Simple Sensory Sandcastles Using Magnets And Sandpaper

After time at the beach, as well as sandboxes at playgrounds and in our yard, it’s clear my kiddos are fans of sandcastles. Summer days and sandy feet go hand in hand, but with a young baby at home, I can’t always be cleaning up the mess. This inspired me to create a sandcastle creating activity that is easy prep, low mess, and still feels like the real deal. Read further to check out our sensory sandcastles, and create some of your own.

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SIMPLE SENSORY SANDCASTLES IDEA TO DIY

Sensory input is so great for little fingers, but often has the potential to get messy! I love how minimal the clean up is with this activity. The materials are inexpensive, preparing them couldn’t be simpler, and the activity can be used over and over again. Total win in this mama’s eyes!

Sensory Sandcastles Materials:

• Magnetic sheets with adhesive.
• Sheets of sandpaper.
  • Different grits will both look and feel different, so using a variety means extra sensory fun!
• Scissors.
• A cookie sheet, or other surface for magnets to adhere to.
• Optional- free printable beach photo as sandcastle building background.
  • Scroll down to grab yours!

How To prepare For Sensory Sandcastles

1. First, assemble all necessary materials.
2. Print out the beach background photo, if you plan to use it.
3. Next, remove the paper backing to expose the adhesive on a magnetic sheet.
   
4. Attach sandpaper to the magnet, rough side up.
5. Then use scissors to cut out small shapes for building sandcastles.
   1. Basics like squares, triangles, rectangles, etc. are all good.
   2. Feel free to get more creative- hearts, ovals, octagons, etc. could all be fun to incorporate.
   3. If children are old enough, encourage them to choose and cut shapes they’d most like to build with.
   4. I cut all of our shapes free-hand. They’re sandcastles- no need for perfection or fussiness!
      
6. Attach the background photo to the cookie sheet or other magnetic surface with a few spare magnets.
7. Encourage kids to attach sandy magnets thoughtfully as their sensory sandcastles grow in front of you!

Variations For Creating Sensory Sandcastles:

• Free build- anything goes, so get creative!
• Build by shape- what does a sandcastle made entirely from triangles look like? Circles? Squares?
• Build by size- put the largest building pieces at the bottom, and work up to the smallest ones. Try it in reverse… Which looks cooler? Seems sturdier?
• Build alone, or build as a team- what new ideas can you come up with when you work with a partner?
• How big can you build? Forget the beach background, and see just how tall you can make your sensory sandcastle.
• Can you use the building shapes to create a specific letter or number?
• Keep playing, and discovering more ways to create these fun sensory sandcastles!

>>> Beach Background Printable <<<

Big + fancy, or small + simple? What sort of sandcastles do your kids prefer creating?