How to Make a Holiday Cranberry Sensory Bin for Kids
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Have you ever wondered how to make a cranberry sensory bin?
Creating a sensory bin is a fantastic way to engage young learners in hands-on, exploratory play that appeals to their senses.
Our cranberry sensory bin will provide your child with lots of creative sensory play. With just cranberries and water, as well as a few additional items, your child will be able to play with this fun sensory bin for hours.
This activity is ideal for toddlers, preschoolers, and elementary-aged children as well.
Here’s how you can make your own cranberry-themed water sensory bin, plus some ideas for play and learning!
Remember to only use items that your child is old enough or mature enough to use safely.
Click here for our favorite cranberry sensory bin supplies! 😍
What You’ll Need for Your Cranberry Sensory Bin
This DIY cranberry sensory and water bin is simple to set up, and you probably already have most of the materials at home.
One-stop shop for all the supplies here!
- Scoops
- Funnels
- Tweezers
- Cups
- Bowls
- Cranberries
- Water
- Sensory bin
- These make a fun addition!
- Sensory bin (this is the one we use – the quality is incredible)
Why Sensory Play Matters: Benefits of a Cranberry Sensory Bin
Sensory bins offer so many developmental benefits for children of all ages. Here’s how your child will benefit from this fun cranberry sensory activity:
- Fine Motor Skills: Scooping, pouring, and handling small objects help kids build fine motor skills, which are essential for writing and other hand-related tasks.
- Sensory Exploration: The texture of the cranberries, combined with the soothing water, provides a rich sensory experience, helping children calm down and focus.
- Imaginative Play: Toddlers and preschoolers can use the bin to pretend they’re harvesting cranberries, which encourages creative thinking and role-play.
- Math and Science Concepts: Measuring and pouring cranberries and water introduces concepts like volume, capacity, and cause-and-effect in a fun, hands-on way.
- Calming Effects: The repetitive action of scooping and pouring has a calming effect, making this a great sensory play activity for stress relief.
Learn about Cranberries!
Extension Ideas: Make Your Sensory Play Last Longer
If your little ones are loving their cranberry sensory bin, here are some fun ways to keep the activity going:
- Orange Hunt: Hide our apple match game cards in the rice and have your child find them. This is great for practicing letter recognition.
- Counting Cranberries: Practice counting them as they scoop them into bowls.
- Pretend Cranberry Shop: Set up a pretend play scenario where your child can make cranberry pies and have a cafe, practicing social skills and basic math concepts like counting and currency.
You may also enjoy these activities from fellow bloggers:
- Pumpkin jokes for kids
- Kindness certificates
- Thanksgiving and Turkeys Notebooking Pages
- Classic science
- Nature Craft for Fall
- Dinosaur Ice Excavation Sensory Activity
Sensory Bin Cleanup Tips
Sensory play can get a bit messy, but here’s a pro tip: Lay a large sheet or plastic tablecloth underneath the bin to catch any stray water.
Read Cranberry Themed Books
Add in some cranberry-themed books for even more fun! Check out these books!
Rice sensory bin ideas
- Dinosaur rice sensory bin
- Fall rice sensory bin
- Pumpkin pie rice sensory bin
- More coming soon!
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