Fun Autumn Sensory Activities
We’ve had lots of fun these past couple of weeks with some Fun Autumn Sensory Activities. We used to own a Tuff Spot but when we had a kitchen extension, the builders thought it was for them and used it for actual building – I mean really, a builder’s tray used for cement mixing instead of kid’s sensory activities?! The builder’s were very confused when I tried to explain that the kid’s used it for playing! They thought I was mad! Anyway, back in the Summer, we were lucky enough to go to a baby and toddler sensory activity group – called Little Learners, although initially Archie wasn’t keen – he loved it in the end so I wanted to try out some different seasonal sensory activities to celebrate Autumn at home.
We opted not to buy another tuff spot as the sides are so low and I thought Archie would knock anything I put in it – straight out again! So we used an under storage bed box and also bought a garden tray – these are cheaper than a tuff spot and much less messy for sensory activities such as rice. Autumn is my favourite time of the year and with so many beautiful smells, colours and textures, I thought it the perfect season to try out some fun Autumn sensory activities with my toddler! I love to put together all the Autumn treasures the kids collect when we are out and about during Autumn so they can play with them.
Easy Autumn Sensory Activities
Lentils, Pulses and Beans are really easy Autumn Sensory ideas and have minimal set up – just tip from the packet! To this you can add conkers, Autumn Leaves, acorns and anything you find on an Autumn walk. For a Halloween themed sensory bin you could add these Smashers which look like eyeballs but they are hard and you ‘smash’ them open to reveal a soft toy inside. Smashers can be bought from Amazon. Archie loved the lentils and fully immersed himself in them! Years ago, when I was at University, I looked after a lovely 6 year old boy called Michael with Autism. I used to teach him how to communicate and as a reward for working, he was allowed to spend time lying in a bag of lentils. I must admit – it feels great to immerse yourself in lentils! Finlay (aged 7) played with the beans and pulses for hours, making ‘tagliatelle with crunched up leaves for the Parmesan cheese apparently!’
Other great things to add to sensory bins are these Zuru Tangle Wild Toys they’re really fun sensory toys – I could play with these for hours!
Natural Autumn Sensory
Soil makes a brilliant Autumn Sensory bin for digging around in , especially if you use this outside – then it makes for minimal mess. If you’d like to add a Halloween sensory activity – you could try adding a Robo Alive Spider! They move like real spiders! It’s quite disturbing to see them emerge from the undergrowth!
Cheap easy Autumn Sensory Ideas
Shaving foam is another cheap sensory activity. Try adding liquid watercolours to the shaving foam to make pretty colours. We used giant cotton reels, spoons and plastic pipettes to play with the shaving foam.
Autumn Sensory Flour for Toddlers
Flour makes another great Sensory material, we added ground ginger, ground cinnamon, star anise and cinnamon sticks to make the flour smell amazing. Archie had loads of fun with this and enjoyed playing hide and seek to find the cinnamon sticks. It did make the kitchen smell delicious!
Pasta is a very simple and easy sensory play activity to set up. Try using green, orange and red pasta as well as really large pasta shapes and hoops. The pasta shapes can be threaded and acorns and leaves can be added and by far this is the least messy sensory activity. If you want some other ideas for keeping the Messy Play Tidy – see here for Non Messy Craft Activities for children.
If you’re looking for more fun Autumn Sensory play activities, try these Autumn craft and sensory ideas below!
And go here to get our full list of Outdoor Autumn Activities for kids!
Ideas for Fun Autumn Sensory Play
And Next Comes L – Autumn Leaves Soup – Water Sensory Play
The Resourceful Mama – Corn Sensory Bin
The Imagination Tree – Autumn Woods Sensory Small World
Fun at Home with Kids – Autumn Sensory Play for Toddlers
Fun a Day – Pumpkin Pie Sensory Play
Natural Beach Living – Autumn Scented Salt Dough
Things to Share and Remember – Autumn Outdoor Sensory Nature Play
Simple Play Ideas – Autumn Guess Bags – Focusing on Touch
Hands on as We Grow – Paper Autumn Tree Art with Spices
Kids Craft Room – Sensory Nature Cutting Tray
Stay at Home Educator – Autumn Leaves Sensory Bin
Little Bins For Little Hands – Apple Slime
Life Over C’s – Sunflower Sensory Bin for Fine Motor Skills
Teaching Mama – Pumpkin Fluff
And Next Comes L – Pinecone and Cinnamon Sensory Soup
The Imagination Tree – Autumn Sensory Writing Tray
Kids Craft Room – Leaf Sensory Bags
Crafts on Sea – Mess-Free Autumn Tree Craft
The Preschool Tool Box – Autumn Trees Marbled Paint Resist Art Activity
I Can Teach My Child – Pumpkin Balloon Sensory Matching
More seasonal sensory play ideas
*This post contains affliate links. We were gifted the Zuru products in exchange for an honest review.*
If you’d like some more ideas for fun Autumn Crafts for kids, you could try our Autumn Leaf People, 20 Autumn Leaf Activities for Kids, There are lots of fun conker activities here: 5 things to do with Conkers or join our 5 Day Kids Woodland Nature Challenge. for lots of woodland themed ideas for makes and bakes for kids.
