Make-Shift Sensory Table

I have been wanting to develop some sort of sensory table for Evan since last Fall. In the ECFE class we attend there is a sensory table and each week something different is in it - sand, dried corn, dried beans, rice, water, shaving cream, bubble wrap, etc. Evan's favorite part of the class is when the teacher opens up the sensory table and all the kids run over to see what is inside. The sand and water are the kids favorites, but they love playing in whatever is in the table that day.

I thought it would be fun to have a scaled-down version of a sensory table at home. You can buy tables but they cost more than we can afford and we don't have enough space to store them. So I bought a 27 Qt plastic storage bin, dumped 2 lbs of dried black beans in it, took things from around the house to play with in the table and called it Evan's sensory table! I put this together yesterday and Evan has absolutely loved it! He keeps asking to play with beans. It was so easy and only cost me $3.79 for the plastic bin on sale at Target. Gotta love that store! I already had the beans, though I only had 2 lbs and I think it could use another pound or two. Dried beans are really cheap, about $1 a pound. Evan has played with it on the floor and I have also put the bin up on a larger storage bin that holds Evan's trains (using it as a table) so Evan can stand and play with the beans. If you have a train table or a shorter child's table you could place the bin on that. The fun thing is you can change it up to keep it exciting by putting in shaving cream, dried corn, rice, oatmeal, cornmeal, birdseed, shredded paper, packing peanuts, and sand or water if you dare! I think I will wait for summer and do the sand and water on my back porch so I don't have to worry about sand and water in my house. Though Evan has been pretty good about keeping the beans in the bin and if some spill out he picks them up and puts them back. I would love to do sand because this is Evan's favorite, but it isn't so easy to pick up the sand and put it back in the bin! I have heard of putting a sheet under the sensory table and then when the child is all done you just take the sheet outside and shake the sand off. And I guess if you wanted to do water you could always put a plastic shower curtain underneath the table. Just some ideas.

It is fun for the parents to play with too! Rob and Evan had a great time hiding his matchbox cars under a pile of beans and then digging them out to find them. The moment Evan would find a car he would demandingly ask Rob to "Hide 'Em". So far today, it is only noon, Evan has asked me four separate times to play with the beans. Each time he plays with them for 15-30 minutes, which I feel is a good stretch of time for a toddler to focus on one activity. We have been stuck inside all day due to a big snow storm so this new addition has been very helpful. If anyone out there is looking for a new activity/toy for their child, I strongly recommend a sensory table. It will be worth your $4!