It might have a fancy-sounding name, but sensory play is pretty simple really.
It's just any sort of play that stimulates your child's senses.
This could be their hearing, sight, touch, smell or taste. Watch our baby sensory video below for some inspiration on sensory play.
Mum 1:
Again, again my face?
Daughter:
Yes.
Yes. Come on, my face?
Mum 2:
Ready, shall I blow raspberries?
Good girl.
Mum 1:
Splish, splash.
Wash your face.
Mum 3:
What's that?
Sensory play ideas
Sensory doesn鈥檛 have to be something that you need to think too much about. For young babies, everything they do is a new sensory experience and really enriches their early learning.
But it's always good to try and stimulate more than one sense at a time, as this can help babies and toddlers make sense of the world around them.
There are loads of activities that count as sensory play. In the video above we highlight a couple of examples, but here is some more inspiration for you:
- Painting with your fingers
- Splashing in the bath
- Baby massage
- Peekaboo with a scarf or blanket
- Playing in the garden
- Homemade playdough
- Ripping up paper
- Play with sock puppets
A lot of the activities on our website stimulate loads of the senses, which is why they're so great for language development. If you're looking for any other ideas to try with your child, check out our activity selector page. This is also a great opportunity to find an activity that fits your child's age and stage.
Want to find out more about sensory play and why it's so great for language learning? Click here.
Image caption, Sensory play is any activity that stimulates a child's senses: touch, smell, taste, sight, hearing. It can be as simple as blowing a raspberry on your baby's belly...
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