Equipped with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure Science.
Edwin Powell Hubble
Sensory play is valuable for creating a data base of experience. Children use the five classic senses plus proprioception and the vestibular sense to feel, taste, see, smell, hear, and move. This is how people interact with and make sense of the world. When children play, they build neural connections and a mental catalog filled with bits about the way things behave and work. When a young learner is immersed in an environment rich with sensory opportunity, they strengthen their big picture understanding of the world, develop autonomy, and build motor skills.
What We are Strengthening
Sight
Sight helps children identify objects and build vocabulary. Kids learn to recognize colors, textures, distance, quantity, size, shape, and movement. Sight is also a tool for making inferences about body language and appreciating visual art. Sight helps the mind make connections between senses.
Sound & Hearing
Sound offers us knowledge about an environment that may not be visible. Children listen to develop communication and detect inflection and meaning in the nuances of language. Sound includes music which often translates into rhythm and movement.
Taste
Tasting lets us recognize familiar foods and creates a sharp pallet. Over time, kids connect the foods they eat to the way their bodies feel after. This is useful for developing a healthy relationship with food. Trying out new flavors gives taste buds exercise and is the ground work for lifelong healthy eating and cooking.
Smell
Smell is closely related to taste and helps children identify foods and smells that they enjoy. A bad smell is helpful for identifying threats in the environment. The sense of smell drives memory. Smell has the power to bypass critical thinking and create a reaction fueled by intuition and instinct.
Of all five senses, smell is the one with the best memory.
Rebecca McClanahan
Touch
Children benefit from experiencing the way textures feel, not only with their hands but their bodies too. With experience, kids develop their motor skills so they can better manage things like zippers, pouring liquids, and determining how much pressure they should use for tasks.
Proprioception & Vestibular Senses
These connected senses give a person awareness of their body’s movement and balance. Children are in a constant state of growth so they must continue to mentally adjust to their place in space. Good body awareness helps children safely become confident in their abilities and identify their physical limits.
Bringing it All Together
Senses do not work independently of one another. Children’s brains construct bridges and pathways in order to create connections across learning. When a child grows up with rich sensory experiences, they are better equipped to make quick inferences and decisions based on stored tested information. They are able to form realistic hypotheses and make solid life choices.
Sensory Play at Home
Dear Parents,
Children are Curious by Nature. Young learners do not require a preset curriculum to master fundamental sensory skills, they do it naturally. Kids instinctively experiment with their senses on their quest to understand the physical world. They practice and test theories in order to learn through trial & error. Let them play like it is their job because it absolutely is!
Offer your children new experiences, the more the better. Sometimes that looks like baking cookies from scratch or mixing up some slime. Other times, it looks like taking a few thoughtful moments to set up an impromptu learning lab and allowing kids the time to engage in self-directed learning.
You likely have everything you need to offer a grade A sensory experience right at home. Parents, you provide the materials and a space to explore, the kids will learn through their own experiences. That is the Power of Play. Use whatever you have around the house to offer an endless combination of loose parts and opportunity.
Sensory Learning Ideas
Loose Parts: Imagination is one of the best gifts of childhood. Rocks turn into meatballs, mud becomes cookies, and string can be spaghetti. Children excel at turning bits and pieces of random parts into learning treasure. Give a child buttons, wood rounds, bells, berries, nuts & bolts, or shells and they will add the creativity.
Sensory Tables: Grab a wide shallow bucket or a basin and fill it with items for your child to get their hands (or feet) into. Use things like rice, flour, water, beans, dry pasta, cotton balls, fabric, or pom-poms and be sure to add tools. Measuring cups, spoons, magnets, turkey basters, trucks, dinosaurs, tweezers, and funnels work great. Just use what you have, it is all about the experience.
Invitations: You can invite your child to play by offering a sensory experience. Cut up a plate of fruits and veggies for tasting, pull out the old ukulele, or put out a basket of dissolvable packing peanuts from that box that just came and add a bowl of water. Throw on the radio for a quick dance party. There does not have to be a learning theme for an invitation, just an offered experience.
Provocations: When you pick up on a specific interest from your child or want to intentionally explore a concept further, set up a provocation. Is your child interested in music? Set up an appealing area with a xylophone and bells. Are you noticing a love of birds or animals? Set up a station with bird books or field guides, paper, pencils, and bird toys.
Again, get creative with what you have and don’t be afraid to do a quick search on Pinterest or ask “Professor Google” for inspiration.
Impromptu Learning Lab: Go big when you have time but don’t underestimate simplicity. Kids can have a ton of fun and learn a bunch with a cardboard box and paper bags. Found an old keyboard in the closet? Dust it off and let them give it a go. Have fruit that needs eating? Make a smoothie. It’s all learning folks.
Take it Outside
Outdoor sensory learning requires less energy to put together because entering the natural world is already a full body experience and can be enjoyed, “as is”. Taking invitations and provocations outside is also an excellent idea. An area set up for learning outside offers children a place to practice messy work like pouring and mixing up mud pies.
Practicing the messy work leads to mastering it. Children learn to pour themselves a drink, button their shirts, tie shoes, and squeeze out the proper amount of shampoo with confidence when they are allowed to experiment without worrying about making a mess. Kids learn to trust their own judgment and abilities.
Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is the real work of childhood.
Fred Rogers
Tips & Tricks
- Donate an Old Tablecloth or Sheet to Sensory Play
- Keep Wet Wipes Nearby
- Create a Maker Station For Your Child to Create
- Dedicate an Outdoor Space For Messy Learning
Sources and Inspiration
If you are looking for inspiration check out Pinterest or “Professor Google”. Type in sensory play, you won’t be disappointed.
For an Interesting read about Sensory Input in Adulthood Check out “How the Body Knows the Mind” by Sian Beilock
Check out my Video “Sensory Play at Home” for a Backyard Science Lab Set Up
