Candy Cane Sensory Bin

      I absolutely love the holidays, but Thanksgiving and Christmas can easily turn into the busiest times of the school year for me! I am already working to combat this by setting up a few Christmas activities before we leave on Thanksgiving break. I got started this week on a candy cane sensory bin for Christmas. I couldn't even get the materials through the door without passing the box around from student to student!

     This Fall, I set up the first ever sensory bin in my classroom. I had been seeing them online for the past year or so and wondering exactly what the big deal was. The idea is to allow students to engage in sensory play without making such a big mess. I already knew that people, adults and children alike, learn best and retain more when their senses are engaged, I just didn't realize how engaging these bins could be for my students! They are a HUGE hit and SO simple to throw together! If you have never used a sensory bin in your classroom, you should definitely give it a try.

Here are the items that I used in my candy cane sensory bin: 

       I have also seen candy cane bins that were created using rice that was dyed with food coloring and scented with peppermint extract or peppermint oil. If you already have these items at home, then that may be an even easier, more cost effective route for you and I am sure the students would find scented rice just as fun! Many recipes for peppermint scented play dough are also available online and would work well with the bin. I am adding a scented aspect to my bin by having the students write the sight words using our brand new peppermint Scentos markers! I will also give the students a choice of building the sight words with the peppermint cards or forming the sight words with the pipe cleaners! 

      Here is the Freebie! Hope you enjoy! Be sure to check back tomorrow for a guest blog from my adorable, sweet new friend, Justine. She is going to be showing you all how to make the most adorable turkey craft!