We’ve been on a dinosaur kick this past week, which led to this new variation on the sensory bin!

To set up our archaeological dig, I used three kinds of dried beans as the base – pinto beans, black-eyed peas, and white beans. Hide various dinosaur toys or bones in the bottom of a bin, then cover with the beans.

Next, Travis and I gathered our tools – we needed shovels, rakes, and wooden craft sticks to sift through the layers of “soil”. He was so excited when he unearthed the T-Rex skull!

We also used test tubes to collect “soil samples” of the beans. Pouring the beans into the narrow tubes took great concentration, and was a nice test for fine motor skills.

Overall, Travis liked scooping the beans more than he was into the archaeological aspect of the bin, but it was still a great way to extend our play with dinosaur toys at home.