10 Simple Activities to Engage their Senses this Spring
Hurray! Spring is coming. Which means soon we can finally stop bundling up in quite so many layers and get outdoors without huffing at the effort it takes… Plus, we get to watch our children marvel at the wonders of a new season, Spring brings with it so much magic! If you’re looking for playful ways to encourage their natural curiosity this season, here are 10 simple activities to captivate their imagination and engage their senses:
1. Get messy with flower printing
Strengthen creative thinking and watch as little fingers get messy with spring-inspired process art. One super easy activity to embrace the new season is flower printing! Experiment with different parts of a flower as stampers in paint. Flower head, petals, stem, leaves… Chat about the different textures being made and how the materials feel.
If you’ve got access to freshly bloomed Spring garden finds, brilliant! But you can always snip up a bouquet of supermarket flowers.
2. Set up a mud kitchen
Mud kitchens are a firm favourite around here, thanks to their learning opportunities all wrapped up in messy fun! I love that you don’t need an expensive set-up either – though who wouldn’t love a fully-fledged galley kitchen with working outdoor taps?! Kids really can have a blast with just kitchen utensils, bowls and water. Splashing, mixing, experimenting, counting their ‘ingredients’ and boosting their language as they serve up exotic recipes…
Download our mud kitchen checklist for FREE to start building your own and maximise playful learning.
3. Practice counting with hands-on Easter maths
Boost their focus and help make numbers fun with hands-on maths this Easter. Chocolate eggs, plastic eggs, playdough eggs – use them as counters to help your child with numeracy skills, then watch as they inevitably get lost in open-ended play…
We have a lovely egg counting mat perfect for all sorts of Easter inspired maths activities.
4. Celebrate Spring colours with mark making
Spring is such a colourful time. Chat with your child about what colours they associate with this season and where they see them, then pick paints and coloured pencils in Spring shades for open-ended mark making or encourage them to journal their favourite things about spring.
Our flower writing paper is perfect for Spring themed writing fun.
5. Make Daisy chains together
Sometimes the oldies are the goodies, so don’t overlook simple activities like daisy chain making. Make the most of any spring sunshine you can get and sit together practising your fine motor skills – it’s a childhood favourite that requires real concentration.
6. Go on a Spring nature hunt
The more we encourage our children to think about their surroundings and be present with their senses, the more natural it will become. We have the chance to raise a generation who fully embraces the world around them (despite the temptation of technology!) but we really need to foster their natural curiosity and show them we value it! Go on a Spring nature hunt to help them take in as much of their surroundings as possible. Make a list of items and sensory experiences they need to find/have on their walk. For example, Spot 1 baby animal, Find 2 blossom trees, Listen for 3 bird songs…
Use our spring flashcards to count along the way and bring back any of nature’s treasures (daisies, seeds, leaves, twigs) to use as counters.
7. Try Spring scented playdough
Playdough is a fantastic learning tool. It enhances fine motor skills, improves pre-writing skills, nurtures creativity & imagination, engages their senses and has a calming effect. Add a Spring theme to your next playdough station with freshly cut flower petals kneaded into your dough!
For more playdough ideas, try our Playdough Play Pack with proven recipes and exciting theme ideas.
8. Paint branches
Another messy painting prompt to try this spring – try painting with branches! Spring means less rain (fingers crossed) so drier twigs and branches can be used for crafting and inventing. Bright poster paints or acrylics (for old children) work well to make magic wands or colourful swords.
9. Make easy-peasy pinecone bird feeders
Have you ever made your own bird feeders? Pinecones coated in peanut butter and seeds are a fun way to encourage birds to come into your garden or playground, and the process of making them is a sensory hit! Add string then hang.
When you spot a bird taking a nibble, use it as a prompt to watch with your children and chat about what they see.
10. Have your first picnic of the year!
What child doesn’t love a picnic? It can be as simple as taking their usual packed lunch out on the grass or as extravagant as having a grand tea party with ALL their cuddlies! Get all their sensing going as they eat AND take in the sights and sounds of Spring.
Which of these activities are you most excited to try? Discover Print Play Learn memberships today for more Spring inspired ideas and printable resources.
