Tag Archives: fall

Exploring a Fall Sensory Box

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I have been looking at beautiful sensory boxes on a number of blogs and have wanted to give this a try for a while. A fall theme seemed like an easy starter box to try. As an elementary teacher I am used to learning objectives and structured activities so this is another case of me stepping out of my comfort zone; a place where I seem to learn a great deal! It was a learning experience for all of us.

Here is Rose enjoying scooping and pouring beans.

This is the second time I got the box out. The first time was a flop!

I dramatically lifted the lid when Rose was sleeping and Daisy took a look inside. She shuffled the leaves about and then wandered off to find a book. I was disappointed and decided to rethink.

This is a new experience for me and for my kids. We needed help to learn how to play with this new found toy. I used a write and wipe pocket and inserted a very basic counting grid. I gave it to my mother in law (Boma) and she smiled and said “I remember this!”. She was a kindergarten teacher for 40 years in Luxembourg. I did not have to explain what to do.

After we opened the tub for the second time I asked Daisy to scoop out all the pumpkins and took Rose to an old table cloth (now the clean up mat), on the floor. As you can see, she got straight into play. I gave her a few bowls and a ladle.

The rules were made clear; everything must stay on the cloth, no throwing, and no eating/mouthing. This last point was an issue as Rose is 16 months. Everything goes in her mouth. I have to watch like a hawk when small objects are around. She was pretty busy exploring and only needed to be reminded a couple of times.

Boma and Daisy sorted the pumpkins by size and type.

They counted up to 10 and played with basic addition and subtraction.

Daisy then joined Rose on the mat and played scooping and making soup.

I had a whale of a time watching the exploring and learning happen. I was able to interact and talk through what both children were doing. This has inspired me. We will be sharing experiences with lots of sensory boxes.

Here is our box:

  • Shoe boxes – I use these for storage (Zellers)
  • Leaves (Dollar store)
  • Dried kidney beans
  • Paper leaves (these are on special now)
  • Various pumpkins (Dollar store)
  • Cinnamon sticks

Great Ideas for your sensory boxes:

How do you feel sensory boxes have added to the play experience?

Pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere.

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We are suddenly surrounded by pumpkins. I love the little and not so little orange balls of goodness. We have tried a few decorating methods and I have looked at lots of lovely options.

We started the usual way; by taking the lid off. We discussed the pattern Daisy wanted to make and I used a marker to dot all the drill holes.

My husband, Francois demonstrated how to use the drill safely. Keeping fingers away from the bit and a steady hand were emphasized.

Team drilling! Daisy needed a steadying had to keep the drill from slipping.

You can see the concentration on her face!

Rose is overjoyed to have her own pumpkin to decorate too.

We kept it very simple with stickers. They were a challenge as they stuck to her fingers but we had lots of fun.

Pretty drilled pumpkin lit up.

2 flowers pumpkins.

I have been collecting lots of lovely pumpkin and Halloween ideas on Pinterest. Check it out; you may become addicted to ‘pinning’!

Thanksgiving Tree

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We tend to get a little obsessed with food at our house during Thanksgiving, so a little focus on the ‘Thanks’ is necessary.

You need:

We talked about thanksgiving and what being thankful is. We began to list all the things Daisy is thankful for (all the people or things) she is happy to have in her life.

As I am writing this I am thinking about how we will discuss this further, talking about the opportunities she has; being able to play soccer, play with her sister, dance, learn. The list could go on and on, as could the discussion. Teaching children to have a ‘cup half full” attitude is wonderful skill to carry though life. Being able to find the positive in most situations makes life easier and often more fulfilling.

When we had a list Daisy was happy with, we started work on our tree.

We glued the tree onto construction paper.

What time of day we start a craft, often influences the amount of energy Daisy can give to a project. This activity was started after 2pm and she was lacking enthusiasm so I wrote the ‘Thanks’ on the leaves. If we had done this in the morning Daisy would have been able to write some of the leaves herself. With younger children the leaves would need to be bigger and photos and magazines could be used for collage. I wrote on the leaves for her.

We used leaves from the Family Tree Kit and Autumn Leaves Paper Bits. The leaves from the family tree kit were a bit difficult to remove for kids so I did this. I would recommended having some ready before the activity starts. Autumn Leaves Paper Bits were easier to use as they were all loose. The texture was lovely to write on.

Daisy wrote her name on the little sign provioded in the Family Tree Kit and her Thanksgiving Tree was finished. It is proudly displayed near our dinner table.

(This craft idea was taken from The Preschooler’s Busy Book).