New Toddler Sensory Bin Idea

I am always looking for new ideas of things to put into a sensory bin/box for my 2 year old. Some things we have already done: beans, rice, pasta, pipe cleaners and pom poms, oatmeal, shaving cream, pop corn kernels, straws, and Styrofoam peanuts. The other day on Facebook I posted some pictures of my big girl playing with shaving cream, which is one of her favorite sensory games. My good friend's mom (who now happens to be a super fun and fantastic Grandma!) posted about a new item for a sensory bin that she uses with her 3 year old granddaughter and I thought I had better give it a try. Turned out to be totally awesome and worthy of a blog post!

She called them "waterbeads" so I went with that name, but found that they actually are called many things. The name brand that I found (at Hobby Lobby) is "Deco Beads" and they are found in the floral department near the marbles and other vase filler items. They come in several colors: purple, blue, orange, clear, pink, red.  I even found them in different shapes: cubes, spheres, and gems. We bought all spheres, in orange, blue, clear, and pink. Here is a picture of the blue package so you'll know what to look for if you want to join in the fun!

These amazing little things come in what looks like a seed packet. Just a packet of tiny little beads. To make them fun, put some of them in a big bowl or tub of water and let them sit for 4-6 hours. When you come back they will be the size of marbles!

They are soft, a little squishy, they bounce just a little bit, and are SO much fun to play with! We left ours in a tub with a little bit of water, and I let my daughter play with them on a towel on the kitchen floor. She could leave them in the tub or play with them on a cookie sheet to see them bounce. We can use these things to practice sorting , making patterns, and counting.

The really neat part about Deco Beads is that you can lay them out on a cookie sheet for a few days and they will eventually dry out and return to their original seed-like shape. You can save them to re-use over and over again. They are non-toxic, have no odor, don't make a mess, and are super fun for toddlers. I even have a hard time resisting the urge to grab a handful while walking past the bin!

I hope you'll help me spread the word about Deco Beads, they are so worth the $3!