Although young children frequently engage in sensory play naturally and it has been around since the beginning of time, many parents are unsure of what it is and how it can help their child.
Describe sensory play.
Play that engages and stimulates a child’s senses is known as sensory play. Given that those senses are the easiest to access, sensory play frequently concentrates on enhancing touch, sight, and hearing.
Children interact with the world primarily through their five senses when they are very young (touching, tasting, hearing, seeing, and smelling). Of course, as your boisterous toddler will show you, they also interact with the environment through balance and movement.
These senses are how they understand the environment around them and the numerous new things they encounter every day. As kids get older, they start to play and through play, they learn more about the world.
What advantages does sensory play have?
A child experiences rapid growth and development during the first three years of life. Children are able to absorb a vast amount of information as they develop from infants to toddlers to preschoolers and turn it into practical knowledge about the outside world.
Children have a special chance to interact with the world through sensory play in a way that fosters their growth and development. Active play like this promotes the development of brain connections that enable ever-more complex ideas and tasks.
Play promotes social engagement and peer engagement as well as linguistic development, cognitive growth, fine and gross motor skill development, and peer involvement. A youngster who may be feeling agitated or nervous might be greatly calmed by sensory play, which is recognized for fostering awareness in kids.
Playing with your senses fosters exploration and the development of abstract thought and observational abilities. You probably want to start now that you are aware of all the advantages. Then where?
Play ideas and exercises for the senses.
It can be challenging for parents to come up with ideas to encourage their children to participate in sensory activities, despite the fact that sensory play can be a lot of fun and is sometimes pretty simple to put up. See the collection of straightforward sensory play suggestions below for your young child or preschooler will love!
Make a sensory collection.
When you make a sensory bin for kids to explore, it’s easy for them to enjoy sensory play.
To make a sensory bin, just fill a small tub or container with items from nature that have varied textures for your child to explore, such as leaves, rocks, and sand.
Or, use tiny toys to bury and find together with meals like pasta, grains, or beans as well as spoons and scoops.
Remember that children frequently use their mouths in addition to their hands to investigate, so keep everything clean, watch out for choking dangers, and supervise play.
Manipulating food
Although it might be messy, letting your child play with food while squishing, smearing, and tasting as they go can provide them a sensory experience that will aid in their learning. One short study from 2017 found that toddlers who engaged in fruit and vegetable sensory play were more likely to try the foods tested as well as other new foods.
If you’re worried about promoting food play, you may always make an effort to separate meals from playing. Additionally, you may bring up table etiquette as kids become older. However, while they are young, food may be a wonderful, risk-free method for them to experiment with and play while learning about texture, taste, and scent. All of these tasks, like twirling noodles and crushing beans with a fork, may be delightful and pleasurable for little hands.
Acoustic tubes
You will only need a few straightforward materials to make a sound tube for your child that will help them engage with the aural world around them.
Save a handful of the empty paper towel rolls first. Next, gather a variety of things, such as uncooked rice, dry beans, or beads, to put within each tube.
Finally, securely fasten the tube ends after filling each tube with a different substance (duct tape can work for this). Your child will enjoy listening to the various noises that these toys with similar appearances will create!
Playdough
There are several recipes available for preparing your own dough with ingredients found around the house, even adding flavors and fragrances.
Consider purchasing some readymade sensory dough from your neighborhood big-box shop if you don’t want to make your own. The soft and pliable quality of play dough guarantees that your kid will spend countless hours rolling, slicing, and cutting while they play.
Stability beam
You can always go to your neighborhood park to play on the balancing beam, but you may also practice the same abilities at home with some masking or painter’s tape. Simply mark a path on the ground and ask your youngster to follow it.
Sandbox
Consider purchasing a sandbox and some high-quality sand toys to give your child a taste of the outside world if you can’t wait to play outside or if you want them to feel the sun on their faces.
A sandbox or sand table may be made very entertaining for children without the need of any additional equipment. Simple items like shovels and cups frequently suffice to capture their attention and start them playing.
