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June 27, 2011 | 12 Comments

Mining For Magnets!

minig for magnets science sensory tub

My mom returned from an Alaskan cruise with this super cool mining hat for my son and I knew I wanted to use it as a prop for an activity. He is all about pretend play and dress up The same way I use super heroes to get him excited to write I used this new hat for this fun sensory activity. Even though we used magnets you could do this with pinchers , a small scoop or just wee little hands!  Older kids ready for magnets though will love how the wand helps them mine for the ” diamonds”.

  1. Gather your materials. You will need some dried beans , lentils or rice, a container, a magnetic wand with steel ringed chips or marbles .
  2. Pour the dried beans/ rice in the container. A lot of parents email me saying that they are shocked that their 4-7 year olds still like sensory bins. I am not surprised in the least.  Especially when you have them help make them and there is a little task involved ( though never required).
  3. Add the magnetic chips – we were pretending they were diamonds.
  4. Start mining. Count, sort do whatever you want with the treasures you mine.
  5. The only thing you must do is have fun!

Book to Read with Magnet Activity

Mole Music by David McPhail is a beautiful book about the power of music, trying hard and not giving up on your dreams.  The story is about a mole who sees a violin on TV one day and decides to get his own and play. He is terrible at first but sticks with it. His music becomes beautiful, and over the years he thinks only he can hear and enjoy it. In reality his music is nourishing a grand tree above the ground that serves roles in great things including as a mediator in a battle where both sides end up coming to a peaceful agreement instead of warfare. Now yes I think that one little mole’s music ending a war is a rather large statement but if you break it down, music and the arts are vital and do transform people’s lives the way they transformed Mole’s.  My favorite part is in one illustration Mole is playing and in another tunnel you can see his old TV discarded and tipped over, I like that message.

Filed Under: Age Preschool, Age: Kindergarten, Magnets, Mining, Sensory Activities, Sensory Tubs | 12 Comments

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12 Comments

  1. Julie says

    June 27, 2011 at 11:58 am

    We used that same magnet set to hunt for buried treasure in a tub of polenta meal 🙂 It tied in nicely with the pirate exhibit at the local museum

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  2. Christy says

    June 27, 2011 at 12:31 pm

    This is a great activity! Can’t wait to try it!!! Thanks so much for the inspiration!

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  3. jackie says

    June 27, 2011 at 1:04 pm

    I am not suprised that the odler kiddies like them either. I use the sensory tubs with my mom who has altzheimer’s and she loves them.

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  4. Deborah says

    June 27, 2011 at 9:45 pm

    Love it!

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  5. sarah says

    June 27, 2011 at 9:54 pm

    That’s a great idea we will be trying that one out. Have you written anything on the way you used Super heroes? my son is not interested in writing at all but does love super heroes I would be very interested to read about how you used them.

    to sarah" aria-label='reply to this comment to sarah'>reply to this comment
  6. Leeanne A says

    June 28, 2011 at 4:29 am

    Love it! i want one of those hats – really cute and different.

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  7. Dana @ DanasPinkRibbon says

    June 28, 2011 at 6:46 pm

    Cool idea! I love reading about all of your activities… especially the ones for infants, since I have a 10 month old. Thank you for taking the time to share all of these!

    to Dana @ DanasPinkRibbon" aria-label='reply to this comment to Dana @ DanasPinkRibbon'>reply to this comment
  8. tamara says

    August 20, 2011 at 9:45 am

    Thank you for sharing this! It fit perfectly into a our Five in a Row studies this week 🙂 I linked up to your post.

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Trackbacks

  1. {The Rag Coat} says:
    August 19, 2011 at 9:49 pm

    […] learned a lot about coal and coal mining this week!  I was blessed reading a blog post that shared a really neat sensory tub idea to let your child mine their own […]

    to {The Rag Coat}" aria-label='reply to this comment to {The Rag Coat}'>reply to this comment
  2. Simple and Frugal Sensory Tub | No Time For Flash Cards says:
    November 15, 2011 at 12:27 am

    […] experiences for kids don’t have to be a show stopping three ring circus. I like making elaborate sensory tubs especially for my son since he is getting older and needs ones with specific tasks ( like finding […]

    to Simple and Frugal Sensory Tub | No Time For Flash Cards" aria-label='reply to this comment to Simple and Frugal Sensory Tub | No Time For Flash Cards'>reply to this comment
  3. Sensory Tubs from A to Z says:
    August 5, 2014 at 6:58 am

    […] Mining for Magnets Sensory Tub from No Time for Flashcards […]

    to Sensory Tubs from A to Z" aria-label='reply to this comment to Sensory Tubs from A to Z'>reply to this comment
  4. Boys' Learning: Sensory Bins - Brain Power Boy says:
    December 12, 2014 at 6:52 am

    […] put on our hardhats and go mining for magnets! So simple and yet you can learn so much from playing with magnets. Set this one up very quickly […]

    to Boys' Learning: Sensory Bins - Brain Power Boy" aria-label='reply to this comment to Boys' Learning: Sensory Bins - Brain Power Boy'>reply to this comment

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