Blogger / 19 March, 2025 / Nanny Anita

Sponge and Water Sensory Tray

Don’t get me wrong, I love an elaborately themed sensory tray.  They look so inviting when you see them on Instagram.  But are they necessary?  No, not really.  Kids will either play with it regardless of what it looks like, or they won’t.  Plus, for the parents it can be slightly over whelming thinking that they need to try and do these sorts of things.  While some of my sensory trays do have more components, they are usually using things that my job has there.  Of course, there are times when I will go out and get something for a specific theme, but in generally they are things that will be used over and over again.  So, what is the point of my long ramble?  Trays do not need to have elaborate set ups, especially for really little ones.  Which is why this sponge and water sensory tray is so good.  It took me all of about 2 minutes to set up.  The longest part of it was cutting the sponges up.

Make sure you follow my sensory play board on Pinterest for more ideas.  Don’t forget to save the pin for later.

To make your own sponge and water sensory tray you will need:

• Sponges
• Tray
• Water
• Bowls

If you have large sponges, you may want to cut them into smaller parts to make it easier for smaller hands to used them.

Then add everything to your tray.

NC was very unsure with this to begin with, I don’t think she was overly keen on the sponges.  She did warm up to it though after a few minutes of cautiously prodding them.

In the end she climbed into the sensory tray to make it more immersive (I guess).

Adding the sponges is an easy way for children to develop their hand muscles and fine motor skills, which is an important building block for so many other skills that they will need.  As your little one gets older you can start to incorporate the idea of moving water from one bowl to another using the sponge.

I also recommend having a towel or something nearby in case your little one also decides to go for a dunk in the tray.

If you enjoyed this sponge and water sensory tray, be sure to check out my exploring light sensory tray, and zen garden for kids.

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