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Inside Play Sensory Play

Rainbow Rice Sensory Bin

RAINBOW RICE SENSORY BIN: Create a simple rice sensory bin using food coloring; an easy toddler activity dying grains of rice

Creating a rainbow rice sensory bin is the coolest!

I’ve seen rainbow sensory bins all over Pinterest and always wondered how to make them and (more importantly) how hard are they to make. Good news friends, they are a snap! I used this awesome recipe from Happy Hooligans to create our rainbow rice sensory bin and it was an absolute smash hit for both my kids.

Sensory bins are amazing for toddlers and preschoolers. They captivate them like no other activity, in my humble opinion. This rainbow rice sensory bin was one for the ages for us (and because it’s a rice bin, it’ll last forever).

RAINBOW RICE SENSORY BIN: Create a simple rice sensory bin using food coloring; an easy toddler activity dying grains of rice

How to create a rainbow rice sensory bin:

Materials
(this list contains affiliate links)

  • Rice
  • Food coloring
  • Vinegar
  • Various tools to play with (my kids were using these Helping Hands tools)

I followed the directions from Happy Hooligans to a T for this: you can find her recipe here. It’s a simple mixture vinegar, food coloring and rice. I made mine in plastic containers and set them open to dry on my dryer (seemed like the warmest spot to me). They were dry and ready to play with in a few hours. So easy and my toddler loved making it as much as he loved playing with it.

RAINBOW RICE SENSORY BIN: Create a simple rice sensory bin using food coloring; an easy toddler activity dying grains of rice

I put the rice in rainbow order into a plastic tub for my kids (2.5 and 14 months) to play with. It was so beautiful in rainbow order and they were captivated by it. Then the real play started. They worked on scooping and grabbing the rice – a great fine motor skills activity.

My 14 month old loved scooping. She would grab a few handfuls and try to get them in the measuring cup and then squeal with glee as she dumped the cup. My son worked to fill jars using his tools and measuring cups.

RAINBOW RICE SENSORY BIN: Create a simple rice sensory bin using food coloring; an easy toddler activity dying grains of rice

Not long into playing with this, all the colors were mixed together. And it’s still just as beautiful and captivating as it was when we first started. If I can be honest, all mixed together, it looked like Fruity Pebbles cereal. Made me a little hungry and a little nostalgic.

The kids did great with this bin and it’s still standing a week later. The baby plays with it for about 10 minutes before she starts trying to eat it, but the 2.5 year old will play for up to 45 minutes at a time. We’ve saved the rice in a plastic container for later and I know it will last months for us. I’m happy to put in the little bit of effort to dye the rice knowing that months of happiness that will come out of this bin.

RAINBOW RICE SENSORY BIN: Create a simple rice sensory bin using food coloring; an easy toddler activity dying grains of rice

This rainbow rice sensory bin is too cool and I’m so glad I finally bit the bullet and tried it. So easy. I can’t stress how easy this was to put together and incredibly fun for my kids.

Will you try making a rainbow rice sensory bin?

RAINBOW RICE SENSORY BIN: Create a simple rice sensory bin using food coloring; an easy toddler activity dying grains of rice


3 Comments

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Trackbacks

  1. Sensory Bin Basics: What You Need to Have - Busy Toddler says:
    April 13, 2016 at 6:12 AM

    […] they look adorable all lined up together? My “go-to” bases are rice (mine is currently rainbow colored), beans, corn meal, and even pom pom balls (although apparently those guys forgot to pose for the […]

    Reply
  2. Dumping Station Sensory Bin - Busy Toddler says:
    June 27, 2016 at 9:14 PM

    […] well, is reasonably edible, and cleans up easily. My rice is dyed rainbow colors from this fun little rice activity we did a few months […]

    Reply
  3. Easter Sensory Bin - Busy Toddler says:
    April 12, 2017 at 6:17 AM

    […] grabbed our bag of rainbow dyed rice – which I dyed a year ago and keep on hand in a Ziplock bag – and dumped it in a 31 […]

    Reply

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Hello Hello

I'm Susie, a former teacher turned stay-at-home-mom. I'm all about fun, simple activities that can be set up in seconds but hold little attention spans for much longer.

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