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Do you ever wonder, what are the best materials for a Sensory Bin? Sensory Bins are amazing for child development. They help kids with stimulate the five senses in a controlled safe environment. They allow children to experiment with new objects and these Sensory Bins make learning new topics fun and engaging. I have compiled a list of the best items to put together to create an awesome Sensory Bin.
Start with a Sensory Base
What do you want to do with your Sensory Bin. Do you want a jungle theme, safari, Arctic, etc. There are so many different things you can do! Friendly reminder, when making sensory bins take into account the age of your child. Sensory Bins are choking hazards!
- Water
- Sand
- Kinetic Sand
- Chocolate pudding
- Cheerios
- Shaving Cream
- Non-cooked Pasta Shells
- Rice
- Colorful Rice
- Cocoa Pebbles
- Any type of dry cereal
- Jello
- Slime
- Cotton Balls
- Water Beads
- Aquarium Gravel
- Water Beads
- Playdough
Pick your Sensory Theme
No one says you NEED a theme, but Sensory Bins are really fun that way. They can also be super fun if you just throw random things together. It’s completely your choice for your Sensory Bin!
- Arctic
- Seasons (Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring)
- Rainforest
- Safari
- Desert
- Fairy Garden
- Jurassic
- Garden
- Soft things
- Construction
- Birds
- Leaf theme
- Sink or Float theme
- Flower Theme
- Backyard theme
- Squishy things
- Farm
- Hard things
- Alphabet
- Ocean
- Pick a Color
- Rock theme
- Book Theme
- Bug theme
- Outer Space
- Rainbow
- Pick a Letter
- Pirate
- Holiday theme
- Aquarium
- Soap and Bubble theme
- Nature
Pick your Sensory Items
Sensory Items can be anything you can hold or touch. For a budget friendly option, you can buy so many great items at the dollar store or thrifts stores. Other options for Sensory items are ordering from Amazon in bulk. I’ve attached a link on the page for a great bulk option on Amazon!
Alot of these items are choking hazards, so please be careful with your children.
- Rocks
- Toy cars and trucks
- Grass
- Plastic flowers
- Dinosaurs
- Sponges
- Bubbles
- Seashells
- Feathers
- PomPoms
- Crafting eyes
- Pipe Cleaners
- Glass stones/marbles
- Yarn
- Spoons
- Paint brushes
- Snow
- Sticks
- Round Objects
- Strips of Paper
- Tubes of Random Animals
- Sorting Materials
Take Away
Creating opportunities for our children to explore new textures and new items is important for their health, and sensory bins can do this for them. Kids need a controlled, safe environment to try new things and as a parent we need to allow our kids to make a mess every so often. I know that it can be hard to let go of our adult ways of keeping tidy and put together, but sensory bins are great for everyone.
Thanks for reading, Cupcakes!
Check out my TikTok creating a Dinosaur Sensory Bin!!!
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4 responses to “What are the Best Materials for Creating a Sensory Bin?”
Sensory bins are so much fun! I made one for my classroom with cotton balls and marbles and my preschoolers loved it!
That’s so awesome! I hope you can use these ideas for your classroom! 🙂
Thank you for this! My son would love this Dino themed one. Sensory bins are such a great way to keep the kiddos occupied, especially since it’s been so hot out and time outside is limited.
My kids love the dino one and it was pretty fun setting it up! 🙂