Rainbow Snow and Ice Cube Sensory Bin for Winter

Snow sensory table ideas add such fun and interest to winter preschool learning. When it’s too blustery or cold to actually be outdoors, why not bring it all in for some indoor sensory play?! This fun ice cube sensory project incorporates the colors of the rainbow, allowing young children to explore touch and sight.

Recommended Grade Level:

Preschool

Kindergarten

Supply List
Coordinating Activities

Materials for the Rainbow Snow and Ice Sensory Bin

Snow
Ice Cube Tray
Food Coloring
Baking Sheet or Deep Tray
Water

stem volcano baking soda and vinegar reaction

snow spray paint winter art featured image

Preschool Snow and Ice Cube Sensory Bin for Winter is a wonderful snow sensory bin idea for those freezing months when ice activities are sometimes better when we bring them in! Add a dose of color, and you’re looking at nature in a whole new way.

Create the snow and ice activity for preschool with water, an ice cube tray, food coloring, and real snow! If you don’t have the real stuff, your students will still benefit by playing with the colored ice.

Preschool Ice Cube Sensory Table

Have you ever wonder why the favorite sensory tables ALWAYS draws kids in, day after day?

Sensory activities for toddlers and preschoolers support a wealth of important growth and development. Varying the sensory bin fillers throughout the year creates a variety of different fine motor and gross motor experiences for kids.

Research supports the idea that sensory play builds nerve connections and creates pathways in the brain used later for more complex tasks.

When children explore using their five senses, whether through ice sensory play in a winter sensory bin or sand exploration in the summer, they develop:

Language and vocabulary
Social skills
Problem solving
Creativity
Coping mechanisms

This ice cube sensory table idea provides a great way for students to explore the colors of the rainbow, color mixing, and the scientific process of melting snow and ice.

a close up of water being added to an ice tray with different colors of food color in them.

Supplies for the Snow and Ice Sensory Bin:

Ice tray
Food coloring (rainbow colors) or Washable Liquid Paint (I recommend Crayola) see note below
Water
Straw
Snow
Tray
Spoon

a close up of the food coloring being mixed into the water in an ice tray with a straw.

How To Make the Winter Snow and Ice Sensory Bin:

Step 1:

Grab an ice cube tray and place a drop of food coloring into each section. We like to go in order of the rainbow colors, so start with red, then orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. Just imagine how vibrant it will look!

Step 2:

Next up, pour water into each section of the tray. Be careful not to overfill them, or you might end up with a colorful mess where the colors bleed into one another. We want each color to shine bright!

Step 3:

Now, take a straw and stir each section gently. This helps to mix the washable paint or food coloring thoroughly with the water, ensuring that each ice cube is bursting with color when it freezes.

Teacher Tip: If you use food coloring instead of washable paint, I recommend that you use plastic gloves and something to cover your child’s clothing.

Step 4:

After that, it’s time to freeze! Pop the ice cube tray into the freezer and let it sit until all the ice is completely solid. This might take a few hours, so maybe use this time to plan your next creative activity!

Step 5:

When you’re ready to play, take the colorful ice cubes out of the tray and place them on a tray filled with snow. If you don’t have real snow, you can get creative with some fluffy white cotton or even homemade snow!

Step 6:

Now, for the best part—coloring the snow! Use a spoon to move the colored ice around. As the ice melts, it will leave behind beautiful swirls of color in the snow, creating a magical, winter wonderland right in your sensory bin!

a child playing with the preschool snow and ice cube sensory bin.

While children are exploring with ice cube sensory play, consider talking about what’s happening as the cubes melt into the snow, or as the colors bleed together.

close up of the finished preschool snow and ice cube sensory bin.

More Winter Theme Sensory Table Ideas

Ice painting is just one option for winter sensory play! Try another idea to keep kids engaged in preschool sensory bins all winter long.

Bring snow inside and make mini snowmen. Observe and take note as each one becomes a melted snowman.
Other ideas for a snow sensory bin include: Hide plastic letters/numbers/shapes for kids to find and identify. Create roads, hills, caves for plastic animal figurines or other favorite plastic figures.
Cotton balls or cotton batting are a warm and dry alternative to real snow!
Water play is always a favorite and doesn’t have to go away in the winter months! Add floating “islands” with stryofoam circles for polar animals to perch on.
Include water beads instead of real water for an indoor water table that’s a little less wet!