Sensory bottles are a simple activity to make with young children that use recycled bottles and materials found around the house. Recently, in my quest to do more activities with my toddler daughter, she and I created three new sensory bottles using oil and water, soap, and rice.
In the first bottle that my daughter and I made, I poured in half vegetable oil and half water with a few drops of food coloring. The food coloring mixes with the water but not the oil. Since oil and water do not mix, the two substances remain separated. Shaking the bottle up really hard does mix the oil and water a little, but allowing the bottle to rest for a while separates the two liquids again. I must admit that the oil and water sensory bottle is my new favorite.
For our second sensory bottle, I used a little bit of dish soap, a few drops of food coloring, and water. My daughter loves shaking up her soap bottle to form bubbles. If allowed to sit undisturbed for a while, the soap bubbles disappear. Once the bubbles are gone, my daughter loves shaking the soap sensory bottle again to form new bubbles.
The third bottle that my daughter and I made is a dry sensory bottle. Inspired by a display at the Explorium in Mobile, Alabama, I filled the third bottle with white rice and one black bean. My daughter loves shaking her rice bottle to make noise. I like shaking the bottle around to find the one black bean amid all the white rice.
What materials have you used to create a sensory bottle for your child?
Image Credits
Three Empty Water Bottles © 2013 Heather Johnson
Vegetable Oil © 2013 Heather Johnson
Palmolive Soap © 2013 Heather Johnson
Adding Food Coloring to the Vegetable Oil © 2013 Heather Johnson
Adding Food Coloring to the Soap © 2013 Heather Johnson
Soap Bubbles Sensory Bottle © 2013 Heather Johnson
Soap Bubbles and Oil and Water Sensory Bottles © 2013 Heather Johnson
White Rice and Black Beans © 2013 Heather Johnson
Making a Funnel from Old Paper © 2013 Heather Johnson
White Rice © 2013 Heather Johnson
White Rice and Black Bean Sensory Bottle © 2013 Heather Johnson
Adding in One Black Bean © 2013 Heather Johnson
