Looking for a fun and engaging Easter activity for your little ones? Look no further than an Easter sensory Flisat table setup play! Ideal for toddlers, this sensory play offers a stimulating and interactive experience, incorporating elements like green rocks, miniature bunny figurines, matching games with farm animal memory cards, as well as Easter-themed printable flags, awnings, and signs for an outdoor egg hunt. In this blog post, we'll guide you through the setup and provide tips to make this Easter playtime truly egg-ceptional!
Materials for this play setup:
Sensory Table Easter Decor
This printable kit includes everything you need to turn your Flisat table into a magical Easter wonderland. The kit includes an awning, printable egg hunt signs, little Easter gnomes, Easter egg filler cards, flags and banners and more.
3 SEnsory Bins for Easter
1. Easter bunny Small World Play
To start this Easter adventure, create a sensory experience by filling a large container, such as a Flisat table, with green rocks. The texture of the rocks adds a unique sensory element and brings the outdoors indoors. Toddlers will love exploring the rocks and feeling their rigid surfaces. This is a great low-mess unique sensory play filler idea. It looks like green grass, and is the perfect background for our mini bunny figurines.
Enhance your sensory setup by incorporating adorable miniature bunny figurines. These little creatures will bring the Easter spirit to life in your toddler's playtime. Encourage imaginative play as your little ones can interact with the bunnies, creating stories and scenarios during their sensory exploration. I found these adorable little bunnies on Amazon and they really bring the scene to life. Each bunny has a unique pose and emotional expression making it the perfect way to learn about different body positions like sitting down, standing up, laying down, etc.
2. Easter Egg chutes
For this activity, you’ll need these awesome sensory fidget tubes and some mini foam Easter eggs. To make the chutes, stretch out the fidget tubes and tape them to the Flisat table peg board. You’ll need the large ones in order for the eggs to fit down the chutes. Don’t make them too windy or gravity won’t be enough to get them down. If they do get stuck, your kiddo will love trying to blow them out. You can also make it a challenge by having them stretch and bend the tubes to get the eggs out.
3. Easter Egg HUNT
For this activity, you’ll just need some plastic Easter eggs (or you can reuse your mini foam Easter eggs. You can hide them around your kid’s room or play space and offer a basket to collect them in. The printable signs will help your toddler navigate the course and find all of the eggs. You can also make filling the plastic eggs an activity itself!
4. Jello Easter Eggs
This one is a messy activity but it’s a lot of fun. We used rainbow colored Jello powder mix and followed the instructions on the box. We also added a tablespoon of yogurt to each bowl to make the colors more pastel and also less translucent. Then we scooped the pudding into each half of the eggs filling them to just below the top. Then we popped them into the fridge to set — once partially set, you can close two colors together and let them set completely for a few hours. When you open them up, squeeze the sides of the egg to get them loose and pop them into the bin. Your kiddo will love squishing them between their fingers and blending the colors.
4. EASTER BUNNY BAIT (TASTE SAFE)
You can make this Easter bunny bait as a fun and edible bin filler or you can package it up into little bags and gift it to preschool classmate friends. It’s surprisingly simple to make and all you need is popcorn and candy melts (in various pastel colors). You simply pop the popcorn and warm the candy melts. You can melt them in the microwave or create a double boiler with some ramekins in a pan of water on the stove. Simply pour the popcorn into a large bowl and pour the candy coating over it mixing it and turning it as you go. This can be a little bit sticky and messy until the candy coating dries and hardens. If you want a mess free but equally tasty alternative, you can use bunny grahams or M&Ms or both!
The Benefits of Sensory Play for Toddlers
Sensory play is not only fun for toddlers, but it also offers numerous benefits for their development. By engaging in activities that stimulate their senses, children can enhance their cognitive, emotional, and physical skills. With Easter just around the corner, it's the perfect time to explore some sensory play ideas that can make this holiday even more delightful for your little ones.
Cognitive Development
Sensory play helps toddlers develop their cognitive skills in various ways. When they explore different textures, colors, and shapes, they're not only using their senses but also building neural connections. Easter-themed sensory activities can further enhance their cognitive abilities by encouraging problem-solving and critical thinking. For example, setting up an Easter egg hunt where they need to follow clues and solve puzzles can stimulate their minds and promote cognitive growth.
Emotional Development
Sensory play provides toddlers with a chance to explore and express their emotions freely. By engaging in activities such as finger painting or squishing playdough, children can express themselves while experiencing different sensations. This type of play can also contribute to emotional regulation, as it allows them to relax, reduce stress, and find comfort. For Easter, you can create an Easter sensory bin filled with fake grass and small plastic eggs to give your toddler an opportunity to explore different textures and colors, fostering their emotional development.
