Easy Penguin Sensory Bin
Are you learning about the Antarctic? These favorite flightless birds are always fun to study, who doesn’t love penguins? Visit the dollar store to create your own penguin sensory bin.
Try to create the penguins’ natural environment with snow and ice using cotton balls and gravel. These materials can be found at a low cost from your local dollar store which makes it a huge win for mom’s wallet.
You’ll love these other penguin activities for kids.
Depending on how often the kids play with it, you can recycle the materials and use them for different sensory bins.
Sensory bins are such a great way to use their fine motor skills as well as their thinking and logic skills, too. And since they’re super simple to make, you can easily make this up in a very short amount of time.
The kids will play with this for hours and be using their time to be creative as well. You’ll love being able to watch their curiosity and want to learn to grow.
This post may contain affiliate links meaning I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. Read my disclosure policy here.
Easy Penguin Sensory Bin
Give your kids an invitation to pretend play by creating your own sensory bins. Even my 4th grader will join in on his sister’s sensory bins because they love the feel of the materials. It can provide a wonderful amount of imaginative play for your kids.
Will it make a mess? Certainly but lay everything out on a tablecloth or old bedsheet and it makes clean up a breeze. This is the best way to not stress out about the mess that is going to happen. Because you know it’s going to. Just lay out a sheet and let the kids start to play. You can then take the sheet outside and shake it off so that the excess is getting right out the door.
I have a rule in our house that even if it makes a mess, as long as they’re engaged and learning, it’s fine. Messes can easily be cleaned up without issues.
Be sure to check out my Easy Polar Bear Sensory Bin for another fun sensory activity for the kids.
Don’t want to make your own sensory bin? Grab one of these ready to go penguin sensory bins from Etsy.
Recommended Penguin Books for Kids
Bring penguins alive in your favorite story about how they’re living in the Antarctic or in the city or find amazing penguin facts that your kids will love.
Combining the look of reading with fun topics is a super simple way to stretch the learning lesson. If you’re having the kids do a winter sensory bin theme, pairing that up with some fun penguin books is a great idea.
These are just a few of the books that we love but it was so hard to narrow it down. I love that we can find hundreds of books in the topic that we’re studying or playing with and the kids love it, too! There are so many cute penguin books and these are just the start.
Make sure that you encourage the kids to sit down and read at least once per day. If you can have them read for 60 minutes daily, that would be awesome! The key to getting them to read more is to have fun books that they’re going to want to read. Some of these have really cute pictures in them too which is helpful in drawing in their attention.
If You Were a Penguin
How Do Penguins Play?PenguinsMr. Popper’s Penguins
Penguin Sensory Bin Supplies
All you’ll need to get started is listed below. Just grab the simple list of supplies and make your very own penguin sensory bin.
- Plastic penguins
- Mini white rocks/gravel
- Mini blue rocks/gravel
- Cotton balls
- Plastic bin
We found all the ingredients we used here for just $1 each at our local dollar store. This is an extremely affordable activity to do.
When choosing a bin, find one with a snap on the lid so you can easily close the sensory bin up when not in use.
Sensory Bin Directions
Using a sensory bin really doesn’t have any rules or directions but there are a few things that you should keep in mind. This can help to give you guidance and the kids as well if they have any questions or needs.
Create snow and icebergs by using cotton balls
Simply bunch them up and then stack them up to create some height.
Create your snow, ice, and water
Begin by filling the plastic bin ½ full with the white gravel. These will create the base in your sensory bin. Create “waterways” by adding the blue gravel. Just sprinkle the blue in as you wish to create streams and ocean water.
Add your plastic penguins or other arctic animals
You can place these where you wish! Penguins like to eat fish and krill if you had seals or killer whales those are the penguins natural predators.
Your penguin sensory bin can now be used and enjoyed. Simply cover when not in use and it will store nicely.
Enjoy your easy penguin sensory bin whenever you want to visit the Antarctic and explore the world of penguins.
Let the kids play with this and use their imagination. Have them talk about the sensory bin and you just might find that they create a whole scene in it as well. Using their imagination is key for playing with this sensory bin because they can make the penguins walk around, hop around, or even pretend and have them talk and have characters, too.
The great thing about sensory play is that it leaves it wide open for the kids to play with it as they want. They can talk for the penguins, move the penguins, play with the penguins, or just create a story and have the penguins be a part of it.
The options are endless with sensory play fun!
More Penguin Activities
Don’t miss out on these other super fun penguin activities and ideas. The kids will have a blast being able to do even more fun penguin learning. The following options are great.
Penguin Rock Painting for Kids
Penguin Water Bead Sensory Bin by 3 Dinosaurs
Water Bottle Penguin Craft by Homeschool Preschool
