TiNY CLUB: Animal Habitat Sensory Bags

Today we’re learning about habitats for Tiny Club. What’s a habitat? A habitat is the natural home of an animal or plant. When we see an animal in the wild, we’re usually seeing them in their habitat. Foxes live in forests, while dolphins live in the ocean. Beavers live near lakes, while camels live in the desert.

Let’s make our own habitat sensory bags. Your toddler can use the bag as a playmat for their plastic animal toys, or just for some tactile play! As they play, talk about other animals and where they live.

Materials:

A gallon-sized plastic bag
Water
Oil (baby oil, vegetable oil, or olive oil will work)
Food coloring
Duct tape
Plastic animal toys
Optional: water beads

Instructions:

Step 1. Fill the plastic bag about halfway up with water.

Step 2. Add a few spoonfuls of oil to the water. The oil will create bubbles and more sensory fun. For additional texture, you can add water beads to the mixture.

Step 3. Add a few drops of food coloring. If your toddler likes to play with ocean animal figures, you can use blue; if your child prefers to play with farm animals, you can use green.

Step 4. Use tape to seal the top of the bag. You can also seal the sides for added security.

Step 5. Help your toddler place their plastic animal toys on top of the bag. Ask which ones belong in the ocean and which ones belong on land. 

As an alternate activity, you can fill a bag partway with shaving cream and add food coloring and a few plastic animal toys. Your toddler can squeeze and press the bag to uncover the different animals.

Don’t forget to check out our August Tiny Club book of the month, Cori Doerrfeld’s The Rabbit Listened. For more sensory play, visit us on Thursdays for a special Messy Thursday activity upstairs in Creativity Cafe.