How to play with beanbags? Our top 5 beanbag games

Wondering how your little one plays with beanbags ? When I first gave them to my child, I wondered the same thing. But we were both quickly hooked on this sensory toy, and she's been playing with them for years now.

How do you play with sensory bean bags?

Beanbags are sensory toys because they stimulate multiple senses: touch (texture), hearing (rattle), and sight (colors and patterns). The possibilities with these play bags are endless! From touching, shaking, sorting, throwing, juggling, balancing, stacking, and endless role-play. A beanbag transforms into anything a child can imagine.

Moreover, it adapts to development. As a sensory baby toy, it's fun to touch and shake. If your toddler is at the stage of putting everything in baskets, the beanbags will become the material they put in the baskets. Is your toddler interested in learning and sorting colors? Then they'll use the rainbow beanbags to sort by color.

That's why sensory bean bags remain so fun for so long. Your child can play with them in different ways every time.

A child's imagination and toys

Children have a rich imagination. The older they get, the less imaginative they become (unless you encourage it). Children see possibilities with toys that we don't. And the simpler the toys, the more your child can decide for themselves what they're for. These types of toys are also called open-ended toys.

Beanbags as open-ended toys

They fall into the category of open-ended toys because they are nothing and can therefore transform into anything. Open-ended toys have no instructions; there's no single way to play. And each time, they can be something different. A beanbag can be a bed, stepping stones, a color-sorting toy, or a throwing game.

Want to learn more about open-ended toys? Download the free introductory guide to open-ended toys .

Our 5 Favorite Bean Bag Games

1. Sorting beanbags by color - I lay out the beanbags and other rainbow toys. The game starts naturally, because it's irresistible to match colors.
   
2. Beanbags as soft beds - grab the bags and some toy animals or wooden figures. Place one on the bed and leave the rest near the "beds." Your child is guaranteed to follow your play.
   
   
3. Beanbags as stepping stones - create a path (or even a whole obstacle course) out of beanbags and let your child walk along it. This requires balance and develops gross motor skills. The older your child gets, the more challenging the path becomes. It's also a sensory toy, as the seeds inside the beanbag feel wonderful under the soles of your child's feet.
   
   
4. Beanbag throwing games – what's more fun than throwing! Come up with some fun games for the house. Set up a basket to aim for, or knock over a tower of paper cups. Because a beanbag doesn't bounce, it's much more fun to throw around the house.
   
   
5. Decorating beanbag cakes - my daughters love transforming beanbags into cakes in their play kitchen. They decorate them with glitter stones, twigs, flowers, marbles, and other loose parts. They love playing birthday party with presents, etc.
   

An extra play tip is the Stapelstein beanbags with Stapelstein. There's a beanbag for each Stapelstein, and you can have fun sorting, throwing, and creating all sorts of courses with them. We even have a confetti beanbag for each stone.

Tip if you are offering bean bags to your child for the first time

You only get one chance to discover new toys. And on that first opportunity, you should give your child complete freedom. Don't tell them what to do with them. Don't guide them or demonstrate anything. Watch and observe what your child does with them.

Of course, you can guide, show, or play along more later on. But for the first time, let your child decide what it is. Let your child's imagination do the work.

Want to buy sensory bean bags? View all bean bag sets here .