Sensory play for 4 year olds
20 Great Activities for Your Toddler or Preschooler
Sensory play is a type of play that activates and stimulates a child’s senses. Often, sensory play focuses on stimulating touch, sight, and hearing as those senses are most accessible.
When children are very young, they interact with the world primarily through the five senses (touching, tasting, hearing, seeing and smelling). Of course, as your active toddler will help you see, they also engage in the world through movement and balance.
These senses are how they learn about the world around them and make sense of the many new things they’re experiencing each day. As children grow they begin to play and, through play, learn more about the world around them.
The first 3 years of life are a time of rapid growth and development for a child. As children grow from infants to toddlers to preschoolers they are able to take in vast amounts of information and turn it into working knowledge about the world.
Sensory play offers children a unique opportunity to engage with the world in a way that helps them grow and develop. This kind of active play helps to create connections in the brain that allow for increasingly complex thoughts and tasks.
Play also supports language development, cognitive growth, fine and gross motor skills, and fosters social interaction and peer engagement. Sensory play, known for helping children develop mindfulness skills, can also be excellent for helping to calm a child who may be feeling anxious or angry.
Sensory play builds observational skills and abstract thinking and encourages experimentation. So now that you know all the benefits, you probably want to get started. But where?
Sensory play can be loads of fun and is often fairly simple to set up, but it can be difficult for parents to think of ideas to help their child engage in sensory activities. Check out the list below for simple sensory play ideas that your toddler or preschooler will love!
Important note:
Keep in mind that safety is always a priority. Do not give young children items that are a choking risk.
Always supervise children around water. Consider which ideas are developmentally appropriate and safe for your little one.
Create a sensory bin
It’s simple for children to enjoy sensory play when you create a sensory bin for them to explore.
To create a sensory bin, simply fill a small tub or container with objects from nature such as leaves, rocks, and sand that have different textures for your little one to explore.
Or use foods, like pasta, rice, or beans, along with spoons, scoops, and small toys to bury and discover.
Remember, little ones often explore with their mouths in addition to their hands so be sure to clean all items, avoid choking hazards, and supervise play.
Playing with food
Yes, it gets messy, but allowing your little one to play with food — squishing, smearing, and tasting as they go — gives them a sensory experience that helps them learn. One small 2017 study showed that preschoolers who participated in sensory play with fruits and vegetables were more likely to try not only the foods in the experiment, but other new foods.
If you’re concerned about encouraging food play, you can always work to distinguish playtime and mealtime as different times. And as they get older you can talk about table manners. But when they’re young, food can be a great, safe way to explore texture, taste, and smell through experimentation and play.
Twisting noodles, smearing yogurt, smashing beans — all of these activities can be satisfying to curious little hands and tasty on top of that!
Sound tubes
To create a sound tube for your little one and help them connect with the auditory world around them, you’ll only need a few simple supplies.
First, save a few empty paper towel rolls. Next, collect a variety of different materials to go inside each tube like uncooked rice, dried beans, or beads.
Finally, fill each tube with a different material and safely secure the ends of the tubes (duct tape can work for this). Your little one will delight in hearing the different noises these similar looking toys will make!
Play dough
Recipes abound for making your own dough using household supplies and even adding colors and scents.
If you’re not interested in making your own sensory dough, consider heading to your local big box store and picking up some premade dough. Play dough’s soft and squishy texture ensures that your child will enjoy hours of rolling, slicing, and chopping as they play.
Shop online for play dough.
Balance beam
You can always head to the local park for some balance beam play, but you can work on the same skills at home with some painter’s or masking tape. Simply tape lines onto the floor and challenge your kiddo to walk the line.
Shop online for painter’s tape.
Calming bottles
When the world feels out of control to a little one, it’s normal and natural for them to become overwhelmed and to act out their big feelings. If you’re looking for a way to help calm down your little one when those big feelings hit a calming bottle can help.
To create a calming bottle you’ll just need an old water bottle, water, clear glue, some food dye, and some glitter.
To create, simply fill the bottle with water mixed with the clear glue and then add a few drops of food dye and a few shakes of glitter before gluing the lid shut.
When your babe is feeling angry or out-of-sorts they can shake the bottle and then take deep breaths as they watch the glitter resettle at the bottom.
Sandbox
If you’re itching to get outside or want your tot to feel the sun on their face as they play, consider investing in a sandbox and a few good sand toys to help them get a feel for the world.
You don’t need anything special to make a sandbox or sand table especially fun for little ones. Often, simple objects like shovels and cups are enough to spark their imagination and get them playing!
Shop online for:
- sandboxes
- sand tables
- sand toys
Swing, swing, swing
Swings are a favorite playground staple, but consider challenging your kiddo to use them in new ways. Encourage them to try swinging on their tummy, Superman-style.
Instead of pushing from behind, gently pull their feet and then release. Twist the swing in one direction and then allow it to spin back in the other direction.
Can’t make it to the park or outside? Use a blanket to create a hammock that you and another adult can gently swing back and forth.
Plant a garden
This is a fun activity you can do together that involves an ongoing sensory benefit. You don’t have to go big — you can even plant small seeds into the cups of an egg carton.
Digging in the dirt, sorting seeds, watering, and smelling the flowers or herbs you plant will all stimulate the senses.
Shop online for kids’ gardening supplies.
Taste test challenge
As your little one grows, the type of activities they’re able to engage with expands. Once a child is preschool aged they’re likely ready for a taste test activity.
To create a taste test, ask your child to close their eyes or blindfold them and offer them different fruits that they enjoy.
As they taste each fruit, have them do their best to guess what they’re tasting!
Bread baking
While cooking and baking anything is a great way to help kids learn and grow, baking bread offers unique sensory activities as little ones get the chance to knead the bread before it bakes.
Even though it’s often slower than doing it on your own, do your best to let your child measure, pour, and stir the ingredients as you bake together!
Homemade musical instruments
Another activity preschool-age children tend to enjoy is creating their own musical instruments. Children can (with a little assistance) create a band’s worth of instruments with items that are often found around the house.
Consider making maracas with dried beans, a paper cup, and some wax paper or a guitar from an empty tissue box and some rubber bands.
