Sensory skills mean when a child uses any of the 5 skills i.e. touch, sight, sound, taste and smell. Using these skills through various activities has a calming effect on children while enjoying at the same time. These skills are also important because they help in the development of motor skills and fine motor skills. Children will also love these activities and they can engage with it anytime they feel like. Below are some of the activities and tools that you can engage your child in for enhancing your child’s sensory skills which will focus on touch, sight and sound senses.

1. Rice Rainbow

For making rice rainbow you will need rice, vinegar, food color and a box. Take one cup of rice and add one tablespoon vinegar to it. After this add food color to it as per the required shade (more food color means darker shade). After this close the container and shake it well. You can give your child this opportunity to shake it well. Let the rice dry for some time. Once the rice are ready you can ask your child to put different colored rice into the box. This will help your child to use sight and touch and while putting the rice into the box sound will be produced.

2. Lava Lamp

Here you will require vinegar, baking powder, food color, cooking oil, water and a transparent bottle or jar. Put 2-3 tablespoons of baking powder into the bottle and fill one quarter of bottle with water. Now add 1-2 drops of food color (any color that your child likes) into it and shake it a little. Now fill the bottle with cooking oil till three quarters of the bottle and pour one tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice into it. You will see colored bubbles in it moving in the bottle.

3. Slime

You can always engage your child in playing with slime and children also love it, these are easily available at market but, you can make your own too at home. For this you will need food color, glue, baking soda, lens cleanser and glitter (optional). Pour one cup glue, One tablespoon baking powder, food color and glitter into the bowl and stir it well. Add one tablespoon of lens cleaner into it and stir it well until it starts to thicken. Let your child knead the slime and play with it as he likes.

Children will love to engage in all of the above activities, these are easy and enjoyable for them. During early years child’s development is taking place rapidly and to enhance their sensory skills these activities will act like a booster for them.

Muskan Harjai
(Early Childhood Educator)

M.A. Education (Early Childhood Education and Care)