Our favorite tactile sensory activities make great hands-on play for kids of all ages! Sensory activities are so important for children and offer so many educational and developmental benefits. We love simple sensory play ideas. Find our best tactile activities and recipes with the links below. Perfect anytime fun that will keep your kids busy!

TACTILE ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS

TACTILE PLAY

 Get ready for an amazing tactile sensory experience. Some of these tactile activities are messier than others. You might enjoy some of them outside for easier cleanup. While these sensory activities might be messy to make they are not messy on the hands for play. Some kids will dig right in, and some will hesitate. But everyone can have a great play experience!

TIPS FOR THE RELUCTANT CHILD

The following ideas may help your child feel more comfortable with tactile activities. Always remember not to push the play if your child seems very uncomfortable and you can not find a way to make it more appealing.

• Do the mixing of ingredients beforehand for less messy play.
• If your child is hesitant to dig right into these sensory activities, give him a big spoon or scoop!
• Keep a bucket of water and towel close by to rinse hands when needed.

FUN TACTILE ACTIVITIES

Cornstarch Dough

Only 2 ingredients make this homemade  cornstarch dough easy to whip up and fun for kids to play with too.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Fairy Dough

Flubber

Our homemade flubber is similar to our liquid starch slime but it’s thicker, stretchier, and tougher.

Fluffy Slime

One of our most popular slime recipes and super fun to play with.  Check out how to make the best light and fluffy slime.

Foam Dough

Just 2 ingredients, makes this fun and squishy tactile play for kids.

Kinetic Sand

If you love the way kinetic sand feels out of the box, why not make your own DIY kinetic sand at home and save!  Kids love this type of play sand that moves and it works magically for a variety of ages.

Lemon Scented Rice

The fresh smell of lemons is so invigorating that you might need to make some lemonade too! Lemon scented rice is quick and easy to make.

ALSO CHECK OUT: Rice Sensory Bins

Moon Sand

Moon sand is a very simple sensory play recipe you can whip up with kitchen pantry ingredients for same day play! You may also hear this colored moon sand called cloud dough which is how we first learned about it. What I love about this sensory play idea is that it’s non-toxic, taste-safe, and easy to make!

Oobleck

Just 2 ingredients, oobleck makes for easy tactile play for kids.

Playdough

Check out our complete collection of playdough recipes, from no-cook playdough to our popular fairy dough.  Homemade playdough is an easy mess-free sensory activity for kids.

ALSO CHECK OUT: 17+ Playdough Activities

Sand Foam

My favorite sensory activities are ones I can create with what I already have in the house. This super simple sand recipe uses just two ingredients, shaving cream and sand!

Which tactile sensory activity will you try first?

Click on the image below or on the link for more awesome sensory activities for kids.