Physical Development
Sensory play is excellent for promoting fine and gross motor skills in toddlers. Activities that involve pouring, scooping, or manipulating objects help strengthen their hand-eye coordination and improve their finger dexterity. Setting up a sensory table with colorful rice, plastic eggs, and spoons can offer a great Easter-themed sensory experience while enhancing their physical development.
Language and Social Skills
Engaging in sensory play also supports the development of language and social skills. Through verbal and non-verbal communication during pretend play or group activities, toddlers learn to express themselves, share ideas, and cooperate with others. Easter-themed activities such as role-playing a bunny family or creating a sensory garden filled with flowers and Easter-themed toys are excellent ways to encourage language development and social interaction among toddlers.
Sensory play is a powerful tool that facilitates holistic development for toddlers. Engaging in Easter-themed sensory activities not only makes this holiday more exciting but also enhances their cognitive, emotional, physical, and social skills. So go ahead and create a sensory play experience that will keep your little ones engaged, happy, and learning throughout this Easter season.
25 Easter Vocabulary Words for Preschoolers
1. Easter: A Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
2. Bunny: A small mammal with long ears and a fluffy tail that is often associated with Easter.
3. Egg: A hard-shelled object that comes from birds and is often decorated and hidden during Easter celebrations.
4. Basket: A container used to collect and carry Easter eggs and other goodies.
5. Chick: A baby bird, commonly associated with Easter due to its symbolism of new life.
6. Lily: A fragrant flower often seen during Easter, representing purity and rebirth.
7. Cross: A symbol of Jesus Christ's crucifixion and resurrection, commonly associated with Easter.
8. Bonnet: A hat traditionally worn by girls on Easter, often decorated with flowers, ribbons, or bows.
9. Spring: The season when Easter falls, characterized by new growth, blooming flowers, and warmer temperatures.
10. Pastel: Soft and light colors, commonly seen during Easter, such as pink, yellow, mint green, and baby blue.
11. Hunt: To search for something, like Easter eggs hidden outdoors or indoors.
12. Candy: Sweet treats, often given as gifts or found inside Easter eggs.
13. Carrot: A crunchy vegetable often associated with bunnies and Easter.
14. Jelly beans: Small, colorful candies that are shaped like beans and enjoyed during Easter.
15. Tulip: A vibrant flower that blooms in the spring and is associated with Easter.
16. Springtime: The season of new beginnings and growth, often associated with Easter.
17. Parade: A festive procession, sometimes including floats and costumes, held during Easter.
18. Celebrate: To enjoy and show joy or excitement for a special occasion, like Easter.
19. Family: The people we are related to and love, often spending Easter together.
20. Blossom: The process of flowers opening up and showing their full beauty, often seen in spring and Easter.
21. Sunday: The day of the week Easter is traditionally celebrated on.
22. Hop: To jump lightly, as bunnies do, often associated with Easter.
23. Outfit: The clothes we wear, often chosen with care for special occasions like Easter.
24. Church: A place of worship for Christians, where Easter services are often held.
25. Feast: A large and festive meal enjoyed with family and friends during Easter celebrations.
Other easter activities
Take your Easter sensory play to the next level with farm animal memory game cards. Toddlers will exercise their cognitive skills while having fun matching the cards together. The combination of sensory play and memory games makes this activity not only enjoyable but also educational. Each card is printed on durable card stock with a matte laminate coating for durable with tiny fingers. The illustrations are simple and reenforce the names of each animal while kiddos learn letters and spelling with matching.
Easter Printable Flags, Awning, and Signs
Extend the Easter-themed excitement beyond the table setup with printable flags, awning, and signs for an outdoor egg hunt. These printables can be easily decorated and placed throughout your house or yard to create a festive atmosphere. Your little ones will be thrilled to follow the signs and discover hidden treasures during their Easter egg hunt adventure.
LIfecycle of a chicken cards
Easter is the perfect season to practice advance toddler concepts like animal lifecycles. Our favorite lifecycle to practice is chickens because each stage of the lifecycle is a part of our everyday lives. We start by discussing eggs, why we eat them for breakfast, their protein and nutrition. Then we discuss how when incubated, eggs will transform into baby chicks. From there, they grow into chickens. We’re lucky enough to live down the street from a high school which raises chickens and Sofie gets the opportunity to feed them regularly. This lifecycle of a chicken card set is the perfect bonus for you Easter setup. You can also check out my blog post with an entire section about eggs.
Planning an Easter sensory Flisat table setup play for toddlers can be a rewarding experience. By incorporating elements like the sensory big fill with green rocks, miniature bunny figurines, matching games with farm animal memory cards, and Easter-themed printables for an outdoor egg hunt, you'll create a fun-filled and educational activity for your little ones. Spark their imagination, stimulate their senses, and let the Easter festivities begin! Have a hoppy Easter!