PRESCHOOLERS
Sensory play
MESSY, FUN AND IMPORTANT FOR DEVELOPMENT, SENSORY PLAY IS TOP OF OUR PLAY LIST
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he first five years of a child’s life are a crucial time for learning. During these early years, a child uses all their senses to explore and make sense of the world, building an understanding of people, objects, spaces and places. As adults, we rely on our senses to help us make decisions thousands of times a day, often without realising. For children, these skills are best learnt through play. W H AT I S S E N S O R Y P L AY ? Sensory play is a style of play that allows a child to safely explore the world using a combination of their senses. Through openended, spontaneous experiences, a child’s touch, sight, hearing, smell and taste are all engaged. In this fun and safe way, a child can start to understand and trust the many textures, sights and sounds that exist, building positive pathways in the brain. It’s messy, fun and the opportunities are endless!
T H E B E N E F I T S O F S E N S O R Y P L AY Sensory play uses a variety of senses which is critical for brain development and building neural connections. Stimulating all senses also gets kids moving, engaging hand–eye coordination and fine and gross motor skills as they explore, touch, move and manipulate materials in a variety of ways. Sensory play encourages scientific thinking and problem-solving skills, it introduces maths concepts as they measure, pour, scoop, and creativity as they build, shape, sprinkle and taste. Sensory play is great for kids who are fussy eaters or are wary of things, as they can experience new textures such as wet noodles or crispy crackers—using all their senses to find they can trust and feel safe with new foods. Sensory play is also critical to early literacy skills. By experiencing different textures and sounds children learn new words such as slimy, crinkly, hot, cold, crunchy, soft, bright. The best way to learn these words is to experience them!
W W W.K I D S O N T H E C O A S T.C O M . A U
