Learning Center | Kaplan Early Learning Company

Holiday Sensory Bin Activity | Kaplan Early Learning Company

Written by Staff Writer | Dec 6, 2018 5:00:00 AM

The Holiday Sensory Bin is an enchanting activity that promotes sensory play and helps you celebrate the holiday season with your students. Filled with fake snow, jingle bells, pine branches, and more, children will be delighted by the various sensory experiences this festive bin provides!

How do children engage in sensory play with the Holiday Sensory Bin?

Children will love playing with the various materials included in the bin. They can explore their sense of touch by feeling the texture of the snow and pine branches, and they can shake the jingle bells in the bin for an auditory element. Adding a few drops of peppermint oil gives children an added opportunity to explore their sense of smell.

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Required Materials:

1Start with Snow

Make a large batch of fake snow with the Super Snow Classroom Kit or your own materials. Add the snow to the activity bin.

2Add Additional Materials

Add jingle bells, pine branches, and other materials for children to explore in the bin. We also included some red squares from the Shapes and Colors Discovery Set in our sensory bin.

3 Add Peppermint Oil

Once you have all of your materials in the bin, put a few drops of peppermint essential oil in the mixture to make it smell like peppermints for a fun sensory treat.

4Explore!

Encourage children to put their hands in the fake snow, shake the jingle bells, feel the texture of the pine branches, and more. Ask them what they smell, feel, and see in the sensory bin. Try giving children magnetic wands to move over the sensory bin. The magnets will collect all of the jingle bells out of the bin, adding another exciting element to the activity.

 

Introduce the Holiday Sensory Bin in your classroom during the holiday season to provide children with an engaging activity that helps get them excited for the holidays and gives them wonderful opportunities for sensory play. Be sure to browse our list of sensory-related products, resources, and professional development for additional ideas.