Yesterday, my 3-year-old neighbour visited us. He was allured by the green garden we have and a lot of interesting things it has to offer – pinecones, shells and many other wonderful nature loose parts. A kindergarten teacher at heart, I quickly set up water play with food dyes and eye droppers, and he played with so much engagement.
If you have ever watched a toddler sit in a mud patch, swirl water in a bowl, or run bark chips through their fingers, you can see how deeply they learn through their senses. Sensory play is not just “messy play”. It is how toddlers make sense of the world long before they have the words to explain what they know.
For toddlers, learning starts with looking closely, touching, smelling, listening, and moving. This is exactly what nature invites. When a toddler crouches down to watch ants or scoops wet sand, they are already engaged in early inquiry. They are comparing textures, testing ideas, and noticing patterns. Inquiry does not need a worksheet. It starts with curiosity.
Research in this unit reminds us that toddlers learn best through active, embodied experiences. In Outdoor Learning Environments, Little writes that young children need rich sensory experiences outdoors to build confidence, resilience, and problem-solving skills, and that risk-taking is part of healthy development when it is supported thoughtfully (Little, 2017, pp. 19–38). This helps us see sensory play not as an “extra”, but as a core curriculum.
When toddlers stir water with sticks or explore mud, they are also practising fine and gross motor skills, regulating their bodies, and building attention. Even very young toddlers show early inquiry behaviours. A child (let’s call him Hudson), 14 months watches ants with deep focus. This moment of sensory attention becomes an opportunity for an educator to respond to what matters to him, which aligns with the principles of inquiry-based learning. The parent or the educator listens, questions, and guides rather than directs.
Nature pedagogies tell us that young children build knowledge through relationships with place, materials, and more-than-human life. This connects strongly to sensory play. Natural materials such as stones, seedpods, leaves and water are open-ended. They have what Malaguzzi called “affordances”, meaning they invite different actions depending on the child’s interest and intention. The Mudbook: Nature Play Framework also points out that sensory-rich outdoor experiences help children develop ecological connection and care (Childhoodnature, n.d.) . When toddlers feel the coolness of water or the roughness of bark, they are forming these early ecological relationships.
In Australia, regulatory requirements also highlight the need to balance safety with challenge. Jeavons, Jameson and Elliott explain that outdoor spaces should offer both safety and opportunities for meaningful exploration, including natural materials that encourage sensory engagement (Jeavons et al., 2017, pp.120–143). This means sensory play must be planned, supervised, and supported, not avoided. Safe spaces do not need to be sterile.
Sensory play also supports early communication. When toddlers point, gesture, name textures, or make sounds, they are expressing what they notice. These small interactions strengthen relationships with educators and peers.
Overall, sensory play is a natural entry point into inquiry because toddlers are already doing the work. Our role is to slow down, follow their lead, offer rich materials, keep environments safe but stimulating, and notice the learning taking place. When we do that, sensory play becomes the foundation for curiosity, connection, and early science thinking.
What are your favourite sensory play set-ups in your rooms or centres?
Storykate 🪇👧🏻