More about Treasure Baskets

Awesome post by Shona!!!!

More about Treasure Baskets

Why use treasure baskets?

Treasure baskets have been used for decades by parents and childcare workers for teaching babies about different sensory items. Babies learn through touching, tasting, smelling, hearing and seeing. As babies get older, they may start to combine objects too, for example, they may use a wooden spoon to bang on a bowl. As babies will put these things into their mouths to learn about them, you must ensure there are no parts that are too small for the age of your baby. Treasure baskets are really good for babies who are not yet on the move, because it offers a wide variety of items to explore safely within reach.

Physically, your child will be developing control of their arms and their arm strength. They will also be developing hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills as they are holding and moving items around.

How to use your treasure basket 

Babies will need to be alert and there is enough time for them to be able to explore so don’t rush them. Sit them where they are comfortable and put the basket down near them. Sit close to them so you can deal with any issues but not so close that you are interfering, after all we want them to explore themselves. Don’t interrupt unless they want your attention or need your help. Check the contents of the basket regularly and remove any damaged items. Clean regularly, some items can be sterilised if you prefer. Remember your child is learning and so it’s important to almost leave them to it. They may play with very few items but this is because their concentration level is much higher than normal and they may be focussed on trying to do something specific.

When to begin using a treasure basket

Babies of all ages can use and appreciate a treasure basket, however it will need to contain items that are appropriate to their age. Babies that can’t sit could be placed on their tummy to explore items placed around them. Babies that can sit can be sat with the basket in front of them so they can reach for it themselves.

Ideas of items to put into a treasure basket

  • Toothbrush
  • Spiral toast rack
  • Corks
  • Loofah
  • Lemon squeezer
  • Large wooden dice
  • Small rolling pin
  • Curtain rings
  • Leaves
  • Scent bags
  • Old keys
  • Funnell
  • Jar tops
  • Mirror
  • Metal bowl
  • Baby spoons / forks
  • Tea strainer
  • Leather purse
  • Tennis ball
  • Bath plug
  • Wooden spoon
  • Rubber ducks
  • Soft ball
  • Hair comb
  • Greaseproof paper
  • Tin foil
  • Rattles
  • Wooden dolly pegs
  • Bobbins / cotton reels
  • Feathers
  • Pastry brush
  • Soft baby brush
  • Mini bean bags
  • Napkin rings
  • Silicone spoon
  • Wool
  • Wooden egg cup
  • Ribbons
  • Old remote control or mobile phone
  • Grass
  • Shoe brush
  • House painting brush
  • Rocks
  • Seashells
  • Musical instruments
  • Wooden massager with roller balls
  • Beaded necklaces / bracelets
  • Bells
  • Hair rollers
  • Acorns
  • Kitchen roll tubes
  • Rubber glove
  • Whisk
  • Dish cloth
  • Laminated photos
  • Pine cones
  • Sponge
  • An old CD
  • Fluffy flannel
  • Cotton wool
  • Various different materials – silk, chiffon, net curtain
  • Various sizes cardboard boxes
  • Felt – either pieces or shapes made from felt

Empty bottles – what can you do with them?

You could also use margarine tubs or empty baby food jars and fill with assorted things but you must ensure they are sealed completely shut.

Dry items – rice, pasta, lentils, buttons, hard beans, spaghetti, beads

Wet items – water with food colouring, water with glitter, water with sequins, water with buttons, ice cubes.

These items will need to be checked regularly to ensure the lids are still shut firmly and not damaged.

Food treasure baskets

For a fresh idea for lunch/snack times you could do a treasure basket with foods. You could use a tupperware box and select different textures of food to put inside. This could be good for fussy eaters too as they are able to select things they want to try and eat. You could use:

  • Bread – a variety of types
  • Breadsticks
  • Rice cakes
  • Apples
  • Grapes
  • Different coloured cheeses
  • Raisins
  • Dried fruit
  • Banana
  • Citrus fruits
  • Biscuits
  • Cooked meats
  • Pretzels
  • Biscuits

Colour baskets

You could also have baskets filled with all different colours. You could create a basket full of red, green or blue items. Younger children will greatly enjoy contrasting objects so black and white would be great for young babies. Older children may really enjoy a large rainbow of colours.

Making scent bags

Babies will love smelling all different things. You could make scent bags of your own by buying organza bags or if you are able to sew, make little bags yourself and fill them with different herbs, wood shavings, lavender, potpourri or spices. You could also use essential oils and soak a drop or two onto hankies.

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Toddler Games: Dry Food Play

Sometimes something is SO obvious that when you finally twig, you feel the need to slap yourself silly for not thinking of it earlier. No? Just me? oh well. 😉

This is one of those activities. It kept Miss NHM busy for well over an hour and wasn’t too messy.

What you will need

  • Red or Green lentils
  • Oats
  • Brown Rice
  • Pasta (coloured looks good)
  • Lots of different types of bowls and plates
  • Cooking implements like wooden spoons, spatula’s and children’s knives and forks

Dry Food Play

I raided the cupboard for dried food. I found red lentils, oats and some brown rice.

I put them all into different bowls and put them on the table with some cooking implements like spatula’s, wooden spoons and Miss NHM’s knife and fork. 

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I recently bought some multi-coloured pasta from Sainsburys that was on offer, so I put out a bowl of this.

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Miss NHM had so much fun playing with this activity. She kept telling me that she was “cooking like Mummy”. Bless.

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Tips

It’s probably best to do this somewhere that you don’t mind being made a bit messy. We did this in the kitchen as it’s easy to sweep up.

Have lots of different types of texture of dried food.

Probably not a good idea to do this with your little one if they are still experimenting by putting things in their mouth…

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Don’t add water unless you REALLY want your little one to create havoc :-D.

Let me know if you enjoyed this activity as much as we did.

Early Education Leaflets – Free Resources!

I stumbled across these Early Education (0 to 5 year olds) leaflets late last year. The leaflets can be downloaded for free and most are short. I recommend reading them because they give some great suggestions, tips and ideas for helping parents and carers understand and help babies and children learn. I particularly like that each of the PDF documents has a reading list and a list of useful contacts and resources relevant to each theme.

Most of the documents are less than three pages long, although the Development Matters document is a very long document, but fascinating reading.

The list of free leaflets you can download are:

  • Development Matters
  • Science all around
  • Making their mark – children’s early writing
  • Helping children cope with change
  • Young children and technology
  • The road to reading
  • Making a noise for music
  • Going out to play and learn
  • Toddlers and very early learning
  • Questions and answers
  • Helping children with their behaviour
  • Children as artists
  • Babies – learning starts from the first day
  • Maths is everywhere

You can find the link to these leaflets HERE. Click on the “View All” arrow under the Free section.