Discovery Basket: Letter “B”!

Hi, friends!

Just wanted to hop on for a quick share today while Max is napping (because it’s either now or in the wee hours of the night, and I can’t seem to keep my eyes open past nine PM these days. Pregnancy exhaustion is no joke!)

This is one of my new favorite ways to incorporate learning into open-ended play: discovery baskets!

The idea is similar to sensory bins, minus the sensory base part. So if you like the idea of sensory bins but don’t like cleaning up dry beans and corn, this is for you.

The theme for today’s basket was the letter “b”. I started by grabbing some wooden letters and alphabet flash cards, and then just did a quick scan of Max’s room for items.

I found a ball, a boat, bears, butterflies, a bus, a block, and a little felt bagel from his play kitchen. (P.S. I made all of our felt play food when Evi was a baby and it makes me so happy to see him using it eight years later! Also I’m honestly a little surprised that it’s held up this long. 😆)

I spent about five minutes talking about the items with Max after giving him the basket this morning and then just let him play independently. That’s one of my favorite things about open-ended play—it encourages independence and creativity. And who couldn’t use a few uninterrupted minutes to savor their morning coffee, am I right?

That’s all for today, friends. Thanks for stopping by, and happy spring!!