Indoor Activities for Preschoolers – Cornmeal
This is part of a series of posts about indoor sensory activities for preschoolers. Other posts in the series include: Indoor Activities for Preschoolers- Quick!, Let's Bounce! Indoor Active Toys, Kitchen Sensory Activities, and the Printable Sensory Activities List.
During times when my kids are stuck indoors with extra energy to burn, sensory activities can help us stay sane. While my kids are little, I feel like a large part of my homeschooling job is to find ways to meet all of our needs and also enjoy being together. Sensory play ideas like the Bean Box and this cornmeal activity tends to center and satisfy the kids. Having some ideas like this close at hand helps me be calmer and generally a more pleasant mom to be around.
Cornmeal Sensory Play
Last week I HAD to get some cooking and cleaning done and the boys had already bundled up and gone outside once, played legos and watched a video. They were quickly moving toward that weird energy where they are magnetically attracted to each other and yet can't seem to stop themselves from hitting/pinching/poking or otherwise injuring or annoying one another. We needed something to do.
So out came the cornmeal. Now, I admit, this is not an activity that will leave you with a sparkly clean dining room. However, if you don't mind doing a cornmeal dust sweep up afterward, it's a great way to engage small hands with some sensory play.
I gave each boy their own baking dish and poured in an inch or two of corn meal– about half a bag between them.
Toys I got out:
- plastic forks and spoons,
- a couple marbles,
- shells
- and the requisite toy cars.
They mushed an squished and drew their names (Leland with some help from me, corn meal feels pretty neat by the way.) They made mountains and roads and buried treasures happily for nearly an hour. When they were done I had them call me in there to dust them off so they didn't track corn through the house.I saved the used meal in a ziploc bag for next time.
And then I swept. A lot.
But it was worth it! Cornmeal in a dish is one super simple sensory activity that your kids will love.
You can find more preschool play ideas here:
- Board games for preschool kids
- Independent play activities for preschoolers
- Active play inside for preschool kids
Alissa Zorn is an author, and founder of the website Overthought This. She's a coach and cartoonist passionate about helping people overcome perfectionism and shame to build authentic, joyful lives. Alissa is certified through the International Coach Federation and got her Trauma-Informed Coaching certification from Moving the Human Spirit. She wrote Bounceback Parenting: A Field Guide for Creating Connection, Not Perfection, and is always following curiosity to find her next creative endeavor.