Jumping fun
Jumping is a great way to release energy and also stimulate your little one’s sense of movement. There are many great ways to incorporate jumping movements — jump ropes, small exercise trampolines, sitting on an exercise ball.
Try setting up an obstacle course that challenges your little one to climb and jump over small objects on their way. You can do this outside with sidewalk chalk and small rocks or toys or take the party inside using blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals as obstacles and paths.
Shop online for:
- small trampolines
- jump ropes
- jumping toys
Mud kitchen
If you love the idea of cooking with your child but would prefer to keep the mess outdoors, consider letting them set up a mud kitchen and create recipes from whatever they can find in nature.
Offer them a few pots and pans, some water and a mixing spoon and you’ll be surprised at how long they can happily bake mud cakes!
Painting through plastic
Another mess-free way to help kids get a sense of colors and to feel some squish between their fingers is to allow them to paint through plastic.
To create a mess-free painting, simply slip a piece of paper with a few blobs of paint on it into a gallon Ziploc bag and seal it up.
After your little one has spent some time squishing the paint together through the plastic wall of the bag you’ll have both a masterpiece to hang up and a tired toddler to show for it.
Frozen toys
Teaching a child about hot and cold can be a tough lesson but, with a little bit of ice and some miniature toys your babe will have a blast exploring these sensations on their own.
To create a frozen toy activity simply freeze some miniature toys (like action figures) into ice and then let your baby manipulate the ice with their hands until the objects are free. You can also provide kid-friendly tools to chip the ice and warmer water to melt the ice.
This activity can get a little drippy so it’s probably best to set it up outside on a hot day, perhaps when you’re already planning to break out the baby pool.
What’s that?
Your older preschooler is likely full of questions. This time let them be the one to find the answers with a guessing game.
Keep an object out of sight but use it to make a sound — crinkling paper, pushing buttons on a toy, bouncing a ball — and ask your child to guess the object making the noise.
Or use the sense of smell in the same way — encouraging them to guess strong but familiar scents like fruit, onions, coffee, or flowers.
Puff ball sorting
Puff balls are loads of fun for any child who is old enough not to put them in their mouth. These soft, squishy balls are also a great sensory teaching tool that can help kids learn about size and color.
To create a sorting activity with puff balls, simply pour a bag of them into one container and provide several smaller containers for sorting. Preschool aged kids often enjoy sorting by color and size. To increase the challenge, have them use tongs or plastic tweezers to pick up the puffballs one by one when sorting.
Shop online for puff balls.
Beading
Beading offers kids the chance to run their fingers through a collection of funny feeling beads as well as the opportunity to make choices about colors, textures, and patterns as they bead.
While older kids will be able to bead with regular string and beads, younger kids will be better able to engage with this activity using stiff pipe cleaners that won’t allow the beads to slip off as they work.
Shop online for:
- pipe cleaners
- beads
- beading kits
Water play
As long as your tot doesn’t mind getting wet, water play will allow them to engage in sensory play with their whole bodies.
If you have a baby pool, fill it up and provide a few cups, balls, and other household items for them to explore in the water.
If you don’t have a baby pool you can simply fill up a few tubs or pots with water and let them pour and splash to their heart’s content!
Sensory play activities don’t have to be complicated to be fun and, often, they only require a few items that you probably already have around the house.
While it can get messy from time to time, helping your child engage with their senses will give them the chance to learn and grow as they interact with the world around them!
50 Sensory Activities For Toddlers To Preschoolers
Let’s talk about sensory play, primarily the sense of touch through tactile hands-on play.
Our favorite sensory activities for toddlers to preschoolers include sensory bins, slime (especially taste safe slime for younger kids), water play, messy play, and more.
We have tons of examples of sensory play for you to use at home or with groups of young kids. Sensory activities don’t have to be difficult to set up and you will find our sensory recipes all use inexpensive kitchen pantry ingredients. Let’s get your kids set up for some fun sensory play time today!
FUN SENSORY ACTIVITIES FOR TODDLERS AND PRESCHOOLERS
WHAT IS SENSORY PLAY?
Sensory play is any type of play that involves the senses! This page is mainly about the tactile sensory play which includes the sense of touch. Whether you dig into a sensory bin, shake a sensory bottle, or squish a sensory recipe, we have you covered.
Find unique sensory activities for the entire year that are both easy to set up and budget-friendly. We cover the holidays, seasons, and any time with fun ways to explore textures.
Of course, you will see that some of these recipes smell great and are visually appealing. Additionally, you will find quite a few taste-safe sensory recipes that appeal to the sense of taste.
Sensory play is suited for all ages including toddlers, with plenty of supervision for the younger kiddos. Toddlers especially love sensory play but please make sure to provide only appropriate materials and watch for putting items in the mouth. Choose sensory fillers or recipes that will not be a choking hazard and remember to supervise play at all times!
WHY IS SENSORY PLAY IMPORTANT?
Sensory play makes for awesome hands-on fun and learning for young children, as they explore and discover more about the world through their senses! Sensory activities can also calm a child, help a child to focus, and engage a child. I would love for you to read our story, Connecting Through Sensory Play.
THE MANY BENEFITS OF SENSORY ACTIVITIES:
Motor Development Skills ~ Sensory play helps a child explore, discover, and create using motor skills, like dumping, filling, scooping.
Play Skills {emotional development} ~ Great for both social play and independent play, sensory activities allow children to play cooperatively or side by side. My son has had many positive experiences over a bin of rice with other children!
Language Development ~ Sensory bins increase language development from experiencing with their hands all there is to see and do which leads to great conversations and opportunities to model language.
Using 5 Senses ~ Many sensory activities include a few of the senses! Touch, sight, sounds, taste and smell are our 5 senses. Children can experience several at a time with a sensory bin.
For example; imagine a bin of brightly colored rainbow rice: touch the loose grains against the skin, see the vivid colors as they mix together, hear the sound of sprinkling over a plastic container or shaken in a plastic egg!
Calming tools ~ Sensory play recipes are calming for many kiddos who are anxious or worried.
You might find that one works better than another for your kiddo.
Some sensory play materials can settle and soothe and some can help keep kids’ attention and connection with you. Download the free calming activities poster here.
