Fall Sensory Bin

It’s not just a sensory bin.. it’s a FALL sensory bin! You’ll find a few different ideas below on how to make this happen in your home- get excited! Becauseeee it’s fall y’all! 

Sensory bins can be a wee bit messy, but the amazing play is totally worth it! Just stay cool and keep the vacuum handy. Sandboxes are fun, but not many of us are brave enough to lug a bucket of sand indoors- I’m with you! I’m not afraid of messes, but I don’t want sand everywhere. 

Sometimes you need something as engaging and stimulating as a sandbox, but the weather is inclement. Or you’ve got a fussy newborn baby and no shade in the yard. Or you need to put away laundry but your kids aren’t old enough to play outside by themselves. Or the neighbor kids are listening to profane music very loudly right next door…

ANYWAYS. Lots of good reasons you might need to play inside! That’s why sensory bins are so handy dandy!

Fall Sensory Bin Ideas

Step aside dried rice! We started with oats as the base for a fall sensory bin. Oats are inexpensive and easy to clean up. The texture makes for a fun, different play experience!

Some other things you could try in your fall sensory bin:

• popping corn kernels (unpopped)
• dry beans
• dry pasta 
• candy corn?!

We added in some fall touches we had available around the house– including candy corn (up to you if you let the kids eat it or not!), plastic pumpkins, and a few types of fall leaves. You can easily find interesting things to add to it from your yard! And a quick trip to the dollar store is enough to result in plenty of fun fall or Halloween themed options too!

Additional sensory bin add-ins might include:

• small dried corn stocks
• mini hay bales
• small squash or gourds
• candy pumpkins (the ones that taste like candy corn)

If you want to add scent, you could sprinkle in some cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice into the base to add another layer of sensory experience! 

Containers and Utensils In A Fall Sensory Bin

Spoons and containers are an important part of playing with a sensory bin! There is plenty of play to be done by just grabbing whatever material is in the sensory bin and handling it with bare hands. But eventually, kids like to progress to moving that material around!

I recommend you supply them with a variety of spoons, small bowls, and containers. We have a set of plastic test tubes with lids that our kids LOVE pouring stuff inside of!

Another fun fall sensory bin addition is a cookie dough scoop. It’s the perfect size for candy corn! After your child plays for awhile, fine tune those motor skills by asking you child to complete some tasks- for example, you could ask them to sift through and find all of the candy corn and scoop it into a separate container.

Sensory Bin Benefits

These fall sensory bin ideas are super simple for creating a sensory activity for any child. It’s easy to prep and fun for kids to play with, but what about the developmental benefits?

• Sensory bins can help promote calmness and focus while still giving the child a hands on experience.
• Children will explore all senses: sight, touch, sounds, smell and some could be tasted as well.
• Sensory bins are excellent for open play. Given the opportunity, they can use all of the scoops, bowls and such to really explore and play however they want to!
• Sensory bins can be a good place to introduce teamwork and cooperative play as well– there’s usually enough of everything that it’s easy to share! 
  

You Might Also Enjoy:

• 13 Fall Toddler Sensory Activities
• 30 Easy Fall Snacks and Halloween Treats
• Mess Free Fall Crafts for Kids

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