associated with qualities such as industriousness, quick wit, persistence, and kindness.

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Year Of The Pig Sensory Bin (Chinese New Year 2019)

Year Of The Ox Sensory Tray (Chinese New Year 2021)

Year Of The Tiger Chickpea Bin (Chinese New Year 2022)

Year Of The Rabbit Sensory Bin (Chinese New Year 2023)

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Supplies In The Chinese New Year Noodle Bin

This bright and cheery Chinese New Year noodle bin has a "year of the rat" theme. Your little learners will love to explore it.

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The bin used is a square silver metal tray. The noodle base is a package of German egg pasta, selected for its gold color.

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Loose parts for a Chinese New Year noodle bin with a "year of the rat" theme.

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In addition to the noodles, the following loose parts are in the bin:

rat figurine
gold play coins
coin purse
red buttons
pink and white cherry blossoms
silver and red balls cut from garland
bead garland strips
silver bells
red tassels cut from hanging decorations
gold miniature present, bow, and drum decorations

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The Year Of The Rat Noodle Bin

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The German egg pasta is layered in the bottom of the “year of the rat” bin.

Red and gold are common Chinese New Year colors, so there are plenty of loose parts in both hues.

The official metal rat color is white. My rat is grey, as that’s the color I have handy. The grey metal tray and silver bells and beads are intended to match it.

Since rats do not have a good reputation, little learners may be hesitant to play with the toy rodent. So flowers and tassels are intentionally added to the bin to soften up the look and feel. Tassels are a staple in Chinese New Year decorations, and the flowers represent the coming of spring.

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For more early learning play ideas, follow me on Pinterest.

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