ALSO CHECK OUT: 10 Things To Include In A Calm Down Kit
TYPES OF SENSORY PLAY
SENSORY BINS
What is a sensory bin? A sensory bin is a simple container filled with a sensory filler in quantity.
There are only a few basic things you really need to make a sensory bin; a container, filler and fun play tools. Sensory bin play doesn’t have to be too messy either, find out more about how to put together a sensory bin.
Sensory bins have been a huge staple in our house for a number of years. They are an easy play option for toddlers to preschoolers that you can change up frequently, create new themes for and vary with the seasons or holidays!
Some of our favorite sensory bin fillers are…
- Colored Rice
- Colored Pasta
- Colored Salt
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: 10 Best Sensory Bin Fillers
SENSORY BOTTLES
An awesome calm down and anxiety relief tool, glitter bottles are easy to make, reusable, and low cost too! Sensory bottles take very little time to make but offer numerous, lasting benefits for your kids.
Kids love these cool sensory bottles and they are easy to whip up with materials you already have on hand or easy to grab at the store. Whether you make an I SPY style bottle to take along with you or a science-filled discovery bottle, you won’t be disappointed!
DOUGHS
Homemade dough is excellent for many reasons! From playdough, to cloud dough, foam dough and more, it’s easy to whip a batch of your own sensory dough.
Firmer doughs like playdough can be a great sensory tool for hands-on early learning activities like letters, numbers, and colors. It is also a great muscle strengthener for little hands getting ready to write. It is relaxing to knead, roll, stretch, flatten, pound, and whatever else is fun!
Plus, sensory doughs adapt to themes like a charm. Pretend, create, build, imagine, and discover!
MESSY PLAY
50 FUN SENSORY ACTIVITIES TO TRY
Click on any of the sensory activities below for the materials needed and full instructions.
CHICK PEA FOAM
Have fun with this taste safe sensory play foam made with ingredients you probably already have in the kitchen! This edible shaving foam or aquafaba as it is commonly known makes a fun non-toxic play foam for little ones!
CHRISTMAS SENSORY BINS
Stimulate your senses this holiday season with these fun and creative Christmas sensory bins! There are plenty of amazing sensory activities to enjoy using things such as Christmas ornaments, colored rice, Christmas bells, homemade playdough, and more!
CLOUD DOUGH
Cloud dough is soft and moldable. Sometimes called moon sand or moon dough as well. You can make it completely taste-safe too depending on the oil you choose to use. Additionally, it can be made with a gluten-free flour mix!
- Cloud Dough Activities
- Colored Moon Sand
- Moon Craters with Moon Dough
- Chocolate Cloud Dough
- Christmas Cloud Dough
CORNSTARCH DOUGH
This fun dough-like slime is made with common kitchen ingredients.
It has a nice movement to it and is a cross between slime and a play-dough.
CRAYON PLAYDOUGH
This crayon playdough is a great way to use up old crayons as well as make an awesome sensory playdough for young kids.
EDIBLE PEANUT BUTTER PLAYDOUGH
Sensory play not only involves the hands, it can also involve taste as well! Make our simple edible peanut butter playdough for a fun treat and play idea in one.
EARLY LEARNING SENSORY BINS
Want to include a fun sensory bin as part of a Math or Literacy activity? Check out these ideas…
- Learning Letters With Sensory Play
- Fine Motor Sensory Bin
- Book Theme Sensory Play
- Alphabet Puzzle Sensory Bin
- Counting Sensory Bin (look for the free math pack)
FAIRY DOUGH
A sprinkle of glitter and soft colors makes this amazingly soft fairy dough come to life! Whip up a super soft playdough recipe with just two ingredients in minutes. Play for hours with a sweet fairy theme.
Can’t you just hear the make-believe stories happening now?
FALL GLITTER JARS
A glitter bottle or glitter jar is a fun way to enhance the season through beautiful glittering colors. Fall can be an amazingly beautiful season depending on where you live with glorious jewel-toned leaves, pumpkins, apples, and gourds!
FALL SENSORY BINS
Colorful fall sensory bins that capture the beauty of fall with hands-on sensory play and learning!
FOAM DOUGH
What do you get when you whip up a batch of cornstarch and shaving cream? You get foam dough, a totally awesome texture for little hands and big hands to squeeze and squish.
FROG POND SENSORY BIN
Learn and play with all things frog related for a fun spring activity for young kids.
FROZEN GLITTER JARS
These glitter jars make a great calm down tool with their mesmerizing Elsa and Anna Frozen winter sparkle!
GOLD AND SILVER GLITTER BOTTLES
Play with these glitter bottles are terrific for sensory processing needs, anxiety relief, and well just something fun to shake and look at!
KINETIC SAND
You don’t need to buy it, you can make it! This fun sensory activity is perfect for any day of the week.
Add fun items for exploring the cool texture and kids will have a blast digging into it.
ALSO CHECK OUT: Colored Kinetic Sand
MAGIC MUD
Mud, glorious mud! Make your own cornstarch mud for hands-on sensory play indoors or outdoors. Magic mud is the perfect way to keep kids busy and exploring with their senses at the same time.
Magic MudMUD PLAY
Real dirt, real mud and a real lot of good wholesome mess makes for the best play and learning experiences! These mud activities explore mud inside and out with science, sensory, math and building play.
NO COOK PLAYDOUGH
This has to be the easiest homemade playdough recipe you could make. See how easy it is and watch a short video of the process.
Check out>>> 17 Fun Playdough Activities
Click here to get your FREE Flower Playdough MatOCEAN SENSORY BIN
Enjoy a hands-on way to explore the ocean through lots of play.
Even includes a fun ice melt activity.
OOBLECK
Oobleck or goop is the coolest sensory play around because it’s part science too! Easy to make with only 2 simple kitchen ingredients, oobleck will amaze the kiddos.
Want to make up some oobleck with a fun theme? Try one of these ideas below…
- Earth Day Oobleck
- Rainbow Oobleck
- Candy Hearts Oobleck
- Marbled Oobleck
- St. Patricks Day Treasure Hunt Oobleck
- Spidery Oobleck for Halloween
- Pumpkin or Apple Oobleck for Fall
- Cranberry Oobleck for Thanksgiving
- Snowflake Winter Oobleck
- Peppermint Oobleck for Christmas
PEEPS PLAYDOUGH
Add this easy Peeps playdough recipe to your bag of sensory recipes, and you are sure to have something fun to whip up these holidays or any time of the year!
