Water Table Activities: 9 Ultimate Water Table Ideas for Kids

Alessandra | Posted on May 31, 2022 |

Summer is coming and water tables are a great way to entertain your children and keep them cool. In this blog I’m giving you 9 amazing water table activities your kids will love!

Water tables activities are a great way to keep your young children cool in the summer and having fun. Plus they are such a popular summer toy that won’t break the bank. They are great for cooling off without needing a pool, plus they are easy to fill up and keep clean. They are also SO versatile! In this blog I’m sharing 9 water table activities that will keep your toddler entertained all summer long. These water table ideas are great for sensory activities, fine motor activities, and overall they are lots of FUN!

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From water table sensory ideas to fine motor activities to water table games, beat the heat this summer with these kid-approved ideas! Plus read until the end for even MORE water table ideas that do not include water. Let’s dive in!

Kid-Approved Water Table Activities

Start having fun and cooling off with this 9 water table activities that are bound to keep your kids entertained for hours. Add these items to your water table to create endless fun.

1. Rocks

Ok, what kid doesn’t love rocks? Trick question – they all do and most likely you have a pet rock in your house. Add a few rocks to your water table for your kids to “clean” and push around under the water.

2. Pom-Poms

Add some pom-poms to the water in your water table. Grab some tweezers and encourage your toddler to use them to pick up the pom-poms and put them in a cup. This will make for a fantastic fine motor activity too!

3. Glitter

Now, usually I’m completely against glitter. It’s the worst craft supply ever haha! But adding some glitter into your water table will make it look so pretty and your toddler is sure to love it! Plus you’ll be outside, so the clean up will be simple.

4. Bubbles

Add bubble bath to your water table because, what kid doesn’t LOVE bubbles?

5. Food Coloring

Add some food coloring to your water table for a fun science experiment. Mix colors to see what new color they create. What happens when you add a bunch of colors together? Let your child’s imagination soar!

6. Droppers

Droppers are a great way to work on your child’s pincer grasp. Grab some plastic ones and practice sucking water into them and then pushing the water out. They will be working on important hand muscle skills while having a ton of fun!

Games To Play In Your Water Table

To add even more fun to your water table activities, these games are a great way to learn and have fun with water this summer.

7. Play Sink or Float

This is a great science game. Have your child choose some water appropriate toys and then have him/her guess if the toy will sink in the water or float. This is a great game to play with those rocks you’ve added to your water table.

8. Scoop and Pour

Teach your child about volume and mass. Have them pour water into one cup and then another bigger or smaller one. Talk about the differences and what cup holds more water.

9. Go “Fishing”

You know those bath toys with the fishing rod and magnetic fish? Add those to your water table and go fishing! This is a great fine motor activity and will help build your child’s hand-eye coordination. Who knew water tables could be so educational?!

Extra Water Table Activities

If you are dealing with a rainy day, don’t fear, just use your water table inside as a sensory table! These three items below work great in any water table to help keep your child occupied and entertained for hours without watching TV.

Kinetic Sand – I’m not sure what it is about this stuff, but my kids stay the most quiet and entertained when they are using kinetic sand. It’s amazing. It’s messy, but it’s great!
Dry Black Beans – For about $1 a bag, you can’t go wrong when adding black beans to your water table. They have a great texture and are fun to scoop and dump!
Rice – Same as black beans, grab a bag of cheap white rice and add it to your table. You can even add some toys with it too. Constructions trucks, race cars, and farm animals are all a great addition to the rice.

Even More Summer Activities

Are you still looking for more summer activities? Check out my epic list of 62 screen-free summer activities for toddlers! And opt-in to my email for the ultimate freebie: An 18 page PDF download with activity worksheets, a summer schedule, and a summer bucket list for your family!

Final thoughts

Water tables are a great way to have fun in the sun. Toddlers and preschoolers alike enjoy them too, so if you have more than 1 child, they will all enjoy these water table activities! From science to fine motor skills, water tables are a great addition to any home and they are super affordable. Stay cool and have fun this summer with your very own sensory water table! Find them on Amazon, at Walmart, Target, or Kohls.

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