Sensory Seek and Find Rice Box

A seek and find rice box is a great sensory activity that lets your child explore, discover, and learn in a controlled manner. They can use a spoon to pick out items if they do not want to touch the rice, however, making a game out of finding all the items may encourage your child to touch, and then dig deeper into the smooth, cooling feel of the rice.

This is a messy kind of activity that is actually quite clean!

SAFETY NOTE: Due to the numerous small items in this type of activity always supervise for safety. If you child tends to try and eat items or stick small things in their nose or ears, you may choose to skip this activity or ONLY use larger items that are too big to become a choking or safety hazard. Keep your child safe - Don’t let the fun turn hazardous!

Making a Seek and Find Rice Box is an easy and fun activity to make with your child. All you will need is:

1. A container with a cover or shoe box with a lid to help keep everything in its place, or more convenient storage, and to keep the items dry and clean when not in use.

2. 2 pounds of rice is a good amount for this type of activity – you can buy the cheapest brand as you are playing with it, not eating it! NOTE: You can substitute elbow noodles if you choose – slightly different “feel” and texture, but this does work well and any mess is somewhat easier to clean up quickly

3. Add any of the suggested items from the following filler list to the container and you are ready to go!

You can vary how you use the Seek and Find Rice Box by

A. Making a list of what is in the box and then have your child go on a scavenger hunt searching for specific items

B. Have your child only look for and find items of a specific color

C. Have your child tell you about how and/or where you would use each item found

D. Have your child find the items by feel only by blocking their ability to see what’s in the box

E. Have them find the items that are only on the very bottom of the rice box

F. Let them “stir” the items up with their hands or a big wooden spoon

G. Share any other ideas and suggestions you may have in the comments below!

Filler Ideas to Include in a Seek and Find Rice Box:

Shower curtain rings (colored, clear, textured, and so on)
Pegs (from pegboards of various sizes and colors)
Clothes pins (wooden and/or plastic ones)
Old pieces of costume jewelry (remove pins and discard sharp edged pieces)
Comb (small, black or colored)
Small parquetry pieces (wooden, plastic, or ceramic)
Domino (one or two)
Plastic spoon
An Alphabet block
Small colorful toys (include little cars, toy people and critters)
Coins (pennies and dimes are smaller and harder to locate in the rice)
Buttons (of different colors and sizes)
Marbles
Paper clips (big colorful ones as well as the silver ones)
Bottle caps
Bobbins (metal or wooden)
Game pieces (from a variety of games) including dice
Rubber bands (different colors)
Big dry pasta (one or two rotini or penne, etc.)
Thimble
Small pieces of ribbon (different colors)
Nuts and bolts
Sequins (little shiny things are fun to find)
Beads (of various sizes)
Tiny colorful “pom-poms” from craft aisle
Small shells and interesting small rocks / pebbles
Small puzzle pieces (shapes, numbers, letters)
A crayon (with or without paper cover)
Key (various sizes)
Piece of twine or yarn
The list goes on!

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Disclaimer Note: Before beginning any new program, activity, exercise, or make changes, be sure to consult with your child’s doctor, and service providers for individualized guidance, direction, and supervision. These ideas and suggestions presented on TheraPlay4Kids are meant to help support and promote, however, since each child, diagnosis, medical status, and situation is different, one should seek help and approval from your child’s providers in order to achieve the best outcomes and ultimate safety for all involved. Please make use of this site and all the information presented at your own discretion for the safety and well-being of all involved.