DISCLAIMER: New information has emerged emphasizing the danger of water beads if they are swallowed. Please only use this activity with older children who you are certain will not put the water beads in their mouths and be sure to clean up any that fall on the floor.

Are you searching for a St. Patrick’s Day themed sensory bin? Well, it’s your LUCKY day! Scroll down to see how I’m using this fun, colorful sensory bin to target all sorts of speech and language goals! All you need is a container, water beads, plastic gold coins, and some water. Bonus points… You can even keep it clean to follow COVID precautions!

Requesting: “more,” “want,” “I want,” “give me,” “my turn,”
Prepositions: “in,” “out”
Verbs: “pour,” “grow,” “stir,” “touch,” “feel,” “squish,” “scoop,” “dump,”
Adjectives/describing: “cold,” “wet,” “smooth,” “soft,” “squishy,” “slimy,” “colorful”
Color concepts: Discuss the colors of the water beads and coins.
Inferencing:  Hide mini objects in a different opaque container. Give the child clues so they can make an inference about what is hiding inside. Once they guess correctly, discuss the object and let them hide it in the water beads.
Describing: Hide mini objects in the water beads. Let the child pull one out and then cue them to describe it using attributes like group, color, size, location, parts, and object use. Click here to download my super helpful describing anchor chart for only $1!
Following directions: “Put in,” “take out”
Speech sounds: Hide mini objects that start with the child’s speech sound in the water beads. Cue them to say the word and produce repetitions as they find the objects.
Reinforcer: Allow the child to play in the sensory bin an take a coin out after a certain number of speech sound repetitions.

It was pretty simple for me to make this a clean activity! Have the children wash their hands before starting the activity. Since I do 1:1 therapy, I wash the box with soap and water between each child. If you have a group, give each child a small personal container to put the water beads in. Once we are done with the activity, I scoop up the child’s water beads and put them in a Ziploc bag for them to take home. This worked for me since parents attend our sessions and can (safely!) hold the bag on the way home. I see how this could be tricky in the school setting. Another option would be to throw them away after each use. It might seem wasteful, but each container comes with 55,000+ beads which is A LOT. A container would last at least a week!

Never used water beads before? Dump about a tablespoon of water beads into your container. Add about 1/2 cup of water. Stir the beads around and watch them slowly grow! Add more beads and water as needed.

I’ve linked the water beads and coins for you here. Enjoy!

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