What are sensory bins, and what are they used for? As a school-based occupational therapist, I use sensory bins regularly in therapy. A sensory bin is generally a container of material(s) for a child to explore. While they are frequently shoe-box sized, sensory bins can come in all shapes and sizes. You could do a “sensory bin” activity in a smaller container like a cereal bowl, or in something you could sit in, like a kiddie pool. Really, the possibilities are endless!
Sensory bins are a fantastic tool to promote learning through play. They are a fun way to explore with all the senses and develop in areas including gross motor (things like shoulder and arm strength, standing endurance), fine motor (finger isolation, grasp development, pincer grasp development, hand strength), bilateral coordination (using both hands together), eye-hand coordination, body awareness, and creativity, as well as work on skills like matching, sorting, and counting. Some therapists use sensory bins as a fun and playful way to introduce foods of various colors, textures, and smells.
I use sensory bins with some students to help promote sensory processing and self-regulation skills. Sensory bins can be used to help desensitize students who are tactilely defensive, or overly sensitive to tactile (touch) input. Some sensory mediums work well as a calming tool, like feeling sand pour over your hand or firmly pressing into play-doh. Students can learn that certain mediums or tasks help them to calm or focus, which is a great tool for promoting self-regulation skills.
Variations for various ages and skills: Does the child have trouble touching the substance? Add tools like spoons, tongs, funnels, and cups so they can interact with the materials without their hands touching it. Try putting wet substances in a ziploc bag first so that they can squeeze it without it sticking to their hands. Incorporate activities with the sensory bins for higher level skills like hiding puzzle pieces, beads, or small objects in the bin to sort, match, count, spell, or put together.
Get other senses involved! Try adding a kid-safe scent to your sensory medium. Color the medium with bright colors (food coloring, ink, paint). Try putting your feet in the bin. Incorporate the bin as part of an obstacle course or physical activity, for instance, have the child crab-walk a distance to the bin to get a seashell from the sand bin, then crab-walk back to the pail to add the shell.
Encourage exploration: Avoid using words with negative connotations. Instead of saying, “Ew, this is disgusting!” try “oh, this feels cold and wet!” Ask questions like: “How does that feel on your hands?” “Is it soft or rough?” “How does it sound when you pour it into that bowl?” “What would happen if we put some in this funnel?” “What does it smell like?” For unsure kids, you may have to demonstrate playing in the bin to show them it’s safe and fun.
Prepare for messes: Spills are part of learning! While the bin does help keep some things contained, there are often some messes. Have the students who are able help clean up afterwards. There are some students who I only see outside with sensory bins. Consider changing locations of the activity to reduce clean-up time.
Tips for keeping the cost down: There’s so much you can buy for sensory bins, but it can get costly if you buy everything online. Many materials can be collected from outside. Make a list of what you may be looking for, and keep an eye out (or ask your friends to) for those things during different seasons or when you hike/travel. I’m also a huge fan of post-holiday clearance. I’ve bought packs of spiderwebs after Halloween for 10 cents! Think of people you know and what they do for a living. Could someone have leftover sand or stone from a project or job? Does someone have access to corn or leftover pumpkins? Shop smart, ask around, and make some really cool bins in the process.
The disclaimers: Here’s all the fine print. Always supervise the students/children when using sensory bins. If your student/child still mouths items or has a diagnosis like PICA, your sensory bin options are going to be limited. Watch out for choking hazards. Only pick materials that will be safe for your particular student/child. Take into consideration allergies and sensitivities. Let the child direct the play – don’t force them to touch textures. As with all health and wellness information, always consult your professional healthcare providers before beginning any new treatment or program. This information presented is for educational purposes only and is not intended to provide or replace medical advice.
I had a few brainstorming sessions and came up with a pretty hefty list of sensory bin ideas for you. You can get super creative with sensory bins. Though the materials have been listed separately, they can be combined in so many ways for loads of great activities. For instance, toothpicks and marshmallows, pipe cleaners and play-doh, or soap and water.
I’ve made two lists for you, one organized by letter of the alphabet and the other by category. For a nice printable PDF version, click the teal download button below.
