Make early learning fun with simple alphabet sensory activities. This alphabet sensory bin is so easy to set up but provides tons of fun! There are so many ways to play with puzzles, learn letters, and enjoy sensory play! Combine multiple early learning ideas for playful, hands-on learning time.

Alphabet Puzzle Play Activity with Sensory Bin

Play and Learn With An Alphabet Sensory Bin

Simple alphabet sensory play you can set up today! Puzzles make wonderful early learning tools. However, repeating the same puzzle so many times is not as much fun. Mix up your puzzle play and letter recognition activity by adding the pieces to a colorful rice sensory bin.

Learning the alphabet and letter recognition is so important! Check out more easy puzzle activities for preschoolers!

The Benefits Of Sensory Bins

Are sensory bins worth it? Yes, they are worth it. The more basic you keep the sensory bin, the better off you are. Remember, you create a tactile experience for your kids, not a Pinterest image. While we have fantastic pictures of sensory bins, they only stay that way for a minute!

Sensory bins are awesome hands-on tools for children to learn about their world and senses! Sensory play may calm a child, focus a child, and engage a child.

Here’s what children can learn from sensory bins:

Practical Life Skills ~ Sensory bins let a child explore, discover and create play using practical life skills (dumping, filling, scooping) and learn valuable play skills.

Play Skills {emotional development} ~ For both social play and independent play, sensory bins allow children to play cooperatively or side by side. My son has had many positive experiences with other children over a bin of rice!

Language Development ~ Sensory bins increase language development by experiencing all there is to see and do with their hands, which leads to great conversations and opportunities to model language.

Understanding 5 Senses ~ Many sensory play bins include a few of the 5 senses! Imagine a bin of brightly colored rainbow rice: touch the loose grains against the skin, see the vivid colors as they mix together, and hear the sound of sprinkling over a plastic container or shaken in a plastic egg!

Get Your Free Quick Start Sensory Bin Guide

Alphabet Sensory Bin

To make this alphabet puzzle sensory bin, I used my stash of rainbow rice. I save my sensory bin fillers from activity to activity. To learn how to quickly and easily color white rice, check out our easy colored rice recipe! It doesn’t take long at all!

Supplies:

  • rainbow colored rice
  • alphabet puzzle
  • Tongs, cups, spoons etc.

STEP 1. Dye Your Rice

  1. Measure 1 cup of rice into a container.
  2. Next add 1 teaspoon of Vinegar. 
  3. Now add as much food coloring as desired (deeper color= more food coloring) to the rice.
  4. Cover the container and SHAKE the rice vigorously until the rice is evenly coated with the food coloring!
  5. Spread the colored rice on a paper towel or a tray to dry in an even layer.
  6. Repeat for each color of rice you want to make.

Check out our best tips for HOW TO DYE RICE.

STEP 2. Fill your sensory bin

To make this simple alphabet puzzle activity and sensory bin, add your letters to the rice and mix them up! I like to add a set of tongs for fine motor skills!

You can hide the letters or leave them on top. You can use a bigger bin for a bigger search.

Alphabet Puzzle Sensory Bin Activity with Fine Motor Skills

STEP 3. Time To Play

Use an inexpensive pair of dollar store tongs to find and pull out letters from the rice and match them to the corresponding letter on the puzzle board.

Strengthen and promote fine motor skills and letter recognition.

Alphabet Puzzle Sensory Search

Turn an ordinary alphabet puzzle into a unique alphabet puzzle activity with sensory play! When the puzzle is complete, add scoops and buckets for creative,  sensory play.

Alphabet Activity Early Learning Play Idea with Sensory Bin

Check Out These Helpful Sensory Bin Resources

There’s so much more to learn about sensory bins and sensory play.

More Fun Sensory Bins To Make

Here are more simple DIY sensory bin ideas below that you can easily put together yourself.

 Click on the image below or on the link for more fun and easy sensory activities for kids!

2 Comments

  1. Where can I get the letter shapes? I’d lik eto buy them. They would be wonderful for making playdough letters. I’d like to do this and make the letters out of dough and bake them. Then put them in the colored rice for the kiddos to find.

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