Must Try Non Food Sensory Bin Fillers - Little Bins for Little Hands (2024)

FAQs

Must Try Non Food Sensory Bin Fillers - Little Bins for Little Hands? ›

Play sand, beach sand, colored craft sand, and moldable make a great nonfood sensory bin filler that you can use repeatedly. Make DIY Kinetic Sand! Use a combination of craft sand and aquarium rocks or just craft sand to create an ocean sensory bin.

Fill the bin or bowl with dry pasta, rice or beans. Add spoons, scoops, toys and whatever else you have on hand into the bin. Play!

Learning through sensory play is descriptive and provides many opportunities for children to learn new concepts and vocabulary words in a hands-on way. For example, sensory bin activities can help teach concepts like “empty and full”, “up and down”, “sort and pour”, or “above and below”.

Sensory bins provide children with the opportunity to explore and learn through hands-on tactile play that engages their senses. These bins encourage and support various types of development and are great activities to have in your home. Sensory bins can be themed for holidays, seasons and academic skills.

Sensory bins provide opportunities for your child to explore multiple senses, including sight, sound, touch, and smell. They'll enjoy running their hands through the filler material and watching what happens as they pour it out. Many materials you can put in a sensory bin provide a wonderful tactile sensation.

Use visual supports to help your learners remember the rules for the sensory bins (use hands only, put on lid when finished, complete seek and find, raise hand if you need help, keep the materials in the box.) Use a visual timer to help your students transition when the time comes.

At the toddler stage, from ages 2 to 3, kids are typically ready to engage with more toys. A great place to start are sensory bins—literally, a bin or box filled with various materials meant to stimulate the senses.

Sensory play encourages learning through exploration, curiosity, problem solving and creativity. It helps to build nerve connections in the brain and encourages the development of language and motor skills.

Sensory bins promote awareness of physics & how the world works. Kids can learn so much about how the world works by experimenting with the sensory bin filler.

Sensory bins are a great way to allow children to explore multiple senses at the same time in a fun way. This includes touch, smell, sight, and even sound. Learning to engage with and stimulate several senses at once in a healthy way is incredibly beneficial and loads of fun!

Are sensory bins cognitive? ›

Sensory Bins, bags and trays offer so much to small children and whilst playing with them, they are learning so much. Cognitive development. A sensory bin which includes hide and seek activities or filling and pouring helps to develop their cognitive skills for learning.

Allow Them To Explore

Another benefit of sensory bins for children with autism is that they allow kids to explore their senses and creativity. Your child can stimulate multiple senses at once while running their hands through the filler materials and playing with the various toys.

The basics of using a sensory bin

I always like to set down a vinyl tablecloth first and then set the plastic bin on top. It helps contain any mess that might spill out. You could also do sensory play outside if you are worried about a mess.

One benefit of dry ingredients is the ability to put a lid on the bin and store it away for repeated play experiences. While wet sensory materials can provide for fun, mushy, and messy sensory opportunities, they should only be used a few times, storing them in the fridge for a few days before discarding them.

“I love sensory play for young kids,” Soles says. “Sensory play helps children with ADHD regulate their sensory input and improve focus.” Sensory activities are those that engage your child's smell, sight, taste, touch, or hearing.

I often pick a base color for my bins so I keep the colored items sorted this way and an get to them easily for bins or even other activities regarding colors. In the white drawers, I keep extra random supplies for the bins and for other Tot Tray activities.

SETTING UP WATER BEADS:

Water beads take some time to prepare, so you'll have to plan ahead before using them. (This is the perfect time to experiment with dry fills!) About 4 teaspoons will fill the entire bin about halfway, which is perfect for two little hands and seek & find objects.

Poly Pellets or Stuffing Beads

With the size and texture of rice, these stuffing beads are a good alternative for a non food sensory bin filler.