Bat Sensory Bin

Picture this: a cauldron filled with excitement, a night sky filled with no stars, and a troop of playful bats soaring through the darkness. No, it’s not the opening scene of a spooky movie – it’s the Bat Sensory Bin, a thrilling and educational activity that’s perfect for little explorers. This delightful project combines sensory play, crafting, and learning, all in one bewitching package. So, gather your little ones, and let’s dive into the world of sensory adventure with a touch of bat-inspired magic.

WILL YOU SET UP THIS BAT SENSORY BIN FOR YOUR CHILD? PIN IT FOR LATER!

Materials You’ll Need

• White rice
• Vinegar
• Purple and black food coloring
• Bow-tie pasta
• Wax paper
• Baking sheet
• Large ziplock bags
• Sensory bin
• Cauldron mini buckets
• Scoopers
• Spoons

Creating the Night Sky: Purple Rice

1. First, let’s transform your ordinary white rice into a mesmerizing night sky. Place a generous amount of white rice in a large ziplock bag.
2. In a separate container, mix a few drops of purple food coloring with vinegar until you achieve your desired shade of purple.
3. Pour this mixture into the bag with the rice.
4. Seal the bag securely and let your little ones squish and shake it until the rice is evenly coated with the vibrant purple color.
5. Cover a baking sheet with wax paper. Spread the rice out on a baking sheet to dry. This will be the night backdrop for our bat adventure.

Crafting Bat Companions

While your purple rice dries, it’s time to create some winged friends.

1. Take your bow-tie pasta and, following the same process, dye it black using black food coloring and vinegar in a ziplock bag.
2. Spread the pasta out to dry on a separate baking sheet. These pasta bats will add a delightful tactile element to our sensory bin.

Putting the Bat Sensory Bin Together

Once your purple rice and black bow-tie pasta are dry and ready, it’s time to assemble the Bat Sensory Bin for your child’s delight. Follow these simple steps:

1. Choose Your Sensory Bin: Select a suitable sensory bin or container. It should have high sides to contain the materials and make cleanup easier. Place it on a flat, stable surface, like a table or the floor.
2. Layer the Purple Rice: Start by creating the base of your sensory bin. Carefully pour the purple rice into the bin, spreading it evenly to cover the bottom. This purple rice serves as the night sky backdrop for our bat adventure.
3. Add the Black Pasta Bats: Now, it’s time to introduce the bat characters to the scene. Scatter the black bow-tie pasta bats on top of the purple rice. You can space them out evenly or let them fly freely.
4. Incorporate Cauldrons and Spoons: To enhance the sensory experience, place the mini cauldron buckets, scoopers and spoons in the sensory bin. These tools encourage fine motor skill development and make it easier for your child to interact with the rice and pasta.
5. Set the Stage: For an added touch of magic, consider placing the sensory bin on a dark-colored cloth or fabric to create a contrasting backdrop that makes the purple rice and black bats stand out even more.
6. Engage and Explore: Invite your child to dive into the Bat Sensory Bin. Encourage them to use the scoopers and spoons to scoop, pour, and interact with the rice and pasta. Watch as they embark on their bat-themed adventures, searching for bats, sorting them, or creating imaginative stories.
7. Supervise and Enjoy: While your child explores the sensory bin, be sure to supervise their play, especially if they are younger. Engage in conversations about the bats, the night sky, and any stories they create. This not only enhances their playtime but also fosters language development.

Tips for Success

• Ensure the rice and pasta are completely dry before using them in the sensory bin to prevent color transfer onto little hands.
• Use a sensory bin with high sides to contain the mess and make cleanup easier.
• Supervise closely if you have little ones who might be tempted to taste the colored rice or pasta.

Skills Learned During This Activity

• Sensory exploration: Children will engage their sense of touch and sight while exploring the different textures and colors in the sensory bin.
• Fine motor skills: Scooping and pouring the rice and pasta with scoopers and spoons will help improve hand-eye coordination.
• Creativity: Encourage your little ones to come up with their own bat-themed stories or scenarios during play.

Ways to Play

1. Bat Hunt: Hide the black bow-tie pasta bats in the purple rice night sky and let your child go on a bat hunt. They can use the scoopers and spoons to find and collect the bats.
2. Counting Activity: Challenge your child to count the bats. You can incorporate numbered flashcards or playing cards or UNO cards.
3. Storytelling: Encourage imaginative play by having your child create stories or scenes using the bats and night sky as props. This sparks creativity and language development.

Remember that the Bat Sensory Bin is a versatile activity, and you can adapt it based on your child’s age and interests. Whether they are hunting for bats, sorting them, or spinning imaginative tales, this sensory experience is sure to captivate their senses and spark their creativity.

Age Suitability

This activity is good for toddlers aged children 2 years old and up with adult assistance.

Mess Level

The mess level for this activity is medium.

Difficulty to Create 

Easy.

Toddler and Preschooler Curriculums, Books & TV Show!

Play2Learn Toddler & Preschool Programs for Curious Toddlers

There is no limit to your toddler’s energy and curiosity. That energy and curiosity although a joy can be challenging at times. Their interest in just about everything around them is what makes them great learners. One and two year olds can soak up so much just from their senses!

But as a teacher or parent that thirst for learning can be exhausting. That is why I created this toddler and preschooler program. To help you get the most out of this time with your curious toddler without having to come up with creative ways to play and interact with them.

Play2Learn for Toddlers includes 20 Units for toddlers. Each 2-week toddler unit has 20 super easy to set up and engaging activities for toddlers 18 months to 3 years.

Play2Learn Preschool which includes 20 Units for preschoolers. Each 2-week preschoolers unit has 20 unique and easy to set up and engaging activities for preschoolers 3 years to 5 years. That’s over 800 learning activities for your toddler and preschooler at your fingertips! So many ideas you and your child will never be bored again! 

These toddler and preschool lesson plans and activities will definitely keep you and your toddler and preschooler busy playing and learning!

Click here for more information: Play2Learn

Designed for toddlers 18 months and up.

Book: Exciting Sensory Bins for Curious Kids

Did you know I wrote a book of sensory bins? Click here for more information Exciting Sensory Bin for Curious Kids. Or grab your copy at Amazon. 

Boring afternoons are made exciting with awesome animal-based bins, like Salty Shark Bay or Yarn Farm. Pretend play bins like Birthday Cake Sensory Play or Bubble Tea Party encourage creativity and imagination. And your kids will have so much fun they won’t even know they’re getting smarter with STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) activities like Sink or Float Soup, Magnetic Letter Hunt or Ice Cream Scoop and Count.

Designed for toddlers 18 months and up.

Book: Super STEAM Activity Book for Kids

Learning all about science, technology, engineering, art, and math sets kids up for scholastic success―and it can be so much fun! Watch kids enjoy building STEAM skills as they color friendly fish, help water find its way to tree roots, solve math problems with mazes, and more. 

Find out more and grab your copy here.

Designed for preschoolers 3 years old and up.

Book: Big Book of Riddles for Kids

Riddle me this: What’s an exciting way to practice critical thinking while having a blast? The Big Riddle Book for Kids, of course! From hilarious puns to tough brain teasers, kids can build problem-solving skills with hundreds of riddles tha. t show them how to think outside the box.

• 350 riddles for kids—Have hours of fun with riddles, puns and jokes, and math and logic puzzles that’ll get their wheels turning!
• Level up their skills—Riddles get trickier as kids progress through the book, challenging them as they get better at solving puzzles!
• Double-check their work—Kids can check their answers in the back of the book with a handy answer key.

Help children expand their minds while having fun with this puzzle book for kids!

Designed for kids ages 6 years old and up.

TV Show: Curious Crafting

I’m so excited to share my crafting TV show Curious Crafting which launched in July 2022 on TVOkids and TVOkids YouTube! Season 2 aired in August 2023! My show was also nominated in 2023 for Best Live Action Preschool Series by the Youth Media Alliance Awards of Excellence.

Curious Crafting Season 1 is also now airing in Australia on ABC! Watch it here!

Set in the ultimate crafting space, Curious Crafting is a short form pre-school age series about the joy of making crafts. I lead a rotating cast of adorable little preschoolers (including my own) making magic out of common household objects.

In each episode we transform recycled items into magical crafts like a milk carton school bus, paper bag puppet or cotton pad turtle. The crafters learn and laugh their way through each activity while demonstrating what their young imaginations can create. 

Curious Crafting shares the adventure and joy of making art with takeaway lessons for creating crafts at home.

This show designed for toddlers and preschoolers 2.5 years old and up. 

The Best Sensory Play Kits for Kids

Play is at the core of learning during the early years and it can take many forms. One of the most important of these is sensory play because it engages all of a child’s senses (taste, touch, smell, sight and hearing) and has a enoumous positive impact on brain development.

Our Sensory Play Kits are some fun and easy ways to keep your child engaged while at the same time using sensory play to nurture their mind!

Shop our ready made play kits here.

Designed for preschoolers 3 years old and up.

WILL YOU SET UP THIS BAT SENSORY BIN FOR YOUR CHILD? PIN IT FOR LATER!