Today, we have been making these colourful sensory bottles for babies and toddlers, with lots and lots of glitter in….so watch out ;-) They are cheap, easy to make, and babies and toddlers love them! Best