Sensory bottles are so easy to make and they are so effective for children’s learning and development, especially babies. Sensory bottles stimulate babies senses which is a key area of development in the birth to 1 year age range.
When we went to the park we picked up all kinds of natural foliage to use within our sensory bottles.
We collected:
- Grass
- Different shaped, sized and coloured leaves
- Daisies and other flowers
We packed one of our empty drinks bottles (which was previously cleaned) and stuck the leaves and flowers inside. We filled the bottle about 3/4 of the way up and added glitter. Give it a shake and add a bit of tin foil covered in sticky tape over the lid to make it look prettier.
Next up we made some rice and pasta sensory bottles. These always go down well with young children as they have the added sensory of sound when they are shaken. Pasta is a fantastic resource to use within a sensory bottle because it will last a long long time. You can also add more with the pasta, such as:
- Glitter
- Sequins
- Buttons
- Food colouring
Thirdly we have coloured sensory bottles. Filled 3/4’s of the way up with water you then add food colouring into the water. You can fill these with whatever you want; glitter, sequins, buttons, foiled paper etc.
There you go. Sensory bottles are so simple to make and provide children with an holistic learning experience relating to their senses. Children of all ages can enjoy these sensory bottles and you can even add a little vegetable oil to let the glitter and paint float around a bit more. They are great for calming situations down too, getting the child to relax and watch the glitter fall back into the place after being shaken. If you would like to know more on why messy play is important you can see my blog post.
Here are our best finished pieces:
We also vlogged this if you would prefer to watch how we made them.
Hope you guys enjoyed the blog and vlog!
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