POWDERED SUGAR PLAYDOUGH
This powdered sugar playdough with only 2 ingredients couldn’t be easier, and the kids can easily help you mix up a batch or two!
RAINBOW GLITTER JARS
Sensory glitter bottles are often made with expensive glitter glue.
Our substitute, glue and a jar of glitter make these rainbow DIY glitter jars much more cost effective!
Click here to get your FREE Rainbow Playdough Mat
SAND FOAM
Kids love this messy sensory play activity that combines shaving cream and sand. Perfect for the outdoor days!
SLIME
Slime makes an amazing sensory play activity, and we have so many easy slime recipes and cool slime ideas for you to try.
For younger kids, you will want to use a taste safe and borax free slime recipe. Older kids will love hands-on sensory play with one of our simple slime recipes.
If you are looking for a slime that is borax-free, taste-safe, and non-toxic, we have an awesome collection of edible slime recipes that fit the bill. Check out these recipes below…
- Marshmallow Slime
- Gummy Bear Slime
- Starburst Slime
- Jello Slime
- Pudding Slime
- so many more…
SOAP FOAM
Soap foam is a super simple sensory play recipe that kids will love and you’ll feel good about making for them.
A simple water activity that’s a treat for the senses.
ALSO CHECK OUT: Ivory Soap Foam
STRESS BALLS
These sensory or texture balloons are really easy to make yourself. There are different filling you can use to create various sensory experiences for your kiddos.
Check our stress balls made with flour, Halloween stress balls, as well as these sensory balloons for lots of ideas.
VALENTINES SENSORY BIN
Simple to make and inexpensive, these Valentines sensory bins are a great hands-on activity to do with your kids. There are so many options for filling sensory bins.
AWESOME SENSORY ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS!
If you are looking for more ways to engage your youngest kids, check out our neat preschool learning ideas.
No more having to print out a WHOLE blog post for just one recipe!
Get our basic slime recipes in an easy to print format so you can knock out the activities!
—>>> FREE SLIME RECIPE CARDSCard file of games on sensory development for children 3-4 years old | Card file (junior group) on the topic:
Card file of didactic games on sensory education for children 3-4 years old.
- C/I "LONG - SHORT"
PURPOSE: To continue developing the sensory abilities of babies, to be able to distinguish objects by length, use "long - short", "longer - shorter" in speech, develop imagination, thinking.
GUIDE: The game is played with 2-3 people. First, we consider the ribbons in length, then the children are offered cards and planar sticks of different lengths and colors. By unfolding, the child determines where the long and short sticks are.
- C/I "INSERTS"
PURPOSE: To be able to perform actions with geometric shapes (circle, square, triangle), insert shapes, develop memory, thinking, attention.
GUIDE: The game is played with a subgroup of 4-5 children. The teacher first shows geometric shapes, names them and shows the children how to insert them into stencils. During the game, constantly fix the name of the figures - circle, square, triangle.
- D/I “WHAT COLOR IS MISSING?”
PURPOSE: To develop observation, attention, memory and sensory abilities, the ability to tell what color the disc is missing.
- C/I "FIND THE SAME FLOWER"
PURPOSE: To continue to develop children's sensory abilities, fix 4 primary colors, the ability to name flowers by demonstration.
GUIDE: The game is played with 4-5 people. First, the teacher shows the children large illustrations of flowers of different colors. Children tell what color these flowers are. Then the teacher distributes small cards to the children, having examined them, offers to show the same flower that the teacher shows.
- CIRCLE AND SHADED
PURPOSE: To develop and strengthen children's sensory abilities, the ability to shade a circle, square, triangle on a white sheet using a stencil, to fix the primary colors.
GUIDE: First, the teacher shows the children (2-3 people) stencils of geometric shapes. The children consider what color, then the teacher shows how he hatches on a white sheet of paper with the same pencil as the stencil. The teacher distributes paper, stencils, pencils, and he himself observes that the children correctly select the color of the pencil for the stencil.
- D/I "ONE - MANY"
PURPOSE: To develop the first mathematical abilities, to develop attention, thinking, the ability to distinguish the color of objects.
GUIDE: Games are played with 2-3 children. The teacher shows on the magnetic board pictures of toys one, many, fixes the color. Then he invites the children to find and attach the same pictures according to the show.
- D/I "MULTI-COLORED HANDLES"
PURPOSE: To continue to develop the small muscles of the hands, to consolidate knowledge of color, to develop attention, imagination.
MANUAL: The game is played with 2-3 people. The “grandmother” comes and complains that the kittens have unwound all the threads, invites the kids to wind each skein of thread, each has its own thread color. Engage children in ongoing activities.
- C/I "MULTI-COLORED CLOTHES PEGS"
PURPOSE: To continue to develop the small muscles of the hands, to consolidate the knowledge of color, to develop attention, imagination.
GUIDE: The game is played with 2-3 people. The “grandmother” comes and complains that the grandchildren have put all the clothespins in an ode to the box, invites the kids to arrange them according to the colors of the box. Engage children in ongoing activities.
- C/I "BIG, SMALL, SMALL"
PURPOSE: To continue to develop the ability to distinguish geometric shapes by size, to develop conversational speech, thinking, memory, the ability to distinguish between primary colors.
MANUAL: The game is played with 2 children. The teacher shows a set of geometric shapes (circle, square, triangle) of different colors, and offers to show first a large figure, a smaller one, then a small one. You can complicate the game with questions: “Show a small red triangle”; "Big yellow circle"; “Smaller yellow square”, etc. at the discretion of the teacher's imagination.
- "MULTI-COLORED DROPS"
PURPOSE: To continue to strengthen children's sensory abilities of color, the ability to pipette as directed and drip into cells by color, develop memory, thinking.
MANUAL: The game is played with 2 children. The teacher shows jars of multi-colored gouache. First 2 colors, by the end of the year 4 primary colors. Gives each drawing and a palette with cells by color. Shows actions. Then he invites the children, according to the verbal index, to type in a jar and drip into the cells without mixing colors. Each action is negotiated with each child.
