Bugs Galore by Peter Stein is one of my new favorite children's books! The illustrations are so fun and so is the writing. Something about it made my toddler belly laugh!
Bug Sensory Bins
After reading Bugs Galore, we explored our own bugs in two bug sensory bins. One was filled with coffee beans and the other with paper Easter grass - both were topped with plastic bugs. I didn't think about it far enough in advance to procure them, but a net and/or magnifying glass would have been a good addition to these sensory bins.
I loved using coffee because it had both a cool feel and an interesting aroma - and it seems that smell is a sense that is typically neglected in planning sensory activities, so that was nice for a change. Both bins were fun and offered very contrasting feels and colors. The bugs were fun to feel as well and my toddler enjoyed pointing at each body part and asking "that?," as I identified wings, legs, tails and more. Of course, it was very important to be attentive so that no coffee beans (or bugs) were accidentally ingested.