Preschoolers are so inquisitive. They notice the smallest of details. They are interested, eager to learn and they LOVE hands on activities that allow them to explore.
Sensory Bins are always a fun way to introduce new topics and to develop interests. They are a great talking point. You can really learn a lot about your children by taking a step back and watching the way they use the materials and how they interact and play with their peers.
We have created a handful of them now and look forward to making lots more over the coming year. 

Today we have Cindy joining us sharing her latest theme they have been enjoying in her setting. Pizza and Pasta. Welcome Cindy....

Hello, my name is Cindy O’Brien. I live in beautiful Northeast Pennsylvania USA.  I have a home daycare with 6 children. We have all been enjoying a Pizza and Pasta theme over the last week. It's one that we do each year and is always a firm favourite with the children. Here are some of the highlights from all the fun we have been having.

Sensory Play is so valuable for young children and we try to do as much of it as we can, this week we explored a custard filled sensory bin that was great for stimulating all 5 senses:

Sight - The was the custard looked. They way it fell off the utensils. How it changed the look of the containers.
Smell - The scent of custard was sweet and inviting.
Taste - The taste was delicious.
Hearing - The sounds that came from the thick oozy custard as it was being stirred and poured.
Touch -  The way it felt between our fingers.

You will need:
Several packets/tins of custard
A container
A variety of Utensils
Bowls
Jugs
















Begin by preparing the custard. If like us you choose the powdered custard that needs to be made with HOT water you will need to wait until the temperature is suitable for your little one, before making it available to play.



Consider the invitation for play and make it appealing, add a variety of different bowls, jugs and utensils that will allow hands on exploring.













Once the custard has cooled it is now time for hands on exploring.

Always consider allergies before allowing sensory play with food items.

Little N particularly enjoyed filling and emptying during this sensory play. She used her hands, spoons, bowls and jugs to fill containers before emptying them again.













She enjoyed putting her hands into the custard and swishing them around. She would then examine her hands.

Take into consideration:

-I would highly recommend that you cover your flooring as this activity can get rather messy.
-Wear aprons if you prefer however old clothes are great too and give children more freedom and flexibility during the activity.
-I found the custard stained the clothing after they had been washed so keep this in mind.

We had great fun and look forward to doing custard play again very soon!


You may also like:

Hi! I'm Louise from Building Blocks and Acorns. I'm delighted to be guest-posting for Amy! A lot of my blog is focused on sensory and natural play with my two year old boy (who is lovingly known as 'Darth' on my blog, thanks to my husband's love of all things Star-Wars!) I'm a primary school teacher and nursery worker, so I try to bring that educational focus to what I do (whilst making it fun!)



There is nothing more fun than having a good old celebration! Although I have designed this as a 'New Year' rummage tub, it really can be for any kind of celebration and adapted as you like!



It actually began looking quite different from this... it all started with some left over gift bows from Christmas (along with some used ones from the presents!)



'Darth' loved how shiny it was and enjoyed making a crunching noise as he rummaged around in the tub (a washing up bowl!) But it wasn't exciting or stimulating enough... so I had a look around the house for what else we had left over after Christmas and New Year!



Star table confetti! 'Darth' was really excited when he spotted this and promptly started counting the stars he held in his hand. The best kind of rummage tubs have different elements to them, to encourage size ordering, colour sorting, counting etc. with lots of sensory fun, too...



Out came the gold and silver streamers and balloons! 'Gold' and 'silver' are new words into 'Darth's' vocabulary, so it was great that he had so many different items to practise saying these new words. He was mesmerised as the gold streamers came out in one giant glistening coil and promptly added this to the (now VERY full) rummage tub!



Then his attention turned to the balloons I had placed into the tub. I blew one up for him, but that wasn't good enough... he wanted more. He gave it a good go, before asking for help! (aah, bless!) But with the balloons, streamers, bows and star table confetti, the tub was bursting and he seemed to forget about the different items hiding beneath the streamers. So I decided to make everything more visible for him, and enhance the look of the tub. I got an under-bed storage container and separated the items out, next to each other:


To enhance the streamers, I added sparkly pipe cleaners and gold beads (I used these in my firework play dough guest post on The Train Driver's Wife,) along with some glow in the dark moon and star shapes. This gave 'Darth' plenty of opportunities for using his language skills as well as using his sorting skills. He started separating the gold and the silver items!



To make the gift bows more exciting, I added coloured pipe cleaners for more visual effect, colour sorting (and that language about colour again!) He also loved trying to make new shapes and firework shapes, remembering what he had done with the firework play dough. I love how bright and inviting this section looks!



Finally, I wanted to make the star table confetti more visible by having its own space. I also used clear glass beads to add some more shine and shimmer. Darth loved putting stars underneath these and looking through the glass beds. LOTS of counting, colour and object sorting happened at this end of the sensory tub... before it was all mixed together, of course! I also used part of a roll of craft 'foil' with star shapes in it, that we picked up from our local scrap store before Christmas.



Overall, I was really pleased with the effect and how much 'Darth' enjoyed using it. Next time you have a celebration, see what child-safe items you have left and try making a rummage tub of your own! Remember to keep the items more visible and distinguished, so that your child can make sense of what is there and will be able to guide his or her own play and exploration. I hope that you have enjoyed taking a look at our rummage tub and I'd love you to follow me on Facebook to keep up with future posts, too! Louise x

You may also like:



Follow Amy Louise's board Learning and Exploring Through Play on Pinterest.