- C/I "SHOW THIS"
PURPOSE: Continue to consolidate the ability to find the desired geometric shape (circle, square, triangle), develop thinking, colloquial speech, the ability to name the color of the figure.
GUIDE: The game is played with 2-3 people. need to focus the attention of the children. Bunny comes to visit and brings a box with geometric shapes, asks the children to tell what it is. First, the teacher separately shows the figure and its color. Then he distributes sets of figures to children and, according to his own show, asks to show the child, constantly involving him in speech activity.
- C/I "RED, YELLOW, BLUE, GREEN"
PURPOSE: To teach to distinguish, name and show pictures according to the color of objects, to develop the sensory abilities of children.
GUIDE: Lesson is conducted with 5-6 people. Each child has an image of objects on the table (toys, flowers, clothes of different colors). The teacher shows either a picture of a certain color or an object of the same color. The child must show his picture with the same image and color.
- C/I “FIND A BUCKET FOR MATRYOSHKA”
PURPOSE: continue to fix and name 4 primary colors, develop thinking, memory, conversational speech.
MANUAL: The game is played with 2 children. A set of nesting dolls of red, green, blue color and, accordingly, the same color buckets are divided. First, the teacher shows which bucket each nesting doll needs. Then he invites the children to find a bucket for a nesting doll, to fix the name of the color of the nesting doll dress and bucket, to involve children in speech activity with various questions.
- D/I "INSERT THE SLEEVE"
PURPOSE: To continue to develop hand motor skills, attention, thinking.
GUIDE: The game is played with 4-5 children. The teacher shows the plane, along the edges of which there are holes for bushings. Shows and discusses his actions, then offers to repeat what he saw to the children.
- D/I "BEADS"
PURPOSE: To develop the motor skills of the hands, the ability to take beads with tweezers and lay them out according to external signs in cups, develop thinking, memory.
MANUAL: The game is played with 2 children because it requires a lot of attention. First, the teacher shows the actions with tweezers and beads, and then invites the children to sort the beads into cups.
- D/I "LACE THE BOOTS"
PURPOSE: To learn to perform actions with lacing, to develop the small muscles of the hands, to develop thinking.
GUIDE: The game is played with a subgroup of 4-5 children.
A child from another group comes and asks to help him lace up his shoes. The teacher performs the action. And then he distributes "boots" and laces to children and offers to lace up a boot for the doll.
- C/I "COLORED CAPS"
PURPOSE: To consolidate the ability to work with objects and arrange caps according to the same color feature.
- C/I "ASSEMBLE AND DISASSEMBLE THE PYRAMID"
PURPOSE: Development of sensory abilities, the ability to act with pyramids of different shapes, following the sequence in assembling.
- D/I "STRINGING THE RING ON THE LACE"
PURPOSE: To consolidate the ability to act with objects, to develop motor skills: of the hands, to train in distinguishing 4 primary colors (red, yellow, blue, green).
- C/I "COLOR DOMINO"
OBJECTIVE: To continue to develop the sensory abilities of toddlers by looking for an object of a given color, fixing the 4 primary colors.
GUIDE: The game is played with 4-5 children. 2-3 colored dominoes are distributed to everyone. It is suggested that children lay out a path, looking for dominoes of the same color as the previous child's domino color
- D / I "FIND THE RIGHT COLOR"
lay out the drawing on the sample.
- C/I "FOLDING HOMOGENEOUS OBJECTS OF DIFFERENT SIZES"
PURPOSE: To learn to find the same geometric shapes (circle, triangle, square), but of different sizes.
INSTRUCTIONS: The game is played with 4-5 children, each has planar images of a circle, triangle, square of different sizes and can be of different colors. The teacher offers to pick up their geometric shapes according to the show.
- GUESS THE TASTE
Cut small pieces of vegetables and fruits into a plate (apple, pear, plum, orange, cucumber, carrot, radish, turnip, etc.). Invite your child to close their eyes and chew on a piece.
Ask what the taste was (sweet, sour, bitter, salty) and the name of what he eats.
- MELTING THE ICE C/I
Get 2 ice cubes from the fridge, give one to your child and take the other to yourself.
Invite the child to melt the ice and comment on how this happens (cold, solid, liquid).
- D/I "WHO IS FLYING?"
Explain to the child: “I will name different objects, animals, birds. If I name something flying - raise your hands, non-flying - clap your hands. - Rocket? .. - Dove? .. - Table? .. etc. "
Give your child time to think.
Similar games are played: "What's going on?" etc.
- FIND THE SAME
Prepare 5 large and 5 small circles. Mix the circles, show them to the child with the words: "These circles are different." Show first large, then small circles one at a time ("These are the circles are large, and these are small").
Fold large circles on one side and small circles on the other.
Explain your actions. Attach two small circles to each other, emphasize that they are the same.
When sorting the third pair of circles, ask where to put the big circle and where to put the small circle. The child lays out circles.
You can use a square and a triangle, a circle and a square, etc. as options.
Start grouping by shape, then have your child divide the shapes into two groups.
Options: rectangle and triangle, 2 types of buttons, etc.
- C/I “PICK YOUR SHAPE”
Prepare pictures with geometric shapes – a square, a circle, a rectangle, a triangle, an oval, as well as some of the shapes themselves.
Ask the child to match the shape to its image in the picture. Show your child how to do it, and then ask him to complete the task himself.
- LARGE AND SMALL
Prepare large and small versions of the same item: spoons, cups, buttons, toys, etc.
Ask your child to choose the larger one from each pair.
You can ask your child to sort the objects into two groups - large and small.
Option 1: Ask your child to find and show you large and small pairs of home furnishings.
Option 2: offer your child two pencils, a large one and a small one. Ask to draw a line with a large pencil.
The task can be made more difficult: let the child draw a large path with a large pencil, and a small one with a small one.
- Hide and Seek
Prepare 5 large and 5 small circles, squares, triangles, rectangles, ovals.
Ask the child to “hide” the small figures behind the large ones (be sure to show that the small figure can be easily covered by the big one, and then the small figure will not be visible).
