Mystery Bag Game | Quick & Easy Preschool Activity
I happen to love this mystery bag activity. It’s one of my personal favorites.
It reminds me a lot of the disappearing shapes activity.
They are both so easy to set up that they make great time-filler activities. Plus, by changing the items you use, the activity becomes a whole new game!
Mystery Bag Activity | Quick & Easy Preschool Activity
what you need: two bags, items (I used 10)
The hardest part of this is collecting the items in secret. I think kids have some type of Mommy sensor that brings them curiously to your leg the second you think you have a moment alone.
I decided to collect these items the night before, but it can be done quickly if you decide to do this at a moment’s notice.
When I collected the items for our mystery bag, I tried to vary the texture and size. I also wanted a few items that were really obvious and some that would be a little more of a challenge.
Start with all of the items in one bag and bring another bag with you. Make sure the bags are NOT see through.
We used the bag from our Marble Game; a brown paper bag would work just as well.
Take one item (in a very sneaky way, without letting anyone see it) and put it in the second bag. I had them close their eyes, but I didn’t trust one bit that they actually did close their eyes!
At this point, I started talking about how they would be able to figure out what was in the bag.
- Would they use their sense of hearing? (I added a visual by putting my ear to the bag.)
- Could they figure out what was in the bag by using their sense of smell?
Little M felt the item and we talked about what she felt.
- Is the item smooth or rough?
- Does the object feel hard or squishy?
- Would you call it big or small?
As she guessed, I questioned her answers. I asked for more details and guided her away from answers that were not exactly correct.
“Oh, it feels like a fork? A fork has four points on the end, does that item have four points? No? Do you have another guess?”
Once she knew what she was feeling I had her pull it out.
Mystery Bag Activity Tips (to maximize learning):
- The mystery bag is the perfect addition to your letter of the week. Simply fill the bag with items that start with your letter of the week.
- If your little one is having a hard time figuring out what the item is, add in some clues. Where would you find this item? What would it be used with?
- Have your little one take a turn filling the bag for you!
What items did you put in your mystery bag? Leave us a comment!
This Mystery Bag Activity sounds like such a fun and creative way to engage preschoolers! I love how easy it is to set up, and I can’t wait to try it with my kids. They’ll definitely enjoy the surprise element and learning through play! Thank you for sharing this great idea!
I absolutely love the idea of the Mystery Bag Activity! It sounds like a fun and engaging way to spark creativity in preschoolers. I can’t wait to try this with my kids and see what amazing stories they come up with! Thanks for sharing such an easy prep activity!
Good.
I use to do this with my kids when they were little. For the older ones I would put in items that had something in common i.e. Things you would use to cook with, things you would use to measure with, and so on. One of the favorites was when I choose items that the kids could make a story out of, i.e. Like a stop sign, safety officer, bee, house, car, and ambulance. My son made up this fantastic story about a safety officer directing traffic and a man was waiting in a line of traffic and a bee stung him on the cheek and he was allergic to bees! His face started swelling up and he couldn’t see out of one of his eyes so he was scared. He jumped out of his car and started running down the street! The safety officer yelled and told the man to stop! He told the officer he needed to go to his house that was just across the intersection to call an ambulance. The officer told the man he could call one and he did! I never forgot this story! I would always write their stories down or record them! It is a Great memory maker and good practice for elementary and for budding high school reporters!