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You are here: Home / Play-Based Learning Activities / Peppermint Scented Christmas Sensory Bin

December 14, 2016 By Alana Pace 5 Comments

Peppermint Scented Christmas Sensory Bin

 

I love sensory bins. A LOT. They are so simple to set-up. Warm water, lentils, stale cereal, or old pasta are great mediums to drop into a container with your child’s favourite toys! Sensory play is that simple. And the benefits are extensive. Another go-to of mine is using coloured rice. We have made rainbow-coloured rice, pumpkin-spiced rice, and more!

 

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Peppermint Scented Christmas Sensory Bin

Have fun with a Holiday-themed sensory bin by making coloured rice. Also find out the benefits of sensory play and other simple sensory bin ideas in this Christmas sensory bin post. The recipe is really simple to follow and smells like peppermint! Great for early childhood education, play-based learning, learning through play and more.

What you need
  • 3+ cups of white rice
  • Food colouring – red and green for a Christmas sensory bin or blue for a winter sensory bin
  • Ziplock bags or air tight containers
  • 3+ tsp peppermint extract
  • 3+ tsp white vinegar
  • Parchment paper
  • Cookie sheet
  • Bin
  • Christmas miniatures and/ or jingle bells
  • Slotted spoons, tongs, or other kitchen items for manipulating the rice

 

What to do
  1. Preheat over to 300°F.
  2. Divide rice equally based on the number of colours you’d like to have. Place divided rice into as many bags or containers as you need. So for red, white, and green, I need three containers or zip lock bags.
  3. For every one cup of rice you use, you need 1 tsp. of white vinegar. This helps the food colouring adhere to the rice.
  4. Add food colouring and shake until rice is fully covered. Add more colour if desired, then repeat.
  5. Add one to two tsp. of peppermint oil per cup of rice.
  6. Spread coloured rice on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Be careful not to mix colours as the rice is still wet and colour will mix.
  7. Place rice in oven to dry. Approximately 10 minutes.
  8. Remove rice from oven and mix to ensure fully dried. If not, return to over for a few minutes.
  9. Once cooled, dump rice into bin and add Christmas embellishments.
  10. Option to add toys. Use kitchen utensils to add in the fun and enjoy!

 

What they’re learning

Through sensory play, children learn cause and effect. They are able to test hypothesises. By dumping rice from one container to another, they begin to understand conservation of mass. And while there are many more benefits from sensory play, one of the greatest benefits is retention. Adults and children retain information better when more than one sense is engaged!

 

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Filed Under: Play-Based Learning Activities, Posts Tagged With: Christmas, Christmas sensory bin, coloured rice, early childhood education, learning through play, play-based learning, sensory play

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Krystal Miller (@hhtfamilyblog) says

    December 16, 2016 at 9:53 pm

    This is a great idea. I love the idea of adding the peppermint smell for an extra sensory experience!

    Reply
  2. Stephanie (@wifemommyme) says

    December 17, 2016 at 12:34 am

    Sensory bins are one of our favorite ways to have fun without making a ton of noise. My son will dig and play for a good 45-60 minutes.

    Reply
  3. Shann Eva (@Shanneva) says

    December 18, 2016 at 3:30 pm

    Such a great idea. We’ve never used rice before, but my boys would love it. Especially colored and peppermint scented. Can’t wait to try this!

    Reply
  4. Evelyne Nemcsok says

    December 19, 2016 at 12:09 am

    I bet it smells amazing! Ha ha – it must be hard to keep the adults out 😉

    Reply
  5. workingmommagic says

    December 19, 2016 at 2:55 pm

    I have never made a sensory bin for my kids.. dont hate me! 😉

    Reply

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Hi! I'm Alana. When I'm not nursing cold, stale coffee, I usually can be found with the baby on my hip, barefoot, and racing after my two older kids. Thanks to a degree in psychology and a free-range childhood backing onto an expansive evergreen forest, positive parenting and play-based learning are my passions. Read more here.

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