- C/I "WONDERFUL BAG"
Items with different properties are placed in a linen bag: a ball of thread, a toy, a button, a ball, a cube, a matchbox. The baby should identify the objects in the bag one by one by touch.
It is desirable that he aloud describe their properties. Small children can put things in the bag themselves for better memorization. Older children are given already filled bags.
- HIDE SHEET A/C
Prepare a piece of paper with one half colored green and the other half yellow. Explain to the child that the paper has two colors. Give the baby 6-8 paper cut out leaves (some yellow, others green).
Putting a yellow leaf on the yellow half of a sheet of paper, explain that the leaf is “hidden”, it is not visible. Then put the yellow leaf on the green half and emphasize that it is now very visible. Ask the child to "hide" the leaves so that they are not visible.
If the baby is at a loss, you can give him more contrasting colors - a red-blue sheet of paper and similarly colored fish, flowers, etc.
Gradually make the task of the child more difficult by giving him objects of similar color tones (blue and purple, orange and yellow, etc.
).
You can also "hide" objects in three or four colors. Discuss the progress of the task with your child each time.
- FIND YOUR COLOR C/I
Give your child 3 different colored figures (circles, squares, etc.).
Have him walk around the house and look for objects of the same color. The child can put his mugs on the same color objects.
- D/I BEADS
Take 4 large round and 4 large square beads of the same color, thin cord or thick thread.
Explain to the child that the beads are of different shapes and you need to string them in turn - a ball, then a cube.
Options: stringing beads of the same shape and color, but different sizes, or the same shape and size, but two colors.
- PUZZLE C/I
Cut a bright subject picture into 3 parts. First, invite the child to assemble it according to the model, and then independently.
- C/I "PLUG THE HOLES"
Take any picture or photo from a magazine, book (the image should be clear to the child), cut out squares, circles, triangles from it.
Glue the picture “with holes” onto a sheet of white paper and invite the child to cover the “white spots” formed in the picture with figures that are cut out of it.
- Y/I “WHAT IS MISSING?”
Place 5-6 familiar toys on the table: a hare, a bear, a rooster, etc.
Ask him to look carefully and turn away, and remove one toy yourself. Ask: What is missing?
The game can be made more difficult by adding more items.
Option: “What has been added?”.
- MAKE IT AS IT WAS
Arrange 5 familiar toys on the table (car, block, etc.).
Invite the child to see what is lying where, and turn away, warning that you will move one toy. Then ask them to say what has changed.
Gradually, the task can be made more difficult.
Didactic games for the development of sensory abilities of children 4 - 5 years old | Card file (middle group) on the topic:
Exercise children to determine what kind of object it is,
by characteristic external features, that is, by shape.
It can also be used to develop speech and imagination.
How to play: To play, you will need a fabric bag made of dense
opaque fabric, in which objects of different
shapes and textures are placed. I propose to determine by touch
each item without looking into the bag.
You can also hide geometric figures in it,
the child must guess by touch which figure is hidden.
***
Cinderella game
Purpose of the game:
To develop hand motor skills in children.
How to play the game:
Place mixed pea and bean seeds and
Kinder toys in front of the children. In 30 seconds, you have to sort them.
When the child learns to do this quickly enough,
you can complicate the task: for example, blindfold him.
***
Purpose of the game
to develop skills in working with waste materials, to develop the imagination of the child.
Game progress:
Choose from buttons of different colors and sizes or
colorful plastic bottle caps.
Invite the child to lay out a drawing, it can be
a tumbler, a butterfly, a snowman, balls, beads, etc.
After the child learns to complete the task
without your help, offer him to come up with his own
drawings. In such games, we fix
the formation of a sensory standard - color, and if
use buttons, then the sensory standard
- a shape (circle, square, triangle, oval).
***
Find a Pair
Purpose of the game: to teach children to determine the purpose of objects;
establish causal relationships between the phenomenon
of life and objects; establish a connection between
an object and the benefits of using it.
Material for the game: a set of cards divided into two
halves: on one half - an object, on the other -
an image (for example: a frost coat, etc.
).
Game progress: the teacher lays out all the cards with the image
down. Participants of the game collect the same number of cards
and agree on the priority. The first participant in the game
puts any card image up. The next
participants in the game take turns choosing from the cards they have
one that depicts a suitable item,
, and explain the convenience of using it.
For example: "it's raining outside, so you need an umbrella."
The game ends when one of the participants
has laid out all his cards.
***
"Recognize the figure"
Purpose of the game:
improve the perception of the form; develop
voluntary attention; develop speed of movement.
Material: cards with geometric figures
- square, triangle, circle or objects similar to these figures
- wheel, pyramid, modules.
Game progress:
The host introduces the children to the prepared
geometric figures, which he lays out in
different parts of the room, and explains the rules of the game.
At the signal
, the children randomly move around the room, performing various movements
. After the facilitator names one of the figures
, for example "Square", the children should quickly
line up around this figure.
Children who completed the task quickly and correctly are marked.
***
Game "Walking in traffic jams"
Purpose of the game: To develop hand motor skills in children.
Train your memory with poems.
Game progress:
But don't remove the plugs too far, they can also help us
develop fine motor skills and coordination
fingers. I propose to arrange a "ski relay race".
Put two corks from plastic bottles on the table
with the thread up. This is skis. Index and
middle fingers stand in them like legs. We move
"on skis", taking a step for each stressed syllable.
We ski, we race down the mountain,
We love cold winter fun.
And if you forgot the poem about "skiing",
then let's remember the well-known ... Which one? Well, of course!
A clumsy bear is walking through the forest...
It's great if the baby not only "walks"
with corks on his toes, but also
accompany his walking with his favorite poems.
***
Finger gymnastics with clothespins "Goose"
Purpose of the game: To develop hand motor skills in children.
Game progress:
Educator: Your fingers are tired of such walking!
They also need to rest. I suggest doing
finger exercises. To do this, we need
ordinary clothespins. With a clothespin
(check with your fingers that it is not too tight
), alternately “bite” the
nail phalanges (from the index to the little finger and back)
to the stressed syllables of the poem:
“Early in the morning the gosling got up.
“He pinches his fingers half asleep”
Change of hands
“Hurry, give me food.
Me and my whole family!”
