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St. Patrick's Day Sensory Bin

Mar 2, 201410,407 views
For the toddler
St.Patrick's Day Activities: Sensory bin Save
sensory bin fine motor practice Save
sensory bin for kids Save
sensory bin for infants Save
sensory playtime Save
sensory bin for babies Save

by TurkeyMom in For the toddler

Ages1–5 yrs
Prep20 min
Activity30 min
Leveleasy
MessMedium
Works for1:1 · Small group · Class

Fill a deep bin with green mung beans, yellow split peas, green and yellow Cheerios, gold ribbon and play coins, and tape paper rings of different sizes to the sides. Toddlers scoop, transfer and pinch, while preschoolers take on drop-through-the-ring challenges and build a pot of gold.

⚠️ Safety first

  • Dried beans, split peas, cereal rings and play coins are choking hazards. Toddlers who still mouth things need an adult right beside them the whole time.
  • Watch that kids don't put beans or peas in their noses or ears.
  • Ribbon and any bead strands are a strangulation risk. Supervise closely and remove them from the bin when play is over.
  • Not a snack: the cereal is mixed with raw dried beans, so don't let kids eat anything from the bin.
  • Sweep up spilled beans promptly so no one slips, and so little ones don't pick them up later unsupervised.

Before the kids arrive

  • Cut paper strips and tape them into rounds of different sizes.
  • Stick the paper rounds to the sides of the bin to create challenges.

Steps

  1. Choose a bin deep enough that the beans don't spill out with every scoop.

  2. Tape paper circles of different sizes to the sides of the bin.

  3. Add the beans, peas, Cheerios, ribbon and coins, then give it a gentle mix.

  4. Add the spoons, cups, measuring cups and basting brush.

  5. Hide the gold coins and let your tot find the hidden treasure.

  6. Drop beans through the smallest circle and into the cups. Count how many tries it takes to fill a cup.

  7. Collect the gold coins into a cup to make a pot of gold, and lay the ribbons into a golden rainbow.

  8. Scoop, dump, sweep and transfer the beans and peas between spoons.

  9. Pick up the spilled beans one at a time with a pincer grasp.

Tips

  • The best part of the activity is play that entertains two age groups at the same time. Ours was made for my almost-toddler at 15 months and turned out just as fun for my preschooler.from the author
  • While counting the tries needed to fill a cup, we also talked about volume and comparisons with the older child.from the author
  • Don't worry about the beans that spill out. They made good practice for her pincer grip and gross motor skills. :-)from the author
  • My 4-year-old came up with her own pot of gold and golden rainbow, so there's the surprise element of imaginative play.from the author
  • Sensory bins are easy to set up and provide ample entertainment and learning skills.from the author
  • Readers singled out the paper shapes on the sides as a simple way to add challenge to the bin.from readers

Make it your own

  • Turn it into a treasure hunt by hiding the gold coins under the beans.
  • Count the gold coins as you fill each pot.
  • Pair it with the shamrock printing or paper plate rainbow crafts from the blog.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · March 2014
St.Patrick's Day Activities: Sensory bin
This St. Patrick's Day inspired sensory bin was created for my almost toddler (at 15 months) and turned out just as fun for my preschooler.
1 / 8

St. Patrick's Day Sensory Bin: the original post

So much has been said about the importance of sensory play for young children. A wonderful post by Not Just Cute explains the importance of stimulating senses through play. Today’s post is a St.Patrick’s Day inspired sensory bin created for my almost toddler ( at 15 months) which turned out just as fun for my preschooler. Incorporating play that can simultaneously entertain the two age groups is the best part of the activity.

  • Green Grams
  • Yellow Split peas
  • Green and Yellow Cheerios
  • Golden ribbon
  • Gold play coins
  • Cups
  • Strips of paper made into rounds of different sizes
  • Spoons, measuring cups and basting brush

Choose a bin that is a deep enough to hold the lentils so they don’t spill out with every action. Create different sizes of circles from paper strips and stick them to the sides to create challenges.

sensory bin - set up The set up: Add the beans, peas and all the fun stuff into the bin and give it a gentle mix. Add the spoons, cups and brushes. Your set up is now complete and the kids are ready to play.

St.Patrick's day activities Challenge the preschooler to drop the beans through the smallest circle and into the cups. See how many tries it takes to fill the cup. Hide the coins and let your tot find the hidden treasure.

sensory bin fine motor practice My 4 yr old collected the golden coins to create her pot of gold and also used the ribbons to make a simple golden rainbow. So there’s the surprise element of Imaginative play.

sensory bin for kids My 15 month old enjoyed all the different sensory elements in the bin. Loved to transfer the beans and peas between the spoons. Used fine motor practice to scoop, dump and sweep the beans in the bin.

sensory bin for infants The beans that spilled out made good practice on her pincer grip and gross motor :-)

sensory bin for babies Sensory bins are easy to set up and provide ample entertainment and learning skills.

sensory playtime A recap of all the play ideas and activities my kids enjoyed in this sensory bin 1. I encouraged my child to drop the beans into the paper shapes attached ( younger child) 2. Picking up the spilled beans using pincer grasp (Younger child) 3. Scooping, counting and transferring (Younger child) 4. We counted the number of tries needed to fill the cup. We also talked about volume and comparisons (older child) 5. We also counted and filled our pots with gold coins. (Older child) Other St. Patrick’s Day themed activities we have shared.

crafts for st patricks day

st patrick s day crafts for kids

Thanks for reading

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What readers say

💬 4 comments

🎉 Worked for us

Paper-shape challenges add a fun twist

A fellow blogger liked how the paper circles taped to the sides turn a simple bin into a challenge.

“I love how you added some challenge to the bin with the addition of the attached paper shapes!”
Katie @ Gift of Curiosity, Mar 2013

🎉 Worked for us

Challenges make it more difficult

Another reader praised the little challenges for stretching kids a bit further, calling it a great sensory activity.

“I love the little challenges you added to make it more difficult. What a great sensory activity!”
Tulip, Mar 2013

Tried it?

Reviewed before it appears. No links, and please no children's names.

Read all 4 comments

  1. Amie @ Triple T Mum · Mar 2013

    Hi :) Thanks for linking up to the Weekly Kid's Co-Op. I just love your photos, they are so vibrant and clear! I have chosen your post as a feature on Triple T Mum's Kid's Co-Op Showcase on Thursday and I have pinned your post to the Weekly Kid's Co-Op Board.

  2. Genny Upton (@NLieuOPreschool) · Mar 2013

    Thanks for linking up to Tuesday Tots! I'm featuring your post this week on In Lieu of Preschool: Please feel free to stop by and grab a featured button! Off to pin your post. Thanks again for sharing! :) ~Genny

  3. Katie @ Gift of Curiosity · Mar 2013

    I love how you added some challenge to the bin with the addition of the attached paper shapes!

  4. Tulip · Mar 2013

    Those pictures are beautiful. I love the little challenges you added to make it more difficult. What a great sensory activity!

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