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Candy Winter Sesnory bin with blue rice pink pipecleaner candy canes, pink packing peanuts, and candy figures

Beat Winter Boredom: 15 Simple Winter Sensory Bin Ideas to Engage and Delight Your Kids

As I have grown older, I have learned to embrace the coziness of winter. I focus on the things I enjoy about the season and feel grateful for this natural time of “hibernation.” Since children often already find winter magical, incorporating it into their play is an obvious choice. Below are 15 simple ways to include sensory bins in your child’s play this winter!

Safety First

When using sensory bins, safety and supervision are essential to ensure a positive and engaging experience for children. Always supervise children closely, especially when small objects like beads, buttons, or pompoms are involved, as these may pose choking hazards. Tailor the materials to the child’s age and developmental level, and avoid items that could cause allergic reactions or skin irritation. Encourage children to explore with their hands rather than their mouths and reinforce safe play habits. Use sensory bins at your own discretion, keeping individual needs and safety requirements in mind, and always inspect tools and materials for sharp edges or damage before play.

Sensory Bins and Child Development

If you area new reader of my blog, I want to take a moment to share how winter sensory bins align perfectly with the core principles of Wild & Precious Learning. Sensory bins are a playful and engaging way to support early language development, encourage vocabulary growth, and explore foundational math and science concepts. These bins also foster creativity and fine motor skills, embodying my belief that kids learn best through interactive, joyful play. May you and your children delight in playing intentionally and learning playfully!

15 Winter Sensory Bin Ideas

When creating your winter sensory bin, remember that flexibility is key! You can mix and match materials based on what you have at home or what best suits your child’s interests. The lists below provide ideas for bases, secondary items, and tools—feel free to use any combination or substitute with similar items to personalize the experience.

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1. Hot Cocoa Sensory Bin

Need a winter sensory bin that will “warm” you up (ok, maybe it’ll just warm your heart)? Try this hot cocoa-themed sensory bin!

  • Base Ideas:
    • Cocoa Puffs cereal
    • Brown rice
    • Brown beans
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
  • Tool Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Encourage pretend play by making and serving hot cocoa. Children can role-play as baristas or customers, building communication and imagination.
    • Science and Math:
      • Use scoops and cups to explore capacity and measurement while “mixing” the hot cocoa.
      • Introduce magnetism by using magnet wands to pick up pipe cleaner candy canes.
    • Fine Motor Skills:
      • Strengthen hand muscles by using tweezers or tongs to pick up marshmallows or other small objects, enhancing dexterity and coordination.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:
      • Introduce sequential words when making the hot cocoa (first, next, then, after that, and finally) and opposites (hot/cold).
      • Talking Point: Can you share with me the steps you take to make hot cocoa?
      • Book Recommendations: Hot Cocoa Calm by Kira Wiley
Hot Cocoa Themed Winter Sensory Bin with Cocoa Puffs, pipecleaner candy canes, pompom marshmallows a tea go cup and containers of festive straws and paper cinnamon sticks.

2. Snow Sensory Bin

Can you call it a “winter sensory bins list” if you don’t include snow? Of course not! However, if you are like me, you just don’t get snow at your house some winters. This snow sensory bin allows the opportunity for some “snow” play on those snowless winter days!

  • Base Ideas:
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
    • Silver pompoms
    • Silver confetti
    • Snowman items, such as a small felt scarf and hat, an orange bead for a nose, buttons for the body, and rocks or black beans for the eyes
  • Tool Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity:
      • Build a snowman, create a snow angel with fingers, and more.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the “snow.” 
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up snowman items.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:

3. Pine Trees & Pinecones Sensory Bin

Pine trees and pinecones make a great winter sensory bin as their evergreen nature has historically symbolized the beauty of winter. If you celebrate Christmas, this can also be a fun way to create a “Christmas tree” sensory bin.

  • Base Ideas:
    • Fake or real pinecones
    • Fake or real pine branches
    • Water with real pinecones and/or pine branches
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
  • Tools:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity:
      • Pretend-play decorating trees
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the pinecones and or/water
      • Investigate plant adaptations by observing how pinecones behave when submerged in water.
      • Experiment with mixtures as you add different materials like water, pinecones, and branches.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up pinecones and branches, enhancing dexterity.
      • Tweeze off pine needles to strengthen finger muscles.
      • Squeeze water from basters, pipettes, syringes and/or squeeze bottles to develop hand-eye coordination.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:

4. Tea Party Sensory Bin

When I was growing up, the women in my family had a winter tradition of going to a local farmhouse for Christmas Tea. This was one of my favorite traditions, and I can’t think of winter without thinking about tea! It’s no surprise that this has become one of my favorite winter sensory bins—it offers so much fun and sensory exploration!

