More Sensory Ideas & Recipes

rainbow rice

• White rice – brown rice works too but isn’t as vibrant

• Food coloring

• White vinegar

• Resealable plastic bags or containers

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For each color that you want, you will follow a 1:1 ratio: 1 cup of rice to 1 Tablespoon of vinegar.

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1. Add in several squirts of food coloring and start shaking. 

2. Pour the now-colored rice onto a cookie sheet.

Repeat for the other colors.

3. Let dry on cookie sheet for 1 hour.

rainbow spaghetti

• Spaghetti

• Ziplock bags

• Food coloring

• Water

• Colander

• Container/ tub for the rainbow spaghetti

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1. Cook the spaghetti following the instructions on the pack. Drain and rinse the spaghetti.

2. Put the spaghetti into ziplock bags. You will need one zip lock bag per color. Add food coloring and a few drops of water to each bag.

3. Zip the ziplock bags up and mix the spaghetti and food coloring together. Squash it, squeeze it, throw it in the air, just keep moving the color around the bag until all of the spaghetti is totally covered. Repeat with each color.

Once all of the spaghetti is covered in food coloring put each color into your colander and rinse the spaghetti with cold water.

Put the rainbow colored spaghetti into a container or tub and it is ready to be played with.

sensory bin fillers

• rice 

• dry pasta noodles 

• cooked pasta 

• water

• soapy water or soap foam

• ice

• snow

• sand

• dirt

• mud

• rocks

• kinetic sand

• sticks

• grass

• leaves (real or plastic)

• cotton balls

• shredded paper

• feathers

• foam or foam pieces

• pompoms

• beads

• corks

• sponges

• Epsom salts

• confetti

• buttons

• packing peanuts

• soap shavings

• shaving cream

• water beads

• glass beads

• seashells

• beans 

• ribbon curls

• Easter grass

• lotion or gel

• baby oil

• building blocks (wooden, foam, or plastic)

• fabric scraps

• costume jewelry

• tinsel

• silk or plastic flowers

• silk or plastic flower petals

• streamers

• dry beans

• play coins

• toys (especially things like small animals and vehicles)

sensory bin tools

• funnels

• tubes

• empty toilet paper or paper towel rolls

• scoops

• containers

• spoons

• cups

• bowls

• tweezers

• spatulas

• tongs

• sand shovels

• measuring cups

• measuring spoons

• scissors

• chop sticks

• strainer

• sifter

• whisk

• forks

• cookie cutters

• rolling pins

• potato mashers

• garlic press

• ladle

• ice cream scoop or cookie dough scoop

• scale

• baster

• squirt bottle

• cupcake liners

• ice cube trays or silicone moulds

• sponges

• watering can

More filler ideas

• aquarium rocks

• moss

• cotton batting

• playdough

• slime

• jello

• straws (whole or cut into pieces)

• flour

• cornmeal

• dry oatmeal 

• popcorn kernels 

• seeds

• birdseed

• pine cones

• dry chickpeas 

• lentils 

• marbles

• magnets

• number shapes

• letter shapes

• paper clips

• bottle caps

• cut up pool noodles

• lids

• dry cereal

• egg shells

• puzzle pieces

• salt 

• coffee beans or coffee grinds

• fruits or vegetables (real or plastic)

• glitter gravel

• styrofoam balls

• bubble wrap

• pudding

• edible water beads

• oobleck