Sensory Tub: Shapes and Colors

So far, our sensory tubs have been based around seasons and holidays, so I wanted to do something different this time around.  Emory is really interested in colors and shapes right now, so I thought I would go with that and give him a colorful shape-themed sensory tub to keep him occupied!  Putting this together was basically as easy as dumping a bunch of stuff into a shoebox tote for him to explore.

Here's what I included:

shape flash cards
foam SHAPE puzzle pieces
foam crayon-shaped COLOR puzzle pieces
foam counting blocks
red foam circle discs
wooden SHAPE lacing beads set
glossy cardboard SHAPES from a from patterning set
colored craft sticks
yellow foam stars
rhinestones in various shapes/colors
learning links
bingo chips
Yellow ice cream scoop--this was at Elliott's request as he helped me assemble the tub for Emory



Emory started by digging out all the crayon puzzle pieces and assembling the puzzle.  Obviously he wasn't placing them in the "correct" color spot (this is more of a color-word matching puzzle than a color puzzle, in my opinion) but I would say this was actually his favorite part, likely because he had never seen the puzzle before.

Elliott joined in by creating some type of a matching game for them with the flash cards.

We didn't have many diamond shapes, but we did experiment with making our own!

Emory also liked sorting the colored craft sticks into pairs....and yes, I'm aware he was wearing his lunch.  ;)

Elliott spent a little time lacing the shapes, though I was a bit surprised he didn't make any patterns...he usually enjoys patterning work.

Overall, I would say it was a success!  Keeping it on a blanket keeps all the "stuff" confined to a manageable space.  Plus, it gave big brother the opportunity to be in charge lead a "lesson" with brother by helping him identify colors, shapes, puzzles and even creating a game for them to play together.  All while I got the kitchen cleaned!


Linked Up:  Show and Tell, Hip Homeschool Hop, What's on the Tray Wednesday, Thrifty Thursday, It's Playtime, Thinky Linky Thursday, For the Kids Friday, Fun Stuff Fridays, The Play Academy, Sharing Saturday