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Garbanzo Bean Sensory Bin

Garbanzo Bean Sensory BinToday we made a garbanzo bean sensory bin.  We purchased some dried garbanzo beans aka chickpeas at the grocery store.  Follow these steps to color the beans:

  1.  Pour the bag of beans into a plastic bag.
  2.  Add 2 dashes of rubbing alcohol (I am too lazy to measure but if you wanted to measure it  is about 2 tsp) and lots of squeezes of food coloring.
  3.  Shake, shake and shake the bag some more to coat the beans.
  4.   Pour the beans out onto  newspaper to dry.
  5.   Allow about 15 minutes to dry.

Once dry, the children can explore the sensory bin.  The garbanzo beans provide some heavier input in a sensory bin compared to rice or regular dried beans.  The bumpy texture provides a different type of tactile input as well.

This sensory bin is only for children who will not put small objects in their mouth.  Garbanzo beans are small and solid so avoid with young children.

What is your favorite material for a sensory bin?

sensory move mini book

Sensory Mini Books and Charts This electronic book includes 7 sensory mini books, 7 sensory charts, 7 sensory four square strips and over 100 picture word cards.  The mini book titles include: TOUCH, MOVE, ATTENTION, CALMING DOWN, EAT, SMELL and LISTEN.  Find out more at  https://www.yourtherapysource.com/minisensory.html.

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