***
Purpose of the game:
To develop the motor skills of children's hands,
to develop the child's imagination.
Game progress:
Take a flat dish with a bright pattern.
Sprinkle any fine grits over
in a thin even layer. Run your finger
over the rump. Get a bright contrasting line.
Try to draw some objects
(fence, rain, waves, letters). Such drawing
contributes to the development of not only fine motor skills of hands,
but also massages your baby's fingers.
And plus everything development of fantasy and imagination.
And if you take a circle of cardboard and attach 9 to it0003
clothespins, what happens? - Sun!
What about the sun? - round! And what color is it?
- yellow! And again, in a form accessible to a child, we
consolidate the concept of the main sensory standards.
And you can turn on all your imagination and make circles and clothespins out of red
… what? (Apple).
***
"Plant your alley"
Purpose: to teach children the sequential arrangement of
in a row of elements of different sizes.
Rules of the game: you need to plant trees in a row so that
they decrease in height.
Didactic material: trees (birch, linden, maple,
oak, poplar) made of cardboard of different heights from 4 to
20 cm. Each tree differs from the one growing nearby by 2 cm.
***
"Delicious vegetables"
Purpose: to consolidate the ability of children to distinguish vegetables
by taste and smell.
Rules of the game: identify vegetables correctly
for taste, smell.
Description of didactic material: basket with onions,
peas, turnips, cabbage, cucumbers; jars with grated
vegetables (according to the number of children), knives, clean plates,
bowl, boards, aprons, scarves.
***
“Auction”
Purpose: to improve the knowledge of children in distinguishing fabrics
by quality, to consolidate knowledge of colors and their shades.
Rules of the game: correctly describe the quality of the fabric,
determine what product can be sewn from it.
***
"We are entrepreneurs"
Purpose: to train children to distinguish flowering plants
by smell; consolidate knowledge of colors and their shades.
Rules of the game: correctly perform the proposed tests.
Didactic material: flowering plants (aster,
dandelion, rose, lily), stencils, gouache, brush.
Methodology: invite children to open a company
for the production of perfumes. The children think that this is necessary,
listen to each other's answers, then summarize them.
The teacher offers to take on the role of the president of the company
(or one of the children is selected, and the teacher will act as an adviser
).
Employment in the firm is carried out on a competitive basis, that is, according to the results of testing. To
To become employees of the company, who wish to well need
,to distinguish smells, know many names of flowering plants,
To be able to talk about them, be disciplined and cultural
***
“Field of Wonders”
Purpose: To consolidate knowledge children about the primary colors of the spectrum
and their shades.
Exercise in distinguishing the quality of the surfaces of
materials.
Rules of the game:
score the most points by completing the task.
Didactic material: colored pencils,
pieces of fabric of different
quality, sheets of white paper, paints, brushes, arcs of all
colors of the spectrum.
Methodology: Pinocchio comes to visit the children,
greets and asks if they recognize him.
Pinocchio says that he is from the fairy tale "About the Golden Key"
A. Tolstoy, which they know well. There is a fox in it Alice
and the cat Basilio outwitted him: they offered to plant
five gold coins on the "miracle field", and then they were stolen.
Pinocchio says that in this fairy tale many different stories happened to him
, but thanks to the kind dad Carlo
and Giuseppe, as well as the dolls, everything ended well.
***
"Color blinds"
Purpose: to consolidate the children's idea of dividing colors into
warm and cold.
Rules of the game: curtain the window (model) so that the shade
of the blinds matches the color of the festively decorated hall.
Didactic material: Cardboard blinds of different colors and
shades (according to the number of children, the model of pink and blue
festively decorated halls with uninnovered windows,
Flanelgraph.
***
“Magic petals”
Purpose: Purpose: Purpose: Purpose: consolidate children's knowledge of primary colors and their shades.0003
Rules of the game: put the petals of different shades correctly
into a flower that is considered to be open.
Didactic material: a red flower made
of cardboard (petals in different shades from light to dark),
sets of petals of different shades of six primary colors
(according to the number of children), vases, trays.
***
"Artists"
Purpose: to introduce children to the shades of primary colors.
Rules of the game: correctly arrange the balls by shades
from the lightest to the darkest and vice versa.
Didactic material: unfinished drawing on the theme
“Girls go to the holiday”, paper, paints, palette, brushes,
jars of water, shreds of fabric (according to the number of children).
***
"When does this happen?"
Purpose: to consolidate children's knowledge of the parts of the day, develop
speech, memory.
Game progress: The teacher lays out pictures,
, depicting the life of children in kindergarten: morning exercises,
, breakfast, classes, etc. Children choose any picture for themselves,
look at it. To the word "morning" all the children raise
the picture associated with the morning and explain their choice.
Then day, evening, night. For each correct
answer, the children get a token.
***
"What's going on?"
Purpose: to teach to classify objects by color, shape,
quality, material, compare, compare,
select as many items as possible that fit this
definition; develop attention.
Game progress: Tell us what happens:
green - cucumber, crocodile, leaf, apple, dress, Christmas tree ....
wide - river, road, tape, street ...
The one with the most words wins.
***
"Find an object of the same shape"
develop visual perception, memory, imagination,
fine motor skills, speech.
Equipment: playing field, cards with subject
pictures.
Game progress:
The teacher examines the playing field with the child,
discusses the pictures: “Look, watermelon. In shape, it
resembles a circle. Watermelon is round!” etc. Explain
to the child the meaning of the game: “Here is a watermelon, it is round. Find
a matching card and place it on top. Now
let's find cards that show
round objects and close the empty cells.
Which drawings will you choose? Correctly! It's a watermelon,
wheel, ball and buttons. You can make the task more difficult.
Ask the child to select cards with suitable
pictures for geometric figures.
While playing, the child will memorize geometric
figures, learn to distinguish them, compare
surrounding objects by shape.
"Build a path"
Purpose of the game: to identify the level of perception of the value.
Equipment: Lego, bunny toy,
teddy bear.
Game progress: make a path of any length,
and now make the path longer than the previous one.
Put a bear cub on the long path,
put a hare on the short one.
