Patriotic Sensory Bin

This Patriotic Sensory Bin is a fun way to keep kids busy!

Create this patriotic themed sensory play idea for Memorial Day, July 4th or any time! It’s super easy to set up, in fact, use what ever you have on hand that would be fun in a sensory bin. Keep the colors rounded to red, white and blue for a true patriotic bin. As for fillers and add-ins; use scoops, funnels, pom-poms, cups or letter/number manipulatives in addition to the bin base, the dyed red and blue rice.

RELATED: Fork Stamped Fireworks Craft

watch this quick video tutorial on How to dye rice

All activities should be supervised by an adult. This post contains affiliate links- this just means I earn a small commission if you purchase via links below, no extra cost to you! Read our disclosure policy here.

materials:

Dyed red and blue rice (recipe)
Un-dyed rice (you can dye rice white, but I just kept it as is)
Storage bin (something like this works great for sensory bins)

Add ins:

Pom-poms
Candy scoops
Cups
Spoons
Ice cube tray
Letter/number manipulatives

Instructions:

Make the rice ahead of time. I usually like making dyed rice overnight so it can dry real well on a baking sheet.
Place the rice and all of the add-ins to a storage bin (or any other bin you have that is deep enough). I made this patriotic sensory bin as an American flag real quick, but if you don’t want to bother, simply arrange the red, white and blue rice in 3 rows.

more fun sensory bin ideas for kids

Kids will love this fun Insect Sensory Bin!

This Duplo + Beans Sensory Bin is always a hit!

What is my child learning and improving?

Sensories (touching, smelling, hearing, language)
Creativity (playing with the rice and add-ins in a creative way)
Hand-eye coordination (pouring, scooping the rice)
Fine motor skills (using the scoops, spoons, playing with the small add-ins, playing with rice)

Kids will be consumed with excitement playing with this sensory bin. It’s colorful, bright and those little hands can exercise and improve important skills while having a ton of simple fun!