Pasta Sensory Bin

Activity Overview

Children interact with different textures in order to understand the world around them. This activity offers an opportunity for a student to interact with a common kitchen staple and explore the texture in multiple ways over many days. Adding small changes each day - and even cooking the pasta - will extend the student’s investment in the materials and develop that sensory exposure.

What You Need

• Three or more boxes of pasta in different shapes, such as ziti, bowties and spaghetti

• Sensory bin or large plastic container

• Loose parts

• Cups and utensils

Steps

1. Fill a sensory bin up halfway with dry pasta.

2. Add one or two different loose parts with a cup and a stirring utensil and allow your child to explore.

3. Change the loose parts each day to allow for continued exploration.

4. Halfway through the week, take approximately two cups of dry pasta out of the bin, cook it on the stove and add it back to the bin.

Guiding Questions

• How does the pasta feel?

• Does the cooked pasta feel different than the dried pasta?

• What could you make?

• Can you change the color of the pasta?

Extensions

• Add another shape or two of pasta to explore. Get creative with your choices! For example, lasagna noodles make great roadways for cars and pinwheels can emulate gears. Add colorful pasta or a drop of food coloring and see how that changes the sensory bin on a visual level.