Scooping, pouring, and transferring are three separate skills that are important for toddler development. Toddler will focus on sensory activities involving these skills for a longer period of time than with other toys.

This is because toddlers naturally crave sensory input. As their little brains develop, toddlers are naturally drawn to developmentally appropriate sensory activities such as scooping and pouring. Activities that stimulate the senses promote high engagement which leads to longer attention spans.

When toddlers scoop, pour, and transfer they explore:

• Gravity. They notice how the beans drop back down when spilled, poured, or dropped. 
• Cause and effect. When they tip the cup or dump the spoon, they cause the beans to fall.
• Weight. The spoon of beans feels lighter with only one bean and heavier with more beans.
• Fine motor skills. Scooping beans with a spoon allows toddler to fine tune the little muscles necessary for self feeding and other essential skills. 
• Self awareness. Toddler might initially want to dump the beans all over the floor, but will soon realize it’s difficult to move about in a messy space and even harder to replace all those beans one by one. ***