How to make Rainbow Rice

While going through some old posts I realized we have never shared a simple tutorial on how to make rainbow rice.  We have shared how to make it within other activity posts, but this is such a staple play recipe that it Rainbow rice is wonderful for sensory play.  It is colorful, makes a fun noise when poured, is great for fine motor development, and even has calming benefits.  It is also great for use in arts and crafts.

Rainbow Rice Materials List

    Rice (we buy 10 pound bags at Walmart for under $8)
    Food coloring or liquid watercolors
    Zip seal bags
    Water
    Optional- add a fun scent to your rice by using kool-aid, Duncan Hines Frosting Powders, spices, or extracts

Making rice for play is so easy.  All you need to do is place the desired amount of rice into a bag.  To make rainbow rice you will want to fill 6 bags with the desired rice amounts.  Add several drops of food coloring or water colors to each bag along with a touch of water.  The water just helps spread the coloring onto the rice.  You want to add enough but not too much.  The idea is to have minimal water left over in the bag once the rice is saturated in color.

How to make rice for sensory play
(Photo from our Fall scented rice collection)

From here you can either let the rice varieties dry right in the bag or lay them out on baking sheets or similar to dry.  If you leave them in the bag to dry just be sure to leave the bags open.  That's it!  In roughly 4-6 hours your rice will be ready for play
 really should have it's very own post.
 If you want to add scent to your rice just add the kool-aid, frosting powder, extract, or spice  to the zip seal bags along with all the other ingredients when mixing.  One of my favorite rice varieties we have made was our cotton candy rainbow rice.  To make that I just used one Duncan Hines Cotton Candy Frosting Powder packet and sprinkled a tiny amount into each zip seal bag.  Almost a year later and we still have this rice.  It still smells amazing, too!

 Give kids scoopers, buckets, shovels and kitchen gadgets, and they will have a blast.  As they scoop and pour the rice, it will  make a calming sound.  It is great for fine motor and can be used in lots of other activities. 

Source: http://www.growingajeweledrose.com/2013/10/how-to-make-rainbow-rice.html