Tea Winter Sensory Bin with lentil beans, tea bags, a woodne scoop, two red teacups and a blue and yellow teapot

5. Candyland Sensory Bin

Winter is known for being the season of sweets—stores are filled with candy canes, adults attend cookie exchanges, and schools host bake sales. While I try not to place candy on a pedestal in our home, I believe a little sweet whimsy can be magical for kids. This sensory bin brings that festive fun into play!

  • Base Ideas:
    • Dyed rice
    • Colorful pompoms
    • Colorful buttons
  • Secondary Items Ideas:
  • Tools Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Pretend-play candy shop, where kids can “sell” and “buy” candy or create their own sweet treats.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the materials.
      • Practice sorting and categorizing the candy by color, size, or shape.
      • Explore magnetism by using the magnet wand to pick up pipecleaner candy canes.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up beads, pompoms, buttons, and other small items to strengthen hand-eye coordination.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:

6. North Pole Animals Sensory Bin

Winter often brings to mind cold, snowy places like the North Pole. Whether you’re talking about Jolly Old St. Nicholas and Rudolph or focusing on the real-life reindeer and creatures that live in the Arctic, this winter sensory bin is sure to be a hit!

  • Base Idea:
    • White rice
    • White pompom
    • Fake Snow
    • White Kinetic Sand
    • Water
    • Ice
  • Secondary Items Ideas:
    • Styrofoam for ice floes
    • Pretend ice cubes (I borrowed some from our “Don’t Break the Ice” game)
    • Reusable ice cubes
    • Silver/blue confetti
    • Silver/blue pompoms
    • A straw to act as the north pole
    • Animal figures (polar bears, arctic foxes, arctic wolves, arctic hares, reindeer, seals, etc.)
    • Toy Santa
  • Tools Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Pretend-play arctic animal life, such as role-playing as various animals in the North Pole.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the materials.
      • Explore the properties of water and ice, and observe how ice behaves in water.
      • Learn about Arctic animals and clarify that there are no penguins at the North Pole!
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up pompoms and small items.
      • Use basters, pipettes, syringes and/or squeeze bottles to squeeze out water, building hand-eye coordination.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:
      • Focus on habitats, body parts (flin, blubber), and movement (waddle, slide).
      • Talking Points: How do polar bears stay warm? What would you need to stay warm?
      • Book Recommendations: The Three Snow Bears by Jan Brett amd Hellow World! Arctic Animals by Jill McDonald
North Pole Winter Sensory Bin with a reindeer, seal, polar bears, and walrus on styrofoam ice floes in water

7. Night Sky Sensory Bin

Nothing takes the wind out of my sails quite like the end of daylight savings time. The long nights can feel overwhelming, but you can choose to embrace them! What better way to do that than with a night sky winter sensory bin? This bin is perfect for the winter solstice—the shortest day and longest night of the year.

  • Base Ideas:
    • Black beans
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
  • Tool Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Pretend-play nocturnal animal life, such as acting out the behavior of owls, bats, or raccoons in the night.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the black beans.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up the glow-in-the-dark stars, helping to strengthen fine motor skills.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:

8. Winter Light Sensory Bin

This winter sensory bin celebrates the lights of the season. Whether it’s holiday lights, the twinkle of stars, or the streetlights that turn on early due to the longer nights, lights are all around us during winter. This sensory bin will bring that winter glow to life!

9. Beans & Sounds Sensory Bin (New Year’s Eve theme)

In my family, we ring in the New Year with noisemakers and bean soup. This winter sensory bin combines both traditions, allowing kids to cook “bean soup” and make noise with bean shakers.

  • Base Ideas:
    • Beans of any kind
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
  • Tool Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Encourage pretend play by making bean soup or shaking noisemakers to celebrate the New Year.
    • Science and Math:
      • Use scoops, bowls, and measuring spoons to explore capacity, volume, and measurement.
      • Experiment with vibrations and sound by creating shakers, observing how different materials produce varying sounds.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Develop hand strength and coordination by using tweezers or tongs to pick up beads, pompoms, and confetti.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:
      • Use cooking Incorporate cooking terms (mix, scoop, whisk) and sound-related words (vibrate, shake, clink).
      • Practice comparing sounds (quiet vs. loud).
      • Talking Point: What are the steps to make bean soup? What are the steps for making a noisemaker?
      • Book Recommendations: The Night Before New Year’s by Natasha Wing and All About Sound by Lisa Trumbauer

10. Ice Sensory Bin

We can’t forget about another natural phenomenon that often shows up in winter! Snow’s less fun cousin: ice. Although adults aren’t fans of ice in the winter, kids have a blast exploring the properties of this winter foe. They’ll definitely think this ice-themed winter sensory bin is cooooooool (pun intended).