Sensory Bin Ideas from A to Z:
- A: acorns, apples, applesauce, artichokes, animals (small plastic ones, but real animals are definitely a sensory experience)
- B: beans, blocks, balls, balloons, bubbles, bubble wrap, buckwheat, birdseed, beads, buttons, bells, bones
- C: crayons, cattails, corn (dried or cooked), corn meal, corn husks and silk, corn syrup, cotton balls, cocoa shell mulch, chalk, coffee grounds, coffee beans, coins (real or pretend), clay, clothespins, cards, cereal (so many options), cheerios, clovers, confetti, crepe paper
- D: dandelions, dirt, dice, dinosaurs
- E: eyeballs, Easter eggs, Easter grass, erasers
- F: feathers, flour, flowers (real or faux), fabric, fur, foam soap, floam, foam, fasteners, flashlights/penlights/light up things
- G: grass (real or faux), golf tees, gems, gourds, garland, glow in the dark stuff (with a black light is really cool)
- H: hay, hearts, hose, hammer, horns, hats, ham
- I: Ice, icing, instruments, ivory soap, insects (pretend ones)
- J: jelly beans, jello, jacks, jars
- K: keys, kinetic sand, koosh balls, key chains
- L: leaves, lima beans, linguine, legos, lemons, limes, lentils, licorice, locks
- M: magnets, moon sand, macaroni, marbles, mud, marshmallows, moss
- N: nuts & bolts, nuts (that you eat), navy beans
- O: oobleck (cornstarch & water), oil, oatmeal
- P: pasta, pompoms, paint, paper, paper mache, peas, pipe cleaners, popcorn kernels, popcorn, plastic pellets, packing peanuts, pumpkin insides, pudding, Popsicle sticks, play-doh, putty, potatoes, pvc/pipe pieces, petals, puzzle pieces, pine cones
- Q: quinoa, q-tips
- R: rice, ribbon, rocks, rubber bands, raisins
- S: sand, spaghetti, straws, shaving cream, slime, snow (real or fake), sunflower seeds, salt, seashells, snaps, socks, sandpaper, suction cups, string, salt dough, sequins, sponges, soap
- T: tissue paper, tape measures, tinsel, tinfoil, tops, toilet paper, toilet paper tubes, tools, toothpicks
- U: utensils, umbrellas (tiny toothpick ones)
- V: vinegar, velum, velvet
- W: water, water beads, whipped cream, windup toys, whistles, washers, webs (check Halloween clearance), wikki stix/wax sticks
- X: x’s, xerox paper
- Y: yarn, yams, yogurt
- Z: zippers, ziploc bags, ziti, zucchini
Sensory Bin Ideas by Category:
Craft Materials: beads, buttons, bells, crayons, chalk, clay, confetti, crepe paper, Easter eggs, Easter grass, erasers, feathers, faux flowers, fabric, fur, foam, floam, gems, hearts, pompoms, paint, paper, paper mache, pipe cleaners, plastic pellets, Popsicle sticks, petals, ribbon, fake snow, sequins, string, tissue paper, vellum, velvet, wikki stix/wax sticks, x’s, yarn
Outdoor materials: acorns, birdseed, cattails, corn husks and silk, cocoa shell mulch, clovers, dandelions, dirt, flowers, grass, gourds, hay, leaves, mud, moss, pumpkin insides, petals, pine cones, rocks, sand, snow, seashells
Household items: bubble wrap, corn syrup, cotton balls, coins (real or pretend), clothespins, cards, dice, foam soap, flashlights, fasteners, golf tees, garland, hose/tubing, hats, ivory soap, jars, keys, key chains, locks, nuts & bolts, packing peanuts, pvc/pipe pieces, Q-tips, rubber bands, straws, shaving cream, sponges, string, suction cups, snaps, socks, sandpaper, soap, tape measures, tinsel, tinfoil, toilet paper, toilet paper tubes, tools, toothpicks, utensils, tiny umbrellas, vinegar, washers, xerox paper, zippers, ziploc bags
Food: apples, applesauce, artichokes, beans, buckwheat, corn (dried or cooked), corn meal, corn husks and silk, corn starch & water, coffee grounds, coffee beans, cereal (so many options), cheerios, flour, ham, ice, icing, jelly beans, jello, jelly, lima beans, linguine, lemons, limes, lentils, licorice, macaroni, marshmallows, nuts, navy beans, oatmeal, oil, pasta, peas, popcorn kernels, popcorn, pudding, potatoes, quinoa, rice, raisins, spaghetti, sunflower seeds/seeds, salt, water, whipped cream, yams, yogurt, ziti, zucchini
Toys: animals, blocks, balls, balloons, bubbles, bones, dinosaurs, eyeballs, glow-in-the-dark stuff, hammers, horns, instruments, insects, jacks, kinetic sand, koosh balls, legos, magnets, marbles, moon sand, play-doh, putty, pipe pieces (connecting toys), old puzzle pieces, slime, salt dough, suction cups, tops, water beads, windup toys, whistles, webs (halloween)
Now, what questions do you have for me? Did I miss a really great sensory bin medium? Share your favorite sensory bins with me in the comments.
