Sensory play is so important and my boys love it! It encourages imagination as well as exploring different senses. I decided to create a fun sensory bin that was inspired by one of their favorite holiday books, Dinosaur vs Santa. It includes candy canes, toys, dyed rice, dinosaurs and wooden alphabet tiles. Your kids will love this dinosaur Christmas sensory bin as much as my kids!

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Supplies
- IKEA FLISAT Children’s Table or plastic bin
- Plastic candy canes
- Dyed rice (green)
- Santa toy
- Mini Santa hats
- Jingle bells
- Mini Christmas bows
- Plastic dinosaurs
- Magnetic wands
- Children’s kitchen utensils
- Red spray paint
- Glue gun with glue sticks
- Mini Christmas ornaments
- Wooden alphabet tiles
- Mini gift boxes
- Train set
Setting Up Your Dinosaur Christmas Sensory Bin
First, you will need to dye at least four cups of rice green. I used the same rice from a previous sensory activity. It was stored in a resealable gallon bag and placed in my pantry. Visit my blog post for directions to dye your rice for this sensory bin. Once the rice is dry, dump it into your plastic bin.
You can leave your dinosaur as is but I decided to spray paint it red to match the character in the book. Then I used my glue gun to attach the mini Santa hat on the dinosaur’s head. Add the dinosaurs and other items off the supply list to the plastic bin. Make sure to supervise small children because some items are choking hazards.
Dinosaur vs Santa by Bob Shea is an adorable book about a dinosaur who tackles challenges like holiday decorating and making good choices before Christmas. Kids will be able to spell words found in the book using the wooden alphabet tiles. They can also practice counting all the jingle bells and mini ornaments.
Children can play while listening to the story. My kindergartner was able to recognize items from his dinosaur Christmas sensory bin that was also in the book. You can also encourage your kids to separate items by color or size. My toddler enjoyed using the magnetic wand to pick up the jingle bells. His brother created a game using the jingle bells and mini ornaments.
Check out this Ultimate Arts and Crafts Holiday Gift Guide for your kids. You will also like this DIY ugly Christmas sweater to help celebrate the holidays.
Looking for more Christmas activities for your little ones? Visit my Pinterest board as well as these fun holiday activities:
Christmas Stew Counting Math Game
DIY Christmas Ornament Station
Candy Cane Water Play Sensory Activity