  • Base Ideas:
    • Large block of ice
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
  • Tool Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Engage in imaginative play with toy animals trapped in ice by role-playing arctic rescue adventures or ice sculpting.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and pouring ice cubes.
      • Investigate the properties of water and observe ice melting in warm water.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up ice cubes.
      • Use the basters, pipettes, syringes, or squeeze bottles to melt the ice, strengthening hand muscles and coordination.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:
      • Use temperature words (cold, frozen) and movement words (slide, crack).
      • Talking Point: How can we rescue these animals?
      • Book Recommendations: Ice Boy by David Ezra Stein

11. Shadows Sensory Bin

Will spring come early or will there be six more weeks of winter with this shadow-themed sensory bin? This activity is perfect for exploring light and shadow around Groundhog Day!

  • Base Idea:
    • White rice
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
    • Animal figures or other opaque items
    • Make “shadows” of objects from black paper. For example, place a dinosaur figure in the bin and cut out a matching paper “shadow” to pair with it.
  • Tool Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Encourage pretend play by creating shadows with figures or using the flashlight to make shadow puppet shows.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the rice,
      • Investigate how light makes shadows and experiment with different distances from the light source.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up the small shadow figures.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:
      • Explore light and shadow terms (silhouette, cast) and directional words (near, far).
      • Talking Point: What makes a shadow and how can we change it’s size?
      • Book Recommendations: Groundhog’s Runaway Shadow by David Biedrzycki and Shadows by Sharon Coan

12. Gingerbread Sensory Bin

Gingerbread is one of my favorites of the winter season. I love reading Jan Brett’s Gingerbread book collection. I love the smell of the house after making gingerbread. I love expressing my self creatively in the decorating of houses and people. I love the coziness of eating a gingerbread cookie with a cup of tea. And I love the fun of all things gingerbread themed. This winter sensory bin is no exception,

  • Base Ideas:
    • DIY gingerbread kinetic sand
    • Brown rice
  • Secondary Item Ideas:
    • Button
    • Beads
    • Yarn/ribbon
    • Pompoms
    • Bows
  • Tool Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Pretend-play baking and decorating gingerbread people.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the rice or sand.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up the buttons, bows, beads, etc.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:
      • Use baking-related words (knead, sprinkle) and descriptive terms (spicy, crumbly).
      • Talking Point: Can you tell me the steps for making a gingerbread person? What do you do first?
      • Book Recommendations: Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett, Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett, and Gingerbread Christmas by Jan Brett

13. Ice Skating Sensory Bin

This fun twist on the ice winter sensory bin lets children explore movement and traction. Freeze a plastic figure’s feet in ice, then “skate” it across a block of ice or a smooth plastic sheet.

14. Orange & Cranberries Sensory Bin

Seasonal fruits add a delightful touch of scent and color to this winter sensory bin, perfect for sensory play and pretend cooking.

  • Base Ideas:
    • Water
  • Secondary Items Ideas:
    • Cranberries
    • Orange slices
    • Cinnamon sticks
    • Rosemary sprigs
  • Tools Ideas:
  • Play Ideas and Benefits
    • Creativity and Social Skills:
      • Pretend-play cooking festive drinks, salads, and soups.
    • Science and Math:
      • Explore capacity and measurement by scooping and dumping the water.
      • Sort and compare fruit and herbs by size, color, and shape.
    • Fine Motor Practice:
      • Use tweezers or tongs to pick up the fruit.
    • Vocabulary and Language Development:
      • Highlight sensory terms (fragrant, juicy) and shape/color words (round, red).
      • Talking Points: How do these fruits feel? Are they lumpy or smooth? What do they look like?
      • Book Recommendations: Time for Cranberries by Lisl H. Detlefsen and An Orange in January by Dianna Hutts Aston 

15. Forest Animals Sensory Bin

This winter sensory bin lets kids explore animal habitats, hibernation, and winter animal tracks.

More Sensory Bin Resources

Interested in more sensory bin fun? Check out my post with 100 sensory bin fillers or follow me on Instagram!

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