Easter Sensory Bin - Busy Toddler

Welcome to Day 3 of our A Very Toddler Easter series that we are co-hosting with Kristina from Toddler Approved. Each day this week, we are sharing a new Easter activity idea for toddlers. Check out our Easter page for all the Easter activities!

I’m not sure if you know this little secret about toddlers. This teeny tiny little secret that can be the difference between you having a hot cup of coffee in the morning or reheating a cold one and finally abandoning it by lunchtime.

Get your note pad out because this tip will change everything.

Toddlers love rice bins.

It may seem simple.
It may seem crazy.
It may seem boring to you.
It may seem wildly messy.

But they love them.

I know you’re thinking “what a mess!”

We’ll get to that (spoiler alert: it wasn’t messy).

First…the simplicity of a rice bin is what makes it perfect for busy parents. Grab a tub. Add rice. Look at toddler play. I’m not kidding. Rice bins are gold.

That’s why I made an Easter sensory bin for my kids.

I knew without a shadow of a doubt that my kids would love this bin and love it for days. Why? Because TODDLERS LOVE RICE BINS.

And I set this bin up faster than you can say “Hippity Hop Easter’s on it’s way.”

Materials:

(this list contains affiliate links)

Plastic Easter eggs
Storage tub
Rice (optional: dye it rainbow colored)
Empty egg carton(s)

I 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 quart storage container. I cracked open a bunch of Easter eggs and put one half in the bin with the rice and the other half in the egg cartons.

You can’t believe how long my kids played!

My kids (ages 27 months old and 3.5 years old) played at this bin for well over half an hour. And that was just round one. We left this bin up for 5 days. And it was a hit each and every day. They spent hours here.

What did my kids love?

They loved it all! They loved scooping the rice, pouring it, filling eggs and trying to snap them closed. My son (3.5) was able to make his own egg shakers and he loved it. My daughter (27 months) wasn’t quite able to put two halves back together but she was able to ask brother for help.

But what about the mess?!

What mess? My kids have been taught and taught and re-taught how to use sensory bins and use them nicely. It didn’t happen overnight and you can read all about it in my introducing toddlers to sensory bins post.

I tell you, if there is one thing I’m glad I did it was teach my kids to use sensory bins (and keep them tidy). If nothing else, it’s helped me drink a lot of hot coffee over the past few years that I otherwise would have totally missed out on.

Because nothing hooks a toddler like a rice bin. Add in the magic of Easter eggs and you’ve got one simple, easy and totally doable Easter Sensory Bin that your kids will love.