***
"Shapes from sticks"
Purpose of the game:
To train children to distinguish objects by size;
form ideas about the relative size
of objects. Learn to arrange in descending order
sizes three to four items. To learn to dismember
the image of an object into its component parts and
to recreate a complex form from parts.
Game progress: 1) The teacher lays out large cards,
gives the child one small item each.
The child should not just recognize the object, but correlate
images of objects by size. After that,
the result is fixed in the word, a graphic
plate is given - “big”, “small”.
2) The teacher gives the child one card with the image
of an object and an object of the same size, cut into
parts. An adult offers to assemble a whole object from parts
by superimposing parts on a picture - a sample.
This game can be repeated many times, each time
changing its plot.
***
"Spread the figures into houses"
Purpose of the game: to introduce flat geometric
shapes - square, circle, triangle, oval,
rectangle; learn to select the right forms
using different methods.
Equipment: five large figures (square, circle,
triangle, oval, rectangle). Many small
of the same figures.
How to play: put large figures in front of the child
- houses, and many small ones and play with them:
“Here are funny multi-colored figures.
This is a circle, it is
roll like that! And this is a square. It can be placed."
Then offer to arrange the small figurines
“on their beds”: “Evening has come. It's time for the figurines to rest.
Let's put them to sleep in their beds.
Give each of the children a small figurine and ask them to take turns
to find the place for each of them. When the children have laid out all the figures,
sum up the game: “Now all the figures have found their beds
and are resting. Then show again and call
all figures without requiring children to repeat.
***
"Rolling - not rolling"
Equipment: cubes and balls of different sizes and colors.
Game progress: show the children a ball, then a cube, accompanying
actions with the words: “This is a ball, it rolls - like this.
Balls are smooth. Feel. And this is a cube. Can the cube roll?
No, it can't. But he has corners, touch them.
Give the children one cube and one marble each and invite them to play
with them: put them on the floor, on the table, on top of each other, roll them, etc.
Then ask them to sort the objects into boxes: and cubes in another.
***
"Figures play hide and seek"
Purpose of the game: to introduce three-dimensional geometric
bodies - a cube and a ball; learn to choose the right forms.
Equipment: medium size carton
(1-2 pieces) with square and round slots; cubes
and balls of the same size.
How to play: show the children the box and teach them
how to push the balls through the slots, then the cubes.
Then offer to play hide and seek: “Toys
decided to play hide and seek. Let's help them hide
in the box."
Distribute blocks and marbles to the children and ask them to take turns
push them into the corresponding holes
in the box. This game can be repeated many times.
You can make holes in two boxes: one in the shape of a circle
and the other in the shape of a square and invite the children
to hide the figurines in the houses. When the children complete the task,
look into the houses with them and look at their
"inhabitants", drawing the attention of the kids to the fact that balls live in
one house, and cubes in the other.
***
"Find a pair by shape"
Equipment: pairs of flat geometric figures
made of cardboard of different colors (circles, squares, triangles,
ovals, rectangles, a box or a hat.
Game progress: before starting the game, select geometric
figures. The teacher shows the figure, and baby says
what can be the shape of such a figure (for example, a cap
is triangular; a refrigerator is rectangular; a ball is
round, etc.)
***
children's ability to compare two
objects by size, activate the words
"big, small" in children's speech.
Game progress. The teacher says: “Children,
bear came to visit us. He wants to give his friends nice rugs0003
but he didn't have time to decorate them. Let's help him decorate
rugs. How are we going to decorate them? (in circles)
What color are the circles? Are they the same size or different?
Where will you put the big circles? (to corners) Where do you put
small circles? (middle) What color are they? Mishka really liked your rugs
, now he will give these
rugs to his friends.”
***
Bear houses
Purpose of the game: to develop children's ability to compare two
objects by size, activate the words "big, small" in children's speech
.
Game progress: The teacher says: “Guys, I will now tell you an interesting story
. There lived - there were two
bear cubs, and one day they decided to build houses for themselves.
They took walls and roofs for houses, but they just don’t understand
what to do next.
Let's help them make houses.
Look how big our cubs are! What is this
bear cub in size, big or small? What we
we will make a house for him? Which wall will you take, large
or small? What kind of roof should I take? And this teddy bear
what is the largest? What kind of house should he make? Which roof will you take
? What color is she? Let's plant Christmas trees near houses
. Are the trees the same size or different?
Where will we plant a tall Christmas tree? Where can we plant a low tree?
The cubs are very happy that you helped them. They want
to play with you."
***
"Treat the mice with tea"
Purpose of the game: to develop the ability of children to compare two objects
in size, to activate the words "big,
" in children's speech.
Game progress: The teacher says: “Look who came to visit us
, gray mice. Look they brought
Take a treat.
Look, are the mice the same in size
or different? Let's give them tea. What is
needed for this? We'll take the cups first. What is the size of this
cup, big or small? Which mouse
will we give it to? » Then we compare the size of saucers,
sweets, cookies, apples and pears and compare them with
the size of mice. We offer children to drink mice and
treat them with fruits.
***
"Pick up the paths to the houses"
Purpose of the game: to develop the ability of children to compare
two objects in length, to activate words
a "long, short" in children's speech.
Game progress: we tell the children that the animals
built their own houses, but did not have time to build paths
for them. Look, here are the houses of bunnies and chanterelles.
Find paths to their houses. Which track are you
Will you make the bunny long or short? Which path
will you put to the fox's house? Next, we select paths
to the houses of other little animals.
***
"Fix the rug"
Game progress: The teacher says: “Look what
rugs the bunnies brought us, beautiful, bright, but who -
ruined these mats. Bunnies don't know what to do with
now. Let's help them fix the rugs.
What are the largest mats? What patches will we put
on the big rug? Which ones will we put on the small
mat? What color are they? So we helped the bunnies
fix the mats.”
***
"Bridges for Bunnies"
Purpose of the game: to develop the ability of children to compare two
objects in size, activate words in children's speech
"big, small, long, short".
Course of the game: The teacher says: “We lived - there were two bunnies in the forest
and they decided to make bridges for themselves on the
clearing. They found boards, but they just can't figure out who should take which board. Look, are the bunnies
the same size or different? What is the difference between
andplanks? Put them side by side and see which of the
which one is longer and which one is shorter.
