We’ve been spending a lot of time in the garden lately and I noticed Teddy showing a lot of interest in bugs (especially worms). Scottie on the other hand had a massive meltdown when a worm touched her foot. Since play is a safe place to experience things in a fun, less stress way I thought a little bit of bug-themed “exposure therapy” might be just what she needs while expanding on Teddy’s current interests and giving them both some fine motor practice.
I saw @bubblesandbellylaughs on instagram use the @booninc bottle drying rack for fine motor (genius!) and I thought it would be the perfect grass for our bug sensory play set-up!
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MATERIALS FOR FINE MOTOR BUG SENSORY
- Boon drying rack
- Plastic bugs (we used bug finger puppets)
- Bamboo tweezers
- Faux flowers
- Twine or string (for worms)
- Beads
- Magnifying glass
- Bug book (we used The Big Book of Bugs by Yuval Zommer
- Giant orange octopus (just kidding... Teddy insisted we added it)
WAYS TO PLAY
- Rescue the bugs/worms with tweezers or fingers
- Hide the bugs/worms
- Pattern making with objects
- Bead + weave w/string +beads
- Exploring with magnifying glass (Scottie’s favorite part)
- Match bugs to their picture in the book
- Small world play
- Dramatic play with finger puppets
- Wrap bugs into “cocoons” (Teddy’s idea)
- Cut your own worms (trade the book for a pair of scissors✂️ to extend play)
See examples of how the kids played with this set-up in our stories (spoiler alert...it was adorable)
MORE IDEAS
For added sensory experience instead of twine worms you can make them out of cooked spaghetti or jello and plastic straws (recipe on www.onelittleproject.com). You can also add this bug-themed CHEERIO SNACKTIVITY PLACEMAT (free printable) to your play set-up.
DID YOU TRY IT?
Let us know what your little one thought of this fine motor bug sensory in the comment section or show us your play by sharing your photos on Facebook or instagram and tagging @ureadyteddy or #ureadyteddy
We'll share our favorites in our stories!
