If you frequent Pinterest, get updates from facebook pages, and/or navigate the endless blogosphere for play ideas for your baby, toddler or pre-schooler you will continually see the term 'Sensory Play'; everyone goes on about it and there are thousands of great ideas of how to incorporate into your child's activities. But why is sensory play so important?
We absorb the world through all of our senses; we thrive and survive because our senses process our surroundings; enabling us to fulfil our basic needs, recognise danger, follow comfort, and find the things and people we enjoy (including our partners - for procreation!). From the minute we're born our senses are on high alert; smelling our mother's milk and skin, listening to familiar voices from Dad and siblings - if our senses dont process these ultimate comforts we are seriously unhappy and we let everyone know about it! And that ensures survival!
Its vital to nurture and encourage sensory development nowadays, as we tend to live within an indoor and very sanitised environment so the natural sensory experiences of communal and outside living don't arise for our children. Sensory experience and play allows children to develop essential skills for living; dexterity, language, imagination and creativity, object manipulation, fine motor skills; it teaches about our world - gravity and binary opposition for example; and it can deeply encourage self-awareness - learning social boundaries, learning what feels pleasant, comforting, calming, or what we dont like. Sensory development is entirely essential for well rounded growth and development.
This article provides great insight into the importance of sensory play!
Here are all our Sensory Play ideas and of course there are lots more all over the internet. As usual The Imagination Tree has the best of the bunch! Happy playing! And please share your own ideas too!!
What a great post about the importance of sensory play! I'll link up our sensory bottles!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment and linking up! Lovely sensory bottles post - I pinned it earlier! :)
DeleteWe love sensory play! Great reasons to have kids experience sensory play. Another good reason for sensory play is that helps build strong attachment to caregivers.
ReplyDeleteIndeed! All about attachment in this house!
Deletegreat post, I didn't know what sensory play was when I started doing it with Goblin, I learnt the term later. Goblin loves it - I need to find more smell and sound activities though.
ReplyDeleteYes me too! Tactile and sigh are easy I suppose, but sound and smell not so much - tho smelly playdough is always a good one - we did Herb and Spice playdough the other day which was really good, it holds its smell really well too. http://www.toddlertitbits.mumsinjersey.co.uk/2012/05/herb-spice-playdough.html
DeleteGreat post! My son is six years old and still enjoys playing in our rice box and searching for objects in our bean bin. Sensory play is so important to little ones!
ReplyDeleteMy five year old loves sensory play. And well, so do I. Thank you for putting it's importance into words. I've pinned!
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading and pinning!! :-)
DeleteWe are all about sensory play! It really is so important, and there really are so many benefits. Great post. Pinned! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you very much :-)
Deletesensory play is great! we didnt do a lot when i was working buti try to now! :)
ReplyDeleteI've been a bit puzzled by 'sensory play' but the more I read about it the more I realise we do it all the time! And it is good fun :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your comments!
ReplyDeleteWe love sensory play in our house and as soon as the tray comes out the children are up at the table like a shot!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you've written this post as I was thinking of explaining sensory play on my blog too but I might just link here instead, lol. Save me the work! hehe. Thanks :)
ReplyDeleteThanks!! :P
DeleteSensory play is SO important!!! I'll link up some of our favorite sensory activities :)
ReplyDeletethank you for linking up!
DeleteLove the sensory wall mosaic art!!!!
ReplyDeleteVery true!! Seeing all of this sensory posts has truly made me think about doing more for my kiddos... thank you for the reminder of it's importance.
ReplyDelete:-) glad you liked it, thanks for commenting!
DeleteHi There, Stopping by from KBN, glad to have found you :) Great post on the importance of sensory play. I was thinking of incorporating something like this into one of my posts at some point. If you don't mind, I think when I do I will just link back to your post here! Thanks for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteFantastic, thanks! :-)
DeleteGlad you wrote this. I think people know it's important but aren't sure why!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading and for your comment :)
DeleteGreat post...i love sensory play with my twins...the messier the better too! So glad i started it early as i think it has helped with one of my twins sensory issues which are now coming to light. Such an important part of childhood...thanks for sharing your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comment. xx
DeleteWhat a great explanation about how important sensory play is! My son never wanted to touch anything with odd textures...especially grass. Now that we've been exploring sensory tubs he's getting so much braver! :) Visiting from the KBN share!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading!
DeleteSensory play has always been my son's favourite type of play. This is such a fantastic explanation of its benefits.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind comment!
DeleteI totally agree with how important Sensory play is! I can see it in a lot of blogs, like at http://aeioumommy.com, the Mom uses this play to her 6 month-old baby. A great way to start when they are still babies! :-)
ReplyDelete