Sensory bins are a wonderful tool for developing minds. They offer a variety of textures, puzzles, and exploration. Two years ago I built a few sensory bins for my then 18 month old twins. Not only did they help cultivate learning, they also aided in holding their attention when I needed to complete chores, or keeping busy bodies focused on cold and rainy days.
The sensory bin I am sharing with you today is construction themed. I mostly used toys, and objects we already had around the house: small trucks, scoops, funnels and toilet paper tubes. For the rocks, I picked up a bag of dried chickpeas, however, you could use small rocks too.
These bins can be used to help your child better process and understand the world around them. If you find them repeating behaviors, they are likely working through understanding a specific part of how the world works. Thanks to 
For instance, if you find your child repeatedly watching running water, a ball bouncing, or find them jumping - in place or off of objects - they may be trying to understand vertical trajectories. Pouring material through tubes or funnels can help them further understand this concept. Additionally, lining objects up into a row, sweeping, or pushing objects with wheels would be their way of exploring horizontal trajectories. Pushing toy trucks through the chickpeas would be another way of allowing them to play with this idea. Vehicles with scoops or boxes would also allow them to explore the concepts of containment and transportation.
Or, in the case of my kids, all of these schemas could be tested by climbing into the bin to pour and push the chickpeas and cars with their bodies.
If you have a serious aversion to messes, I strongly recommend laying a large blanket under the bin to catch the mess. When they're done playing you can just fold the blanket and shake the escapees back into the bin.
