Looking for a Christmas activity to do your baby or young toddler? Here is an easy one! Make a Christmas Tree Sensory bag using hair gel, dollar store items and a ziplock bag.
Why make a Sensory bag?
Sensory play is essential for early learning and child development. Sensory bags are a great tool to play with textures without getting messy.
Sensory bags are also a great activity when a baby still puts everything in his/her mouth, therefore it allows them to explore different objects in a safe way.
Kid’s fine motor skills are improved as they manipulate small objects. Sensory bags help improve infants’ problem-solving abilities, making them more prepared to complete more complex learning tasks.
How to make a christmas tree Sensory bag
Supplies Needed to make a hair gel Sensory bag
- Gallon size ziplock bag
- Alcohol and cotton ball (optional to remove the label)
- Hair Gel (preferably clear in color)
- black Sharpie
- Christmas Tree Printable (free download here)
- Small Christmas toys such as ornaments and small gifts (we got them from the dollar store)
Step 1: prepare the bag
Grab a gallon size ziplock bag and rub alcohol over the label to remove it.
Print out a Christmas Tree Coloring Page (or design your own) and using a sharpie trace over the design.
You can download the Christmas Tree Coloring Page we used <download by clicking here>
Step 2: add in hair gel and toys inside
Hair gel is one of my favorite fillings for sensory bags (water is in second place) because it lets any toys you add to be see-thru and allows for the toys to move freely but not as fast as water. This way they can really manipulate each object.
Add in about 1/3 of the bag with hair gel and place in the toys inside.
My idea was to make a Christmas tree sensory bag that would inspire them to decorate the tree using things I already had at home.
I had purchased little gifts and some ornaments as well as some gingerbread cookie decor to make a few holiday activities (like the Must make winter sensory bin ideas). I love it because you can be super creative in what you add.
There is no right or wrong here! Everyone can decorate their tree as they please so don’t be afraid to experiment with your embellishments to decorate your tree.
You can add beads, mini erasers, and other small toys.
The gifts were the best idea for this Christmas tree sensory bag because they moved so easily when pushed through the gel. The balls were a bit harder because they were so big. The kids really needed to concentrate to push it. I even had to add extra gel to let the balls roll easier.
So go for flatter and soft objects when making your bag.
As the kids played more with the toys and moved the bag the marker started to fade. So get a high-quality marker when you do your bag!
Step 3: tape the bag to a table
Sensory bags are so fun to play with every kid will want to lift it, grab it, or try to open it.
To avoid this, tape the bag to the floor or table to keep it still and protect the opening.
We started placing the bag in the floor for Liz (8 months) to play with. This was a toy for her.
Liz recently learned how to stand and loves exploring the work standing.
We quickly changed our setup and place the bag on the table; adding a box underneath for her to reach. She was a much happier baby and more interested in the toy we did for her.
A toy for all
Even though this toy was made for Liz who’s still puts everything in her mouth, the older kids David (23 months) and Manu (33 months) were still up we interested in the activity.
Manu’s game was to put all the objects inside the tree and then take them out of the tree, while David and Lis just really enjoyed the feeling of the toys as they moved around.
Last thoughts
If you Feel like having a mess-free activity, sensory bags are a great activity to set up. Just remember to take the sides to ensure the bag stays in one place.
For more ideas on what to put inside a sensory bag, check our ultimate guide to sensory bags and get super inspired!
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