How To Make An Ocean Colored Rice Sensory Bin

Create a fun Ocean Sensory Bin with different shades of blue colored rice! This easy, budget-friendly, summer activity will keep your kids entertained with creative play ideas and summer fun!

Looking for a fun, easy, and budget-friendly summer activity for the kiddos? Let’s create an ocean-themed sensory bin using different shades of dyed blue rice as the base!

This quick and simple activity uses supplies you can grab from Amazon, Target’s Dollar Spot, or your local Dollar Store. With the help of some basic household ingredients, you can even dye your own rice for an extra beachy touch. The setup is so easy!

Why Make An Ocean Sensory Bin?

Sensory bins are always a hit because they’re inexpensive, easy to set up, and kids absolutely love them!

Using dyed blue rice as a base creates a fun ocean effect, perfect for summer-themed play. It’s great for scooping, pouring, and digging, plus it provides a smooth, crunchy texture kids enjoy.

Add some sea creatures or ocean-themed toys, and you’ve got a bin full of seaside fun! Themed activities like this help kids engage with seasonal play, build special memories, and spark their creativity.

The Best Ocean Colored Rice Sensory Bin

What You’ll Need

Before you get started, make sure you have everything prepped and ready to go. The great thing about this ocean rice sensory bin is how customizable it is, so you can get creative with what you have on hand. I linked what we used from Amazon.

• Colored Rice: You can either make it at home (which I’ll show you how to do in a sec!) or buy colored rice. It’s just as fun to make it as it is to play with it!
• Ocean-Themed Trinkets: Think Rocks, Mini Sea Creatures, Wooden Loose Parts, Pom-Poms, or any ocean-themed toys and trinkets.
• Silicone Cupcake Liners or Small Bowls
• Scoops and Funnel or Tongs and Tweezers or Spoons
• Sensory Bin (or any container big enough for your child to play in)

Pro Tip: This sensory bin uses Colored Rice as the filler. But if you don’t have rice or want to switch it up, other fillers like Kinetic Sand, Colored Chickpeas, Colored Pasta, Kinetic Sand, Moon Dough, Cloud Dough or Edible Play Dough work great too! Click the links for step-by-step instructions to make your own.

Check out our blog post about Essential Sensory Bin Supplies to have on hand, making it easy to set-up multiple different sensory bins in seconds!

How to Dye Rice (Quick and Easy!)

If you’ve never dyed rice before, you’re in for a treat! It’s SO simple, budget friendly, and takes only a few minutes to prep. Plus, it adds a fun sensory experience before the bin even comes together.

Check out our post on How To Make Colored Rice with step-by-step directions, along with helpful tips and tricks for dying rice. Here’s a short version for how you can whip up a batch in no time:

1. Grab some uncooked rice

Go with the budget-friendly kind! You’ll need about 6-8 cups total, depending on the size of your bin.

2. Add food coloring

Divide the rice into ziplock bags, one for each color you want. Squirt a few drops of food coloring into each bag along with 1 teaspoon of white vinegar or rubbing alcohol per 1 cup of rice (this helps the color set).

3. Shake it up!

Shake the bags. Let your kids help shake them—this part is really fun! Shake until all the rice is evenly coated in bright color.

4. Spread out the rice to dry

Lay the colored rice on a parchment paper or a baking sheet to dry. It usually takes about 1-2 hours to fully dry, but it’ll be good to go once it feels nice and dry to the touch.

Now, you have beautiful dyed rice! You can store it in an airtight container and use it over and over again for different activities.

How to Set Up Your Ocean Rice Sensory Bin

1. Fill the Bin

Start by pouring the dyed blue rice into your large container or sensory bin. Spread it out evenly, making sure to cover the entire base of the bin. The bright colors will instantly create a festive Ocean vibe.

2. Add Ocean Trinkets

Next, it’s time to scatter the ocean-themed trinkets like rocks, sea creatures, and pom-poms into the rice. Hide some toys deeper while keeping others visible to create an element of surprise and discovery.

3. Add Scoops and Tongs

To make the bin even more interactive, toss in some scoops, tongs, bowls, and funnels. These tools encourage kids to practice fine motor skills as they scoop up the rice, use tongs to pick out sea creatures, or pour rice into bowls.

4. Let Them Play

Now that everything is set up, sit back and watch your kids dive into ocean-themed sensory fun! They’ll enjoy exploring the textures, sounds, and sights of the bin as they dig, pour, and scoop their way through the rice.

Creative Play Ideas for Your Ocean Rice Sensory Bin

Once the sensory bin is set up, here are a few extra activities to keep the fun going:

1. Treasure Hunt

Bury sea creatures or rocks in the rice. Challenge your child to find all the hidden treasures using their tweezers, scoops, tongs, or even their hands. Have them count the treasures or sort them by type for an extra activity.

2. Ocean Potion

Set up a “Magical Ocean Potion” station by including small jars, scoops, and ocean-themed items like shells, rocks, pom-poms, or mini sea creatures. Encourage your child to scoop the rice and mix in the items to create their own magical ocean potion.

3. Scoop and Pour

Include measuring cups, scoops, funnels, and small bowls in the sensory bin for a classic scoop-and-pour activity. Kids can practice transferring the rice from one container to another, experimenting with quantities and different tools.

Why We Love This Ocean Rice Sensory Bin

What’s not to love about this ocean colored rice sensory bin? It’s super easy to set up, budget-friendly, and reusable year after year. Once summer is over, just store the rice and toys in a separate bag, and you’re ready to go again next year. It’s a fun way to create lasting memories with minimal effort!

Whether your kids are on a treasure hunt or mixing up a magical ocean potion, this sensory bin is sure to be a hit!