• Home
    • About
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy/Disclosure
  • Shop
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest

Little Pine Learners

Natured-Inspired Activities

  • Blog
  • Create
    • Fall
    • Winter
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Year Round
  • Play
    • Fall
    • Winter
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Year Round
  • Learn
    • Fall
    • Winter
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Year Round

in Christmas· Fine Motor Skills· Play· Winter

Icy Ornament Sensory Play

Here is a fun and simple sensory ice play activity to try this winter! These ice spheres look just like Christmas bauble ornaments, making this the perfect sensory activity to try this holiday season! They are so easy to make and will keep kids entertained and working on their fine motor skills for a long time.

Ice sensory play!

Yes, I love setting up ice sensory play activities! They look so beautiful and inviting, which is why kids are so drawn to them. Both of my boys are fascinated by ice. They love to watch it melt, feel how cold it is, and they really love freeing pieces stuck inside ice!

So far we have freed flowers from ice for summer and spooky eyeballs for Halloween. I was so excited to try this idea for winter and have even more ideas for spring!

Supplies:

  • Evergreen Pieces
  • Berries, This is one of the only times that I recommend getting fake pieces of nature. I recommend fake holly berries because they are poisonous to humans and animals if consumed.
  • Fine motor tools
  • A tray or pan to hold the ice ornaments
  • Twine
  • Sphere Ice Molds
This post contains Affiliate links for your convenience.

RELATED: Check out Pine Needle Sweep {A Fine Motor Christmas Activity}

Here’s How We Set Up This Sensory Ice Play Activity:

Step 1:

Put evergreen pieces and fake holly berries in the ice sphere trays. You could also use red plastic beads or glass gems in place of the holly berries.

Then you will want to put the black cover on the ice sphere tray and pour water through the top.

You will see that I looped pieces of twine once the trays were filled with water. I also used the twine to push down the pieces of nature, to make sure they weren’t blocking the hole from filling up the mold with water.

Sphere molds.

Step 2:

Freeze the molds and set them out in a tray! You might want to let them sit out for a minute before starting the activity or else those tiny fingers will stick to the ice and it can hurt a bit.

Invitation to play set up.

Step 3:

Bring out your fine motor tools to unfreeze the pieces inside the mold! We used warm water and a dropper, tweezers, and scoopers for this activity. We are a huge fan of this fine motor set and use it allll the time!

Ice sensory play!

First, my boys squirted some warm water on the icy ornaments. It really brought out those beautiful colors inside the chunk of ice!

Ice sensory play with fine motor tools.

At this point, they were touching the ice and trying to pick out the pieces.

Fine motor invitation to play.

After about 30 minutes of playing, the tin started to look like winter sensory soup! The bits and pieces were slowly freed and a good time was had by all! This sensory ice play activity was a hit.

Fine motor invitation to play.

Pin this activity to save it for later!

Ice sensory play!

I hope you give this sensory ice play activity a try! I promise, your little nature lovers will love it as much as my boys.

∼Tara

Looking for more pine activity ideas?! Check out:

A Simple and Adorable Holiday Wreath for Kids

Pine Needle Sensory Writing Tray

 

« Pine Needle Keepsake Ornament
Winter Solstice Hiking Stick »

Let’s Connect

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Subscribe

Find me on Pinterest

Find it Fast

Past Posts

By Topics

Subscribe

Looking for Something?

Featured blog Posts

Now it's time to make the scratch off mixture!
This simple nature craft is for kids of all ages! Younger children can glue the basic pieces of nature to the cardboard background and older children can add detail to their nature pictures. You can also change up the nature pieces and cut out picture to match any theme or season!
Explore colors in a new and fun way with this simple outdoor craft for kids!

