25 Sensory Science Activities Exploring the Five Senses

The first theme for this year’s Storybook Science series was sensory science. We shared activities that explored the five senses perfect for preschoolers and older. Check out the collection of activities that include making observations with sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste. Each of the sensory science activities was inspired by a book. Reading the books will help reinforce learning about the five senses.  I get commissions for purchases made through the affiliate links in this post.

Sensory Science Activities Exploring the Five Senses

When we do science, we make observations using one or more of our five senses. Even the youngest scientists can use their senses to learn about the world around them.

Activities that Explore the Sense of Touch

These sense of touch activities focus on the sense of sight. This is a great example of how our senses work together. Often what we see helps us form opinions about what our other senses should experience.

Rainbow Texture Explorations for Toddlers inspired by a Rainbow of My Own from Inspiration Laboratories – Explore colors and textures with this activity perfect for toddlers and preschoolers.

Rainbow Sensory Ice Excavation Activity inspired by What Makes a Rainbow? from To Be A Kid Again – How can you get the ribbons out of the ice? This activity pairs wonderfully with the book recommendation as both have colorful ribbons.

Rainbow Sensory Bag for Toddlers inspired by A Rainbow of My Own from Rainy Day Mum – Explore color mixing in this mess free painting activity for toddlers.

The Lorax Sensory Tray from Science Sparks – Recreate the story of The Lorax in a sensory rice tray. The change in colors matches the changes in the story.

Cat in the Hat Sensory Tray from Science Sparks – Explore magnets and numbers with this sensory rice tray colored to mimic the Cat’s hat.

Activities that Explore the Sense of Hearing

Backyard Sound Observations inspired by Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? from Read Science – What sounds can you hear in your backyard?

What Makes a Musical Note Higher or Lower? inspired by The Way Things Work Now from Mama Smiles – Learn about the physics of sound with these video demos you can try at home.

Listening Games with Elephant and Piggie inspired by Should I Share My Ice Cream? – Work on listening skills with these fun games.

Activities that Explore Taste and Smell

Cooking and baking with kids is an excellent way to explore the senses of taste and smell. Cooking and baking are also perfect for working on science and math skills like measuring and following directions.

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies inspired Piggy Let’s Be Friends – Brownies are a super easy way to get kids baking in the kitchen. Having a tea party to extend the sensory experience.

Visual Recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookies inspired by If You Give a Mouse a Cookie – This recipe uses pictures instead of words for the ingredient list and directions.

Food Science Experiment inspired by Zoey and Sassafras: Dragons and Marshmallows – Let your children design a food science experiment to find out what foods they like to eat. It’s a fun way to try new foods and learn about conducting a science experiment.

Kitchen Chemistry Experiment: Make a Cup Cake in the Microwave inspired by Whopper Cake – Experiment with ingredients to make a cake in the microwave. This posts has sample recipes and suggestions for experimenting.

Activities that Explore the Sense of Sight

Sensory Bottles Used to Explore Shapes inspired by Mouse Shapes from JDaniel4’s Mom – Graph the different shapes you find in the sensory bottle.

Solar System Sensory Bottle inspired by How to Catch a Star – Learn about the planets in our solar system with this simple sensory bottle.

Fizzing Pinkalicious Cupcake Experiment inspired by Pinkalicious – Try this sensory science investigation to discover which combination of ingredients will make the best fizz.

Explore Shiny and Dull with Painted Foil Hearts inspired by Ollie’s Valentine from Read Science

Activities that Explore all Five Senses

Nature Scavenger Hunt inspired by The Adventures of Little Nutbrown Hare from Nature with Kids – Head out into the forest and see what you can find. Use all five senses to explore the outdoors. (Can you smell and taste the air?)

Exploring the Five Senses with Books inspired by What a Wonderful World from Great Family Reads – Go for a walk and see what observations you can make with your senses. Grab the free printable and record what you find.

Exploring the Five Senses: A Science Experiment for Kids inspired by from Edventures with Kids – get kids into the kitchen and use your senses to explore different ingredients

Roasting Pumpkin Seeds with Kids: A Five Senses Experience inspired by Pete the Cat: Five Little Pumpkins from To Be A Kid Again

Fizzy Coconut Lime Play Dough inspired by My Five Senses – This super soft cornstarch play dough is a wonderful tactile experience. For extra sensory fun it has the smell of limes and coconut plus it fizzes! This activities doesn’t explore the sense of taste. (The play dough is not edible.)

Holiday Themed Activities that Explore the Five Senses

Five Senses Preschool Christmas and Winter Activities

Jolly Christmas Postman Sensory Bin from Rainy Day Mum – Retell the story using this sensory bin with fake snow, figures, and postcards.

The Amazing Scents of Christmas inspired by The Sweet Smell of Christmas (a scratch and sniff book) from Edventures with Kids – Explore the science of smell with this hands-on activity for kids.

Melted Snowman Sensory Bag inspired by The Snowman from Rainy Day Mum – Build a snowman in this no mess sensory bag.

Snow Dough inspired by The Snowy Day from To Be A Kid Again – Try this tactile sensory experience that mimics snow.

What are your favorite sensory science activities? Do you have book recommendations to go along with them?

More Science Collections You’ll Love

Oobleck Recipes – 25 Ways to Explore Cornstarch and Water

22 Outdoor Science Experiments and Activities

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