This activity was inspired by a post I recently pinned from Deborah over at Teach Preschool. I've made lots of sensory bags in the past, but this post inspired me to add my own twist to it with frogs and flies.
Simple, simple, simple! I just grabbed some green craft foam and cut out circles about the size of a quarter. Then I used a green marker to add speckles to make our green speckled frogs.
The flies were even easier than the frogs! We had an old jar of craft foam with random pieces in it including various black circles. Some kids got some rather large flies for their frog to gobble up! This opened up a great conversation about size and comparing what they had in their bag!
I prefer to use freezer bags when we make sensory bags. They are heavier and less likely to leak. The quart size bags are the perfect size.
Fill each bag with about 1/2-3/4 cup of any brand of hair gel. I usually get mine at the dollar store. This gel was perfect because it was already blue. You can add food coloring to it if you want to change the color or make it more intense.
Now all you need to complete your little "pond in a baggie" is a frog and a fly. Throw one frog and one fly into each bag and seal it up tight. For extra assurance I fold over the top of the baggie and tape it closed with clear packing tape.
I challenged the kids to help the frog "chase" the fly around the pond until they caught the fly! They also enjoyed helping the fly get away! Imagine all the fine motor and sensory skills you are strengthening as they work their way around the pond with frog and fly! Several students kicked it up a notch and even tried this with the baggie on their head! They loved the way it felt and really had to engage their brains to help them catch the fly without looking!
One of my favorite things about this activity is that they were working many of the same fine motor skills that they do when they cut and write, but they were doing it without a worksheet! Fun for everyone!
