Easy DIY Sensory Language Bins For Children: Water Play With a PURPOSE

Summer is the perfect time to slow down, cool off with water, and create FUN opportunities for your child to learn language through play. The best part? You don't need to buy expensive sensory bins or materials! Some of the most language-rich activities for sensory bins use everyday items you already have sitting around in your kitchen, bathroom, or toy box - along with some water or ice!

As pediatric Speech-Language Pathologists, one of our favorite ways to support increased communication at home is to create multi-sensory meaningful play interactions between children and their parents and caregivers. Research consistently shows that children learn new words more quickly when language is paired with meaningful actions, sensory experiences, and responsive interactions. Hands-on play activates multiple senses, helping children to understand, learn and use new vocabulary. Motor experiences also support brain development by strengthening the connections between language, attention, and learning.

Here are some simple water-based sensory bin activities that you can use with your child this summer (and all year long), along with simple language modeling tips for caregivers:

1. Fruit & Veggie Washing Station

• 

• 

• 

Gather a variety of fruits and vegetables such as strawberries, blueberries, tomatoes, green beans, or sliced apples or radishes. Fill a large bowl with water and provide your child with kitchen items you already have on hand, like measuring cups, a soup ladle, a colander, towel, whisk, muffin tin, or baking sheet. Your child can then help you wash, scoop, pour, strain, dry, and sort the fruits and vegetables for snack time or during your regular food prep times. Just remember to always serve and cut foods appropriately for your child's age to avoid choking hazards.

Language to Model

This activity is perfect for teaching a variety of describing words such as vocabulary related to describing food textures, appearance, shape, taste, and size.

• "This berry is round and sweet."

• "This feels so smooth”

• "This bean is crunchy!"

• “This grape is even bigger!”

  
  

Parent Tip: This is a fantastic activity for children who are more selective eaters, because it provides pressure-free exposure to trying new foods during play rather than during a mealtime. Try playing alongside your child and taste the foods yourself, so you can positively describe their tastes and textures. Children are much more likely to explore and try new foods when they see trusted adults enjoying them. However, don’t pressure your child to taste the food – allow them to make that decision on their own.

Try saying things like:

• "Wow, this carrot is so crunchy!"

• "This blueberry is really juicy."

• "I wonder if this tomato tastes sweet or sour."

  
  

2. Baby Bath Washing Station

• 

• 

• 

This activity combines pretend play around a regular routine your child also most likely enjoys – bathtime! Fill your child's bathtub, water table, or a large kitchen container (e.g. a pot or Tupperware) with warm soapy water. Place another container nearby with clean water for ‘rinsing.’ Add a washable baby doll, small bath toys, washcloths or sponges, a towel, and even a diaper or change of clothes for baby after bath time.

Language to Model

This activity naturally teaches functional vocabulary related to:

• Body parts

• Frequently used actions: e.g. wash, pour, dry, scrub

• Sequencing and early storytelling – “first, then”, ‘What’s next?”

  
  

Parent Tip: Children love pretending to care for babies during pretend play, so follow their lead! Consider joining them in play using your own baby doll and singing bath songs, pretend to comfort the baby, and talk through each step just like you would during your own child's bath. For example, "First let’s wash baby’s (body parts)..." "Next we rinse..." 

3. "What's Inside?" Water Balloons or Plastic Eggs

• 

• 

• 

Reusable water balloons or plastic Easter eggs make wonderful surprise containers. Place small waterproof toys, animals, or snack items inside for children to discover.

Language to Model:

• Prepositions  - “What’s inside?”, ‘Take out’

• Expanding sentences – “open” – “open the egg!”

• Descriptive Vocabulary – “That is a tiny frog!”

Parent Tip: Turn it into a rescue or hide-and-seek game. Hide one specific toy and ask your child to help you find it. Children can also take turns hiding a toy for parents to find.

• "Now Fish is hiding!”

• "Where is the fish?"

• "You found the fish!"

  
  

4. Ice Rescue Bin

• 

• 

• 

Freeze small waterproof toys or objects (e.g. plastic animals, blueberries, pom poms, pretend gold coins or rocks) inside ice cube trays or small containers of ice (e.g. a muffin tin or bread pan works great!) Once frozen, place the ice cubes onto a baking sheet and provide your child with a bowl of warm water, salt, measuring cups, turkey basters, spoons or forks (e.g. ice pick tools), or spray bottles. Children love discovering what's hidden inside the ice and discovering ways to ‘rescue’ the frozen objects and toys!

Language to Model:

This fun problem-solving activity introduces rich vocabulary concepts, such as:

• Temperature – ‘warm, cold, freezing, frigid’

• Cause and effect terminology – ‘first, then?’

• Verbs – melt, pour, scrape, squeeze, spray, sprinkle

• Adjectives – ‘wet, dry, smooth, rough, sharp’

You can also introduce prediction words like think, and maybe.

• “Do you think the warm water or salt will melt the ice faster?”

• ·Maybe we use some salt?

Parent Tip: Resist the urge to ask questions and help your child! Instead, narrate what your child is already doing and allow them to problem solve and creatively think of their own ways to rescue the frozen objects. Children learn more meaningful language when adults simply join in to their play (narrating their own actions) rather asking questions.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

The key takeaways are that children learn language best through play and YOU are your child’s greatest language learning tool. Kids don't need flashcards, worksheets or expensive educational toys to learn language at home. When children are actively engaged, exploring with their hands and bodies, and sharing play-based experiences with someone they love, there are endless opportunities to build communication skills naturally. Even just 10–15 minutes of shared play each day can provide hundreds of meaningful opportunities for your child to hear, practice and learn new words at home.

 ABOUT US:

Sunny Spot Speech provides private speech therapy services and evaluations for kids in home, online, at your child's preschool, daycare, private school, or at another community location throughout Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley. We have an incredible and growing team of bilingual (Spanish and English speaking) Los Angeles based Speech Language Pathologists who are knowledgeable in the assessment and treatment of a wide range of communicative disorders, including (but not limited to) children with Language Disorders and Developmental Delays, Hearing Loss, AAC users, Fluency disorders, Articulation and Phonological Disorders, Childhood Apraxia of Speech, and Gestalt Language Processors.

We provide bilingual pediatric speech therapy services in the following Los Angeles locations: Northridge, Granada Hills, Encino, Tarzana, Woodland Hills, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, Van Nuys, San Fernando, Valley Village, Burbank, Calabasas.

Contact us for a free phone consultation if you’re concerned about your child’s speech, language or communication abilities: Phone: 818-350-3107 or Email: info@sunnyspotspeech.com.