Sensory "table"

Lillian and Nicole love it when we get out the sensory tub.  At school I had a $300 dollar sensory table, but of course here at home we don't have such luxuries so I created my own tubs!  I use two different kinds depending on what we are going to put in it.  During the Fall I used a long, heavy duty card board box that my sons train table came in.  For this activity we got out our clear plastic tub.  You need one shallow enough that the kids can reach in easily, but with high enough sides the items don't come out as they sift through the treasure.  Today we put "rocks" in the table.  I don't just have rocks in it though, there are also marbles, flower deco's they put in vases, etc.  Some are round (good opportunity to teach the word sphere!), and others are round on one side but flat on the bottom.  It goes with out saying that they are all different sizes and, of course, the colors vary.  You can pick all of these, even the rocks, up at dollar stores so they can be obtained pretty cheaply.  When we get done with a sensory item I store it in a clear container; plastic shoe boxes work well.  Of course if you have young children who put items in their mouths you'll want to use larger items in your sensory tub until they out grow that stage.  There are an endless number of possibilities for your tub: bows, ribbon, dry pasta, dried beans, and buttons are just a few ideas you might want to try.  Don't hesitate to put an item in; what seems simple to adults children may spend hours exploring!  Lastly, you might notice in the picture that I have provided the kids with measuring spoons, measuring cups, a bowl, a spoon, etc to use in the tub too.  This helps them learn about volume and size and can help them develop large motor skills (filling the cups and dumping them into other containers).