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| SENSORY ACTIVITIES SUBMITTED BY BRENDA ALWARD MARCH 29, 2007 SENSORY TABLE The list of items for a sensory table is almost endless. These are a few ideas of items that can be used for exploration in the table. REMEMBER TO KEEP THE AGES OF CHILDREN IN MIND WHEN CHOOSING MATERIALS! Snow Sand (wet and dry) Cotton Balls Mud Cereal Oatmeal (cooked and uncooked) Potato Flakes Noodles (cooked and uncooked) Colored Water Colored Rice Salt Flour Leaves Bubbles Frozen peas and carrots Colored Salt Mashed Potatoes Seeds Small Colored Rocks Sand Seashells Packing Peanuts Feathers Tomato Soup Indian Corn Gourds Dirt Flour & Water Shaving Cream Whipped Cream Dry Beans Sugar Pudding Jello Coffee Grounds (Dried) Fabric Swatches It is vital to provide children with a variety of tools to use when exploring sensory items. Here are a few essentials: Measuring Cups/Spoons Whisk Large, medium, small “scoopers” Tongs Spatula Eye dropper Plastic containers/bowls in a variety of sizes Small, medium, large ladles Serving/mixing spoons in a variety and materials Colanders in a variety of sizes Funnels in a variety of sizes Tweezers Basic sand/water toys Squeeze Bottles Basters Plastic Tubing Cake pans Muffin Tins Shovels Sponges Whiskbroom and dustpan Rotary Egg Beater SENSORY TABLE TIPS The sensory table should be on a tile floor, if possible. Place a mat under the table if it must be on a carpet. Provide shirts/smocks to cover children’s clothing. Place near noisier activities. Limit the number of children at the table at one time and provide supervision. CHOOSE MATERIALS THAT ARE DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE FOR THE CHILDREN YOU ARE WORKING WITH!!!!! |
| SENSORY TABLE ACTIVITIES SUBMITTED BY BRENDA ALWARD MARCH 29, 2007 SENSORY TABLE ACTIVITIES *Create a planting station in the sensory table *Add bubble solution. Give children straws and let them blow bubbles. *Provide rocks, water and scrub brushes. Children can “scrub rocks.” *Rock Jug Place a variety of holes in a plastic jug. Fill the jug with large rocks. Do not cover. Place in the sensory table elevated on blocks. Place water in the table up to the bottom of the jug. Children must scoop water out of the table and dump in the jar. The trick: fill the jar! *Place dirt and rubber fishing worms in table. Give children tongs and/or tweezers to pick up the worms. *Place large pumpkins in the table. Provide golf tees, small hammers and safety goggles. Children can pound the golf tees into the pumpkin. *Place a pumpkin in the sensory table and allow children to clean out the insides. Cook all seeds saved. Keep the “gooey” stuff and add that to the sensory table the next day to explore. *Place a variety of leather and animal furs in table. Children can compare their textures. With adult help, they can create a list of words to describe the objects. *Slice a variety of potatoes into the table. Use idaho, golden potatoes, red potatoes, white potatoes. Leave the skins on. Children can examine the variety of skins and also discover what happens to the potatoes after they have been exposed to the air for a period of time. *Place colored Easter grass in the table, with a variety of mini erasers in the shape of eggs, bunnies, chicks, etc. (Can also use the Easter assortment of SweetTarts.) Provide tongs and tweezers for the children to collect the items with. *Add toy fish, sharks, boats, etc. to the water table. *Laminate fish in a variety of colors. Attach a paper clip to each one. Create a small fishing pole with a magnet on the end. Provide buckets. Children can use the fishing pole to catch their fish and place them in the bucket. *Provide potatoes, carrots, turnips, and other vegetables. Provide a scrub brush and water. Children can scrub the vegetables. *Place toy desert creatures in a table filled with sand. Can also add toy dinosaurs. *Place egg cartons upside down in table and tape down. Provide space toys. Can also add rocks. *Place moon (lava) rocks in the table with a variety of scoopers and buckets. *Place a variety of balls in the table along with buckets and scoopers. *Soapy water, wash cloths and dolls. Children can bathe the baby. (Can also do with plastic animals and children can wash the animals. *Objects to test sinking or floating. *Create a swamp. Place sand in the bottom of the table. Add water with green food coloring. Provide snakes, lizards, etc. for play. *Place water in table with a variety of bars of soap. Be sure to include Ivory soap. Children can discover which sink or float and explore the variety of scents. *Place water and ice cubes in the table. *Place a variety of sponges in the table of water. Children can explore the amount of water each sponge can absorb. For added fun, cut the sponges into fun shapes. *Sockdozer Fill a large athletic sock with 1 ½ cups of sand. Tie the top securely. Children can use the sock to drag through the sand and create ditches, designs, etc. *Place Parmesan Cheese containers in the sensory table with both sand and water. Children can compare the pouring rates between the different size openings. |
| SENSORY BOTTLE ACTIVITIES SUBMITTED BY BRENDA ALWARD MARCH 29, 2007 SENSORY BOTTLES COLOR BOTTLE: Fill bottles with water, baby oil and food coloring. Vary the height of the colors and children can seriate the bottles. SOUND BOTTLE: Fill bottles with a variety of objects. Children can shake and hear a variety of sounds. DIRT BOTTLES: Place various types of soil in a bottle for children to examine. TORNADO BOTTLE: Place water, dish soap and a marble in a bottle. Children shake and create a “tornado.” MAGNET BOTTLE: Place items that can and cannot be attracted by a magnet. Children use a magnet on the outside of the bottle to attract objects. MAGNET BOTTLE: Fill a bottle with salt and objects attracted by magnets. Children run a magnet along the outside of the bottle and discover what is hidden inside. DENSITY BOTTLE: Fill with hair gel and marbles. Fill with shampoo and marbles RUST BOTTLE: Fill with screws, nails, etc. and water. Discover what happens. Record how long it takes for changes to occur. DESERT BOTTLE: File with sand and a variety of desert creatures. As children turn and/or shake the bottle, they can see the creatures who live in a desert. MUD BOTTLE: Place dirt in the bottom and fill half of the bottle with water. Shake the bottle and see what happens. Use a variety of soil types and/or pea gravel. SAND BOTTLE: Place sand in the bottom and add water. Shake the bottle and discover what happens. GLITTER BOTTLE: Fill a bottle half full with colored glitter and add water to the top. Shake! RELAXATION BOTTLE: Add a small package of colored or holiday confetti to the bottom of a bottle. Fill the bottle with Karo syrup. MAGNETIC SHAVINGS: Fill a bottle with magnetic shavings. GLOW IN THE DARK BOTTLE: Place small glow in the dark items in bottle. Children can put bottle under a box and look through a hole to discover what happens. They can also take it into a darkened room. FLOAT OR SINK BOTTLE: Place a variety of objects in the bottle, some that will sink and some that will float. Fill with water. As children shake, they will discover what happens. RAIN BOTTLE: Place toothpicks and uncooked rice in a bottle. Leave about ½ inch at the top. As you turn the bottle, the rice falls through the toothpicks, sounding like rain. MOLD BOTTLE: Add a piece of food, such as bread, to the bottle of the bottle. Seal the lid. Observe what happens. Photograph the stages that occur. SPROUT BOTTLE: Place a piece of wet sponge on the bottom of the bottle. Sprinkle with fast growing seeds, such as grass seed. Seel and watch! UNSEEN SOUND BOTTLES: Place a variety of objects in the bottles. Place each bottle in a sock. Children shake and guess what is in each. CLAY BOTTLE: Add clay, ( from the yard, not craft clay). Fill with water. Discover what happens when you shake the bottle. POTPOURRI BOTTLE: Cut a small hole in the side of the bottle and cover with netting. Fill the bottle with a variety of scents. |
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