Here are the instructions on how you can make your own DIY sensory board for babies. I encourage you do make one of these yourself, your little ones will love it!
Providing our little ones with rich sensory learning experiences is so important. The good news is that it’s also really very easy to make your own sensory board for your baby using a few items that are easily found around the house. My little girl, Possum, absolutely LOVES her sensory board, more than any other toy in the house. Also gets her doing tummy time!
To make your own sensory board for babies you will need-
- cardboard
- hot glue gun
- various safe textured items from around the house
bubble wrap, straws, cupcake wrappers, clean face washer, non-slip rubber, rock, wood, plastic from a sandwich bag, paper, card and fabric.
Babies engaging in a sensory board
Possum was instantly attracted to the board, as you can see. I think visually the board looked inviting because of the colours of the items and textures. It was also something interesting and new.
She instantly began using the board. Touching, rubbing, flicking, scratching and pulling were some of the ways she explored this board. She was exploring what she could visually see, hear and touch. It was a brilliant sensory exploration.
Would your baby enjoy exploring their own sensory board?
Follow Kate @ LaughingKidsLearn’s board Laughing Kids Learn on Pinterest.
I just found this project and your blog through Pinterest and will definitely be making one of these for my baby girl. Thanks so much for sharing!!!
Thank you Bethany. I really appreciate you making a comment. My little girl really loves her sensory board. She will choose it over most other toys. It was so cheap and easy to make. Best wishes to you and your family.
Just saw this on Pinterest and I absolutely love it. My little guy and I walk around stores exploring textures…why not bring them to him. Genius. I will definitely be using this as inspiration and I will be following your blog. Thanks for this!
Thank you Katie for taking the time to comment. What a wonderful mum you must be to your little boy. This DIY sensory board is an absolute favourite with my little girl. It look very little time to make but she has had hours of great sensory learning from it.
Love this idea, How old of a baby would you recommend this for?
Hi Just Karen. My little girl was about 6 months when I did this. She had good neck control and was incredibly curious about anything. I guess it’s up to the individual but I hope that gives you a guide. 🙂
Very clever! I’m always looking for DIY children activities because I live abroad and tend to be a bit nomadic. This is a great idea! Thanks! 🙂
Thanks raggamuslims! This was such a simple activity board to make for my little one. I hope your children get as much enjoyment out of it as my little one did. 🙂
Really. enjoyed looking at these,I definitely am going to try and make them.
Thank you so kindly Patricia. I appreciate your comment so much. Let me know how you get on making a sensory board for your own little one. 🙂
Wow, I love love love this! I will be making one for my baby girl!
I love it! So many sensory board tutorials require expensive hardware or lengthy assembly time. This is exactly what busy, frugal moms want and need. I only wish I had come across this a few months ago when my toddler was still in the mouthing everything phase.
Found via Pinterest and re-pinning.
This is brilliant! This is perfect for them cause they can carrying it around.
At what age can you start doing this and other activities in your Zero to Two book?
Hi Suzann. I would probably suggest using this sensory board for ages over 3 months, supervised of course. At this young age I would rest the baby on your lap and allow them to explore the board. As they get older they can explore it on their tummies etc. Lots of fun. We still have ours.
All the activities in the Zero to Two book are designed for children who are newborns to 2 years of age. Lots of wonderful sensory exploration activities and fun. Hope that helps Suzann. Thanks for your comment.
Great ideas for the sensory boards. We are setting up a room at our church in Burlington so that the parents of special needs kids can come and leave their kids with us for an hour on Sundays while they can enjoy the adult service knowing their kids will have a special time as well. We are using a room that is about 28 feet long by 14 wide and it has two windows for natural light. We came up with a theme for the room that has a log cabin look at the one end for the kids that just want to be quiet and an activities area at the other end for kids that want to explore and touch things. We are just now waiting for board approval to get started with the design and we already have four kids coming to the church who have special needs. The one mother who just started coming has a toddler who is in a wheel chair so we are grateful that we have an elevator for her to bring her to the room. I’m a 58 year old grandfather and we have raised five children and now have 4 grandchildren but have never helped out with kids with special needs so I’m happy that you have shared your ideas so we can get something designed for the kids. May God bless you for being such a great mom.
Thanks again Randy
Randy what a beautiful message you have left for me to read. Thank you so much. I absolutely wish you the greatest success with your room. It’s wonderful that you are supporting children with special needs. You are no doubt someone with a precious heart. All the best and I hope you continue to enjoy my blog ideas. 🙂
Kate
Love this so much – thanks for the idea!!!
Jahlie Kenig
Thanks Jahlie!!! 🙂