I love sharing really simple sensory bins because so often you see ones on social media that look like they took an hour+ to set up.

Those are great too but I don't usually have the time!

A simple set up with a base (sand, dried legumes, or rice) and a few scooping materials is all I usually have in ours... and my kids go back to it over and over.

The experimenting, scooping, pouring, burying, sifting, and mixing can happen just as easily - without any fancy or expensive materials.

If you've been wanting to try out a sensory bin, this construction one is a fantastic (and simple) one to start with.

And if you want to try another theme that might pique your child's interest more, check out these 3 other ideas: 3 Simple Sensory Bin Set Ups - Search and Match, Flowers, or Puzzles

Construction Truck Sensory Bin

Materials:

• Black and Brown Legumes
• Toy construction trucks
• A large bin (tupperware) or Sensory Bin Table

Adult Preparation:

1. Add legumes to sensory bin.
2. Add construction trucks to the sensory bin, i.e. create an invitation to play, or leave them next to the sensory bin.
3. Once the sensory bin is ready, put it in an area of the home where it’ll be easy to sweep up any fallen materials, i.e. no carpet.

Presentation: You can show your child how to explore the sensory bin or simply put it in an area accessible to your child and invite them to explore independently

Notes:

• If you only have larger vehicles, you can do this on a larger scale with a big storage bin. If large enough, you could even invite the child to sit in the sensory bin while they play.
• Have some cleaning materials nearby, i.e. hand broom and dustpan to make clean up easier once their play is done.

Extensions:

• Add anything you think will enrich your child’s exploration, i.e. pretend street signs, draw a road on the bottom of the bin, figurines of people, etc.