Rain. It’s something we see a lot of in the Pacific Northwest. So when we were preparing our weather theme activities, I just knew I had to include something that involved rain. Truly, it was so simple. Our preschoolers love water in our sensory bin, they to squeeze and pour. That helped me come up with this rainy weather sensory bin for preschoolers.
Rainy Weather Sensory Bin for Preschoolers
Every day during our morning meeting our class helper reports the weather, so our preschoolers are already familiar with it. We love noticing the clouds and wondering if the sun is hiding behind them. We also play a lot in the rain during recess. So to explore weather in the sensory bin was an addition to something we already love! We’ve already had fun with a winter sensory bin, a fall sensory bin, and a summer bin as well.
Before introducing our rainy weather sensory bin, we introduced some weather books:
We then made rain in the sensory bin.
What we used:
- Plastic cups (I used a large thumbtack to poke holes in the bottoms of them)
- Cotton balls
- Water
- A bin to put everything in
The activity:
At first the preschoolers scooped and poured water, as that is what they love to do.
And then the water started trickling out of the holes. It not only looked like rain, but it sounded like it, too, as it hit the surface of the sensory bin.
The preschoolers then explored what happened if they held the cup higher. Did it change anything?
Then they scooped the cotton balls into their hands and squeezed the water out, pretending rain was being squeezed from the clouds. (This is a great activity for strengthening the hands and fingers!)
Then they pushed the cotton balls into the cups. The more they pushed, the more water dripped through the holes in the bottoms of the cups.
What a fun way to learn about rain in a hands-on way!
Here are more rain ideas to try:
Rainy Day Nursery Rhymes (Let’s Play Music)
Rain Pre-Writing Activity (The Educator’s Spin on It)
Puddle Jumping Alphabet Activity (Mom Inspired Life)
Paper Plate Umbrella (Happy Hooligans)
Raindrop Suncatchers (Pre-K Pages)
Check out even more activities on our weather pin board!
Weather Lesson Plans
Looking for easy to follow weather lesson plans for toddlers and preschoolers?
I helped create these packets that include hands-on activities that can be modified and adapted to meet the needs of all learners.
For more information, click on the graphics below:
