A sensory table is more than just a spot for your children to have fun. It can be a great tool for helping with child development. It can help with fine motor skills, science, math and more. This kind of open ended play is important for growing minds, just as important as Letters and Numbers. Playing with others helps to also add language and social skills while they learn to share tools and express themselves while seeing others wants and goals.
There are so many options when it comes to sensory tables, and they do not have to be tables, they do not have to gotten from school stores. They can simply be house hold items in a bin or box. Colored rice is just one option for such sensory play.
I love bins as I can close them up and keep them safe for another day of play!
Items Used:
20lbs or cheap white rice (Uncooked)
7 colors of washable kids paint. (non-toxic of course)
7 bowls and spoons
Plastic Bin
Spare Kitchen Items for Play
Separate the raw rice into the 7 bowls.
Add as much paint as needed to color all the rice.
Mix. Mix. Mix.
We left ours out over night to dry because we planned it that way, I am sure it dried sooner though.
Our oldest daughter helped with this project and using two books we added the rice to the bin that we used as our sensory table. Nice and deep in the hopes some of the rice would stay in the bin. LOL
It came out beautifully and both our preschooler and kindergartner jumped up and down with excitement when they saw it and learned it was for them to play with.
We gave them extra kitchen items like measuring cups and containers to do with as they pleased. Even our tween loved to play with it.
They loved to feel the rice falling on their hands.
Even our 18 month old loved this bin.
We included small things to hide in it.
