Our Westward Expansion Sensory Bin gives my preschool, toddler, kindergarten, and 1st & 2nd grader some hands on sensory fun exploring westward expansion for kids!

Wild West Sensory Bin – Digging for Gold and More

I created this Westward Expansion Sensory Bin to go along with our unit in history. I thought it would be fun for my tot & preschooler to play along as big brother learned. I surprised by how much Goofy loved playing too!

The main part of the bin is brown rice.  I added flags and black yarn to show the Oregon Trail Route we were studying about (from Independence, Missouri to Oregon). The figures are all from the Wild West Toob. The number wagons are from my {free} Wild West MEGA pack – your child can practice counting by 1s, 2s, 5s, or 10s.

I added “gold” fusion beads to represent the gold found during the Gold Rush in 1849. The kids had fun panning for gold.

There is so much more to the wild west than just cowboys, Indians, covered wagons, and dust bowls. See the rest of our westward expansion activities with everything you need to make history come alive for your elementary age kids! See the rest of our unit here:

• Lewis and clark for kids – Start out the way with wild west did with the journey of Louis and Clark after the Lousiana Purchase in 1803.
• Oregon Train for Kids – learn about the dangerous Oregon Trail and make a salt dough map, covered wagon model, and learn how hard life was for settlers traveling west.
• Pony Express for Kids plus the gold rush and first transcontinental rail road are just a few of the fun topics explores in this final week of our wild west for kids unit!
• Free Wild West Worksheets – over 70 pages of math and liteacy skills for kids 2-7 years old with a fun cowboy theme! Perfect to do alongside this history lesson and to keep younger siblings engaged at the same time
• Oregon Trail Skip Counting Game allows children to practice skip counting with a fun themed activity
• Dig in to history with this engaging, Wild West History Sensory Bin ideas
• Geography is Fun with a Salt Dough Map – learn about US geography and features as you mark the path the westward travelers took

History Lessons for Kids

Check out one of or MANY engaging, Free history lessons for kids

• Explore American History for kids including lots of fun, hands on activities and free printables
• Dive into Mesopotamia History to learn about Gilgamesh
• 4 week lesson about Early Explorers for Kids
• Learn about castles, knights, and more in this exciting Middle Ages for Kids
• Make a teepee, dig for arrowheads, color our printable books and more in this Native Americans for Kids lessons
• The Colonial America for Kids lesson takes kids on a journey back to the first permanent settlement in America – Jamestown. Students will learn about colonial life with lots of hands on projects like eating Gruel, making a Wattle & Daub house, and creating a tin lantern will make the settlement come alive.
• We will make westward expansion for kids come alive for kids as they learn facts about the time period from about 1783-1898. In addition to learning about the Oregon trail, pony express, gold rush, transcontinental railroad, students will also learn to match animal trails, map the united states, and learn about North American animals too.
• Civil War for Kids – students will learn about slavery, famous Americans from the Civil War, famous battles, and how our nation stayed together. Lesson includes printable worksheets, mapping activities, printable civil war board game and more!

Looking for more resources and free worksheets to teach students about geography for kids? You will love these coloring sheets, printable maps, books, activities and games:

• Free Printable Maps including world map, continents, and country maps with and without labeling
• 16 Countries for Kids Printables
• Learn about the countries for kids with these free resources
• Help kids understand where do I live with this clever printable activity
• Super cute, Free printable India for Kids Book to color, read, and learn!
• China for Kids Printable Book helps kids learn about this large, populous country famous for the great wall of china, Terra Cotta Warriors, and the Forbidden city
• Join us for a fiesta as we learn about Mexico for Kids including delicious food, Mayan temples and more!
• Explore Venezuela for Kids with the beautiful Angel Falls and delicious Arepas in this printable mini book
• Learn about the fascinating country of South Africa for kids and its fascinating wildlife.
• You can find all our country coloring pages coloring pages or jump right to Spain Coloring Pages,  China Coloring Pages,  Italy Coloring Pages, Chile Coloring Pages, and Costa Rica Coloring Pages
• Children around the World Worksheets
• Country Coloring Book – explore 36 countries with country coloring pages