With Rosh Hashanah just a week away I set up this super easy Rosh Hashanah Bees and Honey Fizzy Play Sensory Tray and it was such a hit! It was a fun way to talk about bees and honey and their connection to Rosh Hashanah and of course indulge in some sensory play, which is always something my kids love to do.
What You’ll Need
- Sensory tray or bin (or Tupperware!)
- Honeycomb mold (we have had this honeycomb ice mold for awhile. If you don’t have one, no worries, just set out another smaller tray, dish or Tupperware)
- DIY Potions Powder (I use @kindnesscastle’s recipe. Check out her Instagram account to get it!)
- Yellow food coloring
- Water
- Container
- Pipettes
- Bee figurines (we used our painted bee rocks but see notes on this below)
- Honey stirrers (optional)
- Scoopers (optional)
- Rosh Hashanah Art 3 Part Cards from Michal Lipp’s Teachers Pay Teachers shop (optional)
Putting It Together
- Print out the Rosh Hashanah Art 3 Part Cards if using. I wanted to add an element of Hebrew learning to our activity and this was such an easy way to do so.
- Make your DIY Potions Powder.
- Carefully pour the powder into your honeycomb mold or into the dish or whatever you are using to hold it.
- Place the honeycomb mold into your sensory tray or bin.
- Set up your bees and any honey stirrers or scoops you want to use.
- Add water and yellow food coloring to your container and set by the tray, along with your pipettes.
- Invite your kids to make some fizzy honeycomb by using the pipettes to transfer the “honey” (the colored water) to the potion.
- They can then explore and play as desired!
Finished & Loving It!
I liked starting our Rosh Hashanah Bees and Honey Fizzy Play Sensory Tray activity by learning the Hebrew words for bee and honey with these beautiful watercolor Rosh Hashanah Art 3 Part Cards made by the talented Michal Lipp. It was so easy to include a little bit of Hebrew learning and important for my big kid who’s studying conversational Hebrew. Anytime I can add some simple Hebrew practice that feels relevant, I try to!
Then I invited my kids to add the “honey” to the special potions powder in the honeycomb mold and so much fun fizzy sensory fabulousness ensued! The recipe for the DIY potions powder is from @kindnesscastle and it is so simple and always so much fun.
I love the painted bee rocks we made last week. We used them in our High Holidays I Spy Sensory Bin and Bottle and plan to use them for other Rosh Hashanah activities. However, they did not fair well after so much play in the potion. The citric acid was too acidic for the acrylic paint so the bees are looking a little chipped and worn. Not a big deal, but if you have plastic bee figurines, use those!
The honeycomb mold is actually an ice mold which we’ve used for different frozen activities but works so well for this one because it looks like honeycomb! But you never need special stuff for fun and meaningful sensory play. Use whatever you have (including your imagination!) and the kids will not only have fun, they will enjoy all the benefits of sensory play while doing so!
This Rosh Hashanah Bees and Honey Fizzy Play Sensory Tray activity ticks a lot of skill building boxes. The pipettes are a great fine motor skill activity. It takes coordination and strength to use the pipettes to transfer the water.
Sensory play itself has so many benefits. The kids practiced different motor skills, language development skills, communication, problem solving, creative and imaginary play, problem solving, and it feels good too!
Don’t panic that Rosh Hashanah is only a week away! There’s still plenty of time to learn more about the holiday, engage in deep personal reflection, and of course, think about ways to make it fun and meaningful for your whole family!
Check out our High Holidays Hub for more information, resources, and lots of activities for you and your kids to explore this Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur!
A few of our favorite quick references:
For some of our favorite High Holiday books, take a look at our Bookshop.org With Love, Ima Storefront (each purchase supports local bookstores!).
Looking for a fun way to incorporate apples and honey into your Rosh Hashanah celebrations? Check out these delicious products from Nuts.com! We LOVE Nuts.com and think your tummies will love these goodies too. Shanah Tovah!
*This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link!*
