ABC Moon Sand Sensory Activity

This ABC moon sand is such a fun activity for kids! It’s easy to make, taste safe, and great for practicing letters, spelling, and phonics!

If you’re looking for a fun and simple sensory activity, you’re going to love this ABC moon sand activity! I’m the mom that doesn’t mind mess but wants something stupid simple. Please don’t list off 25 supplies with 86 steps – I’m not gonna do all that. I love my children but mama isn’t cut out for that life. #sorrynotsorry

If you can relate – this ABC moon sand is the perfect sensory activity for you!

We play with moon sand on a very frequent basis. It takes minutes to put together and if you don’t mind mess, it makes a great independent play activity. I often set this up in our kitchen and get some work done. But it is definitely everywhere when I return LOL.

what is moon sand?

If you’ve never heard of moon sand before, it’s a really cool sensory play activity. It’s crumbly in texture but can be molded together in your hand. It’s super easy to make, too! It only takes two ingredients that you likely have in your cupboards right now (which is why we make this pretty often ha!).

This moon sand recipe in particular is taste safe too! Now let me clarify in saying it won’t taste very good… but no need to panic if they get some in their mouth. If you choose to use baby oil though, the same cannot be said.

If you’re interested in why sensory play is so amazing, you need to check out this article on 3 benefits of sensory play written by Sarah of Stay at Home Educator. Girl knows her stuff!

abc moon sand ingredients

• 4 cups flour
• 1 cup oil (we used vegetable oil)

how to make moon sand

1. gather your supplies + ingredients

I mean…. there really isn’t a lot to gather but still LOL. It’s easier if you set out your mixing bowl, whisk, dry measuring cups, wet measuring cup, flour, and oil before starting.

2. mix the ingredients

Now that you’ve done that, time to start making your ABC moon sand! Start by adding your flour into your mixing bowl.

Next, add your oil to the bowl!

Now whisk it all together until it is mixed well. It will appear clumpy as that’s what we want! Adjust the oil and flour as needed.

3. Play with your moon sand!

Now it’s time to play! Place the ABC moon sand on a cookie sheet or sensory bin and let them start feeling the moon sand between their fingers.

You can then pull out some letter cookie cutters and start playing!

abc moon sand activity ideas

What I love about this activity is how versatile it is! There are so many things you can do with it to help toddlers and preschoolers learn and grow.

Letter recognition + matching: My cookie cutters only have capital letters but if you can find lowercase as well, you can do some letter matching! We start off by just asking them to identify the letters.

Spelling: Another option is to spell names and other words. You can adjust this depending on the level your child is at.

Phonics: My little is learning phonics right now so we like to use this activity to sound out letters, make simple words (such as cat or man), or whatever other phonics activity I can come up with.

This is no way a complete list, so see what other activities you can come up with! You could also add other types of cookie cutters and create different themed activities. We have a cookie cutter set that has 101 pieces so there’s a lot to do with it.

Funny thing is – we are yet to actually make cookies with it. It’s only been used for activities so far!

how to store moon sand

The best way to store your ABC moon sand is in an airtight container that seals it up really good.

It is said that moon sand will stay good indefinitely. But I’m paranoid and I usually toss it after 1-2 weeks. Do whatever you are comfortable with!

Have you tried moon sand before? Let me know how your kids liked it in the comments!