Rainbow Dyed Corn Kernels: How to Dye Corn for Sensory Play

Looking for an easy sensory bin idea that you can prep in advance and take out when you need it? These rainbow dyed corn kernels are low-mess, super colourful, and lots of fun to play with. Dye them once and reuse them again and again!

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please see my full disclosure for further information.

---

It’s always a good idea to have some sensory materials on hand for days when you don’t have time to prep activities. And if you’re not sure what to make, these rainbow dyed corn kernels are a great place to start.

Rainbow corn is super vibrant, fun to play with and can be prepped once and reused for months. We like to keep ours in large freezer bags when not in use.

It’s also less messy that some of the other activities your child may like, since it is a dry material that can easily be swept up with a broom. I hope your kids enjoy it as much as ours do!

(P.S. Do you have a baby or young toddler at home? Corn kernels can be a choking hazard, but you may want to try these Rainbow Dyed Oats instead!)

Required Materials

Here’s what you’ll need to make rainbow dyed corn for your toddler or preschooler:

• Popcorn kernels (I used ½ cup of corn kernels per colour, but you can make larger quantities if you like)
• Small Ziploc bags
• White vinegar
• Liquid food colouring (you can also use gel food colouring, but you’ll need to adjust the quantities)

Note: We chose to dye our corn kernels with vinegar because it makes the colour brighter and helps the dye set. That being said, if you don’t like the smell of vinegar, or if you don’t happen to have any vinegar on hand, you can replace it with a generous squirt of hand sanitizer.

How to Dye Corn Kernels for Sensory Bins (Step-by-Step)

1. Pour Corn into Ziploc Bag

To make rainbow corn, start by pouring ½ cup of corn into 6 zip-top sandwich bags (one for each colour).

2. Combine Food Colouring and Vinegar

Pour 1 tablespoon of vinegar into a small bowl and add 20-25 drops of food colouring. Feel free to mix several colours of food colouring to create the exact shade you want.

Note: The exact quantity of food colouring you’ll need will depend on the brand of food colouring you use. Feel free to experiment with adding a little less to start with—you can always add more if needed.

3. Pour Coloured Vinegar into Ziploc Bag

Pour the coloured vinegar into the bag of corn kernels. The vinegar will roll off the corn kernels and sink to the bottom of the bag, which is perfectly normal.

4. Spread Food Colouring Throughout

Seal the Ziploc bag and move the corn kernels around with your fingers in order to spread out the food colouring. This task can definitely be done by your kids!

Note: If you see that the colour is too light, you can add more drops of food colouring straight into the bag. But it is normal for the colours to be less vibrant during this step, so you probably won’t need to add a huge amount.

5. Let Dye Set

When we made Rainbow Dyed Chickpeas, the chickpeas took in the colour immediately and I was able to lay them out on a baking sheet to dry right away. But with the corn kernels, the dyeing process took a bit longer.

In order to help the corn absorb the dye, I left them in the sealed Ziploc bags for a couple hours, occasionally turning over the bags to help the vinegar fully coat the corn kernels.

Once the kernels looked nice and vibrant, I was able to move on to the next step.

6. Let Corn Dry

When you are happy with the colour of your corn kernels, lay them out on a plate or a baking sheet to dry. If it’s sunny outside, you can leave them out in the sun to make them dry faster.

If you’re letting all of the kernels dry on the same baking sheet, make sure you keep the colours separate to prevent staining. I put mine on the same baking sheet to save space, but gathered each colour into a separate pile.

Then, once they were relatively dry and I didn’t think the food colouring would mix, I spread them out to give them a chance to dry properly. The corn kernels actually dried pretty fast compared to the chickpeas.

When the kernels are done drying, they’re ready to play with! I was worried that they wouldn’t take to the dye very well because of their natural yellow colour, but they turned out absolutely gorgeous.

We’ve previously dyed oats, rice and chickpeas, but the popcorn kernels were my favourite. They are super vibrant and have such a fun, smooth texture that makes them really satisfying to play with.

How to Play with Rainbow Dyed Corn

These rainbow corn kernels make a great sensory bin filler. Our kids loved touching them with their hands, feeling their smooth texture and hearing the sounds they made when they were spread around.

You can also use the corn kernels for fine motor practice. When I offered them to my kids, they immediately grabbed some bowls, cups and spoons and started to scoop and transfer the kernels from one bowl to another.

Colour sorting activities are a possibility, too. And because these dyed corn kernels make fun sounds when shaken, you can even throw them into a sensory bottle on days when your child is tired of sensory bins!

Related Rainbow Sensory Play Activities

Looking for more rainbow-hued sensory activities to do at home with your kids? Check out these articles:

• DIY Rainbow Dyed Chickpeas
• Easy Rainbow Oats
• Edible Rainbow Sand for Babies & Toddlers
• Pom-Pom Rainbow Sensory Bag
• Edible Rainbow Marshmallow Slime

Join my mailing list using the form below to receive 12 of the most popular sensory recipes on my site in PDF format! You’ll be the first to know when I publish new recipes, and you’ll also gain access to my free printables library, which is filled with lots of printable activities for kids.