How to Make an “Under The Sea” Chickpea Sensory Bin for Kids

As someone who loved jumping in a ball pit at Chuck E Cheese as a kid, I am now an adult who’s very excited to make a chickpea sensory bin for my kid. It’s like a mini ball pit for your hands, and I’ve been so excited to make one that my son can play with now that he’s in the toddler stage. 

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After picking the colors and theme of my first chickpea sensory bin, carefully selecting the best accessories, coating the chickpeas in a layer of paint (also a satisfying task as a sensory-seeking adult), and waiting for them to dry on an old cookie sheet, I quickly learned that my son is still too deep in the “putting everything in his mouth” phase to actually enjoy this activity, which is, much to his disappointment, not edible. However, we were also playing with my older nieces and the neighbor kid, who was at a more appropriate age for this activity. My son chose to play with his favorite train (it’s this one and we’ve named it Chuckles – if you buy it you’ll understand why) while eating grass instead. 

I decided to go with an “Under the Sea” themed chickpea sensory bin, which allowed me to use the jewel tone colors I’m always drawn to, plus some sea creature toys and sea shells I had in a jar from camping on the beach a few years ago. 

The Benefits of Sensory Bins for Kids

Sensory bins like this made with chickpeas help young children with cognitive development, gross and fine motor skills, problem-solving, and creativity. If they’re playing with other children, sensory bins also promote language development and social skills. You can also play with them and talk through different processes to help foster these skills – I promise you’ll enjoy sticking your hands in a sensory bin, maybe more than the kids.

How to Make an Under The Sea Chickpea Sensory Bin

Supplies:

32 ounces of dried chickpeas – I bought two 16-oz bags from the local middle eastern store, but you can also find them on Amazon

Acrylic paint in turquoise, purple, light green, and light blue. Alternatively, you can use liquid watercolors.

4 Ziploc bags

1-cup measuring cup

Wax paper

Cookie sheet for drying the painted chickpeas

Directions:

1. Place a piece of wax paper on the cookie sheet and set it aside.

2. Separate the chickpeas evenly into the zip lock bags (approx. 1 1⁄4 cup per bag).

3. Add a squirt of paint to one bag at a time. Seal the bag, roll, and shake the dried beans to get them coated with paint. Continue until all 4 baggies of dried chickpeas are painted. If you’d like more color, add another drop of paint and repeat until you’ve reached the desired pigment.

4. Carefully pour each bag of painted chickpeas onto the cookie sheet into a single layer. Allow the painted chickpeas to air dry for at least 3-4 hours. I prefer to wait at least 24 hours to ensure all the moisture is out of the chickpeas. 

5. Place them directly into your bin or store in a large resealable ziplock bag.

To assemble the bin, I used an old container I found in the $5 section at Target and a few sea-themed toys in my son’s bottomless toy stash. 

Sensory bins don’t have to be complicated to be fun and educational for kids. You can place them in virtually any type of bin or on a tray that’s easily accessible for small hands, and use things from around the house like plastic spoons, tongs, Tupperware lids, muffin tins, silicone cupcake liners, and small cups to encourage creative play. Toy dinosaurs, cars, and Little People are perfect accessories for a chickpea sensory bin as well! 

To my surprise, these bins have also been an educational exercise for me. They’ve helped me come up with creative ideas for teaching the littles things like math, sorting, and color-identifying skills. I am not a teacher and have often wondered if I’d be able to adequately help my son learn, but a lot of these activities are just as beneficial for me as a parent. Turns out, you’re never too old to learn through play.