Sensory Tables Ideas, Craft Recipes and Bulletin Board Contest!!

Sensory Table Ideas

A picture tells a thousand words, so I will let these photos be inspiration to you to change your sensory table at least once a week!! It will sure to be one of the most popular centers in your classroom!!   

I am attaching even MORE ideas as an attachment to this email.  Print it out and keep it taped to the top of your sensory table for hands on inspiration!!

(*Thank you PVP Needham for all the pics from last year!!)

Cutting "hair" with scissors.

Recycled materials in purple sand

Flour and water messy fun

Bugs, funnels, cups and spoons in rice

Planteating dinosaurs, veggies and water (one time use!)  :-)

Paleantologists looking for dinosaurs in rocks - toothbrushes and craft sticks, and dinosaur out of eggs (see recipe below)

Animals, cups and craft sticks in purple sand

FLOUR FUN

Animals in Rice

WATER SCIENTISTS - funnels, cups, bowls, colored water, turkey basters, "scientific gloves", variety of containers to move water to

Bathing Station - paintbrushes, babies, soap and water

Colored PASTA

Variety of beans and cups

JELLO "BRAINS" - cups and tweezers

Good old fashioned water and duckies and boats

Good old fashioned sand and trucks

Sensory Table OUTSIDE

Salt and Coffee

Hide foam letters in dry pasta

"Rough Pinecones" and "Soft Cotton Balls" for exploring and sorting

Chocolate Pudding!

"Sensory Table" at the Table with Recipe Cards

A CLEAN KID IS A BORED KID!!!

Some Craft Recipes to inspire you!!

Homemade Stickers

2 T glue         1 T vinegar

Mix together and paint on back of picture.  Let dry.  Re-moisten to activate sticker.

Cotton Dough

1 c. flour        3/4 to 1 c. water         1 bag small cotton balls

Mix flour and water to smooth paste.  Handling gnetly, coat cotton balls in flour paste.  Allow excess moisture to fall off each ball.  Form ball insido desired shapes.  Bake at 325* for 1 hour on cookie sheet. 

Mixing Rainbow Paint

4 c. water         1 c. cornstarch         1/2 c sugar

Cook all ingredients until mixture thickens and is clear.  Divide mixture into 3 parts, color one part red, one part yellow and one part blue.  Put two colors in zip lock bag.  When squeezed a different color will appear.

Frozen Paint

Pour tempera paint into large ice cube trays.  Place in freezer.  After 50 minutes, stick Popsicle stick in heach cube and return to freezer.  Pop out of tray and use on finger paint paper. 

Mystery Paint

4 tbs. baking soda      4 tbs. water         cotton swabs        water colors        white paper

Dissolve baking soda in water.  Dip cotton swab in mixture and paint an invisible picture.  Let dry.  Brush water colors over paper to reveal the mystery picture. 

Dino Eggs

2 1/2c flour        2 1/2 cups used coffee grounds    1 1/2 c salt     1 cup sand     1 cup water      plastic dinosaurs

Mix flour, coffee grounds, salt and sand.  Gradually stir in water until mixture holds together.  Use as little water as possible to speed up drying.  Add plastic dinosaurs as you are forming the rock.  Let air dry.  Looks like  a rock. Breaks open easily for baby dinosaurs. 

Alternative Dino Eggs Recipe

5 cups of sand             1 cup of Plaster of Paris        1 cup of water        Dinosaur toys

Ahead of time, mix ingredients until you have the consistency of mud.  Create dino eggs around the dinosaur toys and allow to dry over night.  Go on a dinosaur hunt outside…maybe give older children maps to follow as if they were paleontologists.  Give children toothbrushes and popsicle sticks to scrape away at the eggs to find the “fossils” inside.

REMEMBER!  The Bulletin Board Contest has started this month!! 

Winners of $25 Visa Gift Cards (plus a chance to win $250!!!) will be based on:

• Creativity (borders, background. use of Spanish)
• Clever Title
• Aesthetic Appeal
• Organization

The theme of the bulletin boards can be anything you like!  You can use the open-ended art of the children,  photos of the children, parent communication, pictures of all the staff or anything else you choose!  If you work with a co-teacher, it's up to you to decide if you'd like to team up (to share the prize) or make your own separate displays.

 All photos of your bulletin boards are due by Friday, February 17th.   

Gracias!

Jacie