Let’s Connect

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
We read the cutest book today called “Mice Skati We read the cutest book today called “Mice Skating.” This book inspires the reader to get outdoors and have fun even when it’s cold outside❄️
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
For our activity, I froze Paw Patrol (we don’t have mice😉)figures in an ice cube tray and little Leo had fun pretending they were skating in an ice rink! This kept him busy until they melted. Next time, I will have round 2 in the freezer ready to go because he wanted to keep playing!
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Looking for more beautiful winter picture books? Check out my list of over 40 books here ❄️ https://littlepinelearners.com/40-winter-picture-books-for-kids/
#kidsbooks #raisingreaders #kidsactivities
🌈DIY Color Viewers🌈 I shared this fun activi 🌈DIY Color Viewers🌈
I shared this fun activity already, but I saw this gorgeous photo from @wildmidwife and knew I had to share it with you all😍 I absolutely love the colorful  reflections in the snow!
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
We currently have our color viewers hanging from a tree in our front yard and the boys love playing with them!
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Learn how to make them here🌈 https://littlepinelearners.com/a-playful-way-to-learn-about-colors/ #outdooractivities #winteractivities #preschoolactivities #1000hoursoutside #wildschooling #runwildmychild
•Reverse Sequin Stone Valentine• We originally •Reverse Sequin Stone Valentine• We originally made these sequin stones as a calm down tool. Now that we’re getting closer to Valentine’s Day, I’m thinking they also make a CUTE and EASY nature valentine 💚
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Find the ✔️details ✔️tips and ✔️links in the blog post ❣️ https://littlepinelearners.com/reversible-sequin-heart-nature-craft/ #naturevalentine #valentinesdaygift #handmadegifts
•A Simple and Adorable Rock Penguin Craft• Do •A Simple and Adorable Rock Penguin Craft•
Do you ever look at those beautiful painted rock crafts “for kids” and think, yeah ok that’s not gonna work😅 This is not one of those crafts! This one is totally doable for preschoolers to big kids and that cotton ball tummy turns this into such a soft and sweet rock craft🥰 🐧
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Find the ✔️tips ✔️tricks and ✔️details HERE  https://littlepinelearners.com/a-simple-and-adorable-penguin-rock-craft-for-kids/ 🐧 
#penguinactivities #rockcraft #storystones #preschoolcrafts #penguintheme
•Clay Heart Trinket Tray• This sweet heart cra •Clay Heart Trinket Tray•
This sweet heart craft for kids is the perfect handmade gift for Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day. These clay hearts are easy enough for kids to make and look so cute when finished! ❤️
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
See the tips, tricks and details here ❣️ https://littlepinelearners.com/heart-craft-for-kids/ #craftsforkids #valentinesdecor #valentinescrafts #handmadegifts
•DIY Flower Vase• This gorgeous and oh so easy •DIY Flower Vase•
This gorgeous and oh so easy to make flower vase is a must try craft! It makes the perfect handmade gift or decoration for your home. The flowers may fade, but this gorgeous vase will last forever.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Swipe to see how we turned this into an illuminated vase! This was a cool discovery from my little one, Leo😍 Now it can be enjoy during the day and at night! ✨ 
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
See all the details here! https://littlepinelearners.com/diy-flower-vase/ #diy #diyvase #valentinesgift #naturecrafts
•Spatial Awareness Nature Shape Puzzle• Give y •Spatial Awareness Nature Shape Puzzle•
Give your child the opportunity to work on spatial awareness with this simple and beautiful DIY nature puzzle. Children will love manipulating the pieces of nature to make them fit inside the shape! You can keep this activity fun and fresh by adding new seasonal pieces of nature from your area🌿🌺
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Try a heart shape this Valentine’s Day❤️
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
See the ✔️tips, ✔️tricks, and ✔️details HERE https://littlepinelearners.com/work-on-spacial-awareness-with-this-simple-nature-shape-puzzle/ #natureactivity #natureflatlay #transientart #valentinesdayactivities
•Beaded stars• So simple and always a hit! And •Beaded stars•
So simple and always a hit! And the best part is, all you need is cardboard, string, and beads. Give this fine motor activity a try today! #recycleandplay #cardboardart #cardbaordactivities

Copyright © 2021 · Website Designed by Laugh Eat Learn