Sensory play for babies and toddlers

24 ideas

• Where's that sound?2 min · you need a sheet of paper or a set of keys, kept in your hand · It's a gentle way to notice your baby listening and turning toward sounds.
• Gentle arm and leg strokes4 min · you need a towel or blanket, warm hands · Calm touch and soft words help your baby feel safe and learn the names of their body.
• Leaf shadows5 min · you need a blanket, a shady tree · Moving light and shadow give your baby something calm and interesting to watch.
• Soft and smooth3 min · you need a soft washcloth, a smooth spoon, held by you · Different textures, each with a word, help your baby start to make sense of what they feel.
• Reach for the scarf4 min · you need a light scarf or dish towel · It gives your baby a reason to reach, swipe and grab on purpose.
• Pat the pot3 min · you need a pot or a plastic bowl · Your baby finds out that their hands can make a sound happen.
• Splash at bath time5 min · you need your baby's usual bath · Bath time turns into a game of cause and effect: kick, and the water moves.
• Kicks on a blanket outside5 min · you need a blanket, a shady spot · A change of place gives your baby new things to see, hear and feel while they kick.
• Bang the pots5 min · you need two or three pots, a wooden spoon · Your baby finds out that different pots make different sounds.
• Basket of kitchen treasures8 min · you need a basket or box, a wooden spoon, a whisk, a big lid, measuring cups, a soft scarf · Real things have weights, sounds and textures that babies love to explore.
• Feel the grass5 min · you need a blanket, a patch of grass · New textures underfoot are a whole new thing to explore.
• Pour in the bath5 min · you need a plastic cup, your baby's usual bath · Watching water pour and drip is a simple science lesson for a baby.
• Feel and say walk5 min · nothing to get · Each new texture comes with a word, building your baby's first vocabulary.
• Fill and dump in the bath5 min · you need plastic cups or a colander, your baby's usual bath · Full and empty, in and out: the bath is a great place to learn them.
• Touch the tree8 min · nothing to get · Outdoor textures are new and interesting, and each one comes with a word.
• Scoop and pour in the dirt10 min · you need a patch of dirt or sand, old cups and spoons · Scooping and pouring take careful hands, and dirt is endlessly interesting.
• Paint with water8 min · you need a paintbrush, a cup of water · Painting with water is all the fun of painting with nothing to clean up.
• Wash the baby doll10 min · you need a plastic doll or toy, a dish tub with a little water, a washcloth · Taking care of a doll lets toddlers act out the care they get every day.
• Puddle stomp10 min · you need rain boots or old shoes · Stomping in a puddle is pure joy, and a rainy day turns into an adventure.
• Sponge squeeze8 min · you need two bowls, a big kitchen sponge, a towel · Squeezing builds strong hands, and moving the water across is a job with a clear end.
• Sink or float?10 min · you need a tub or big bowl of water, a spoon, a plastic lid, a sponge, a big wooden block, a towel · Guessing and then trying is your child's first science experiment.
• Pouring station10 min · you need a small pitcher or measuring cup, a few cups, a tray or towel, a little water · Pouring without spilling takes control, and it's a real skill they'll use at the table.
• Guess the shaker10 min · you need three or four containers with lids, dry rice, dry beans, a few coins · Guessing by sound alone means listening carefully and describing what you hear.
• Foil boat challenge15 min · you need kitchen foil, a tub or sink with a little water, spoons or plastic blocks for cargo · Testing and changing a design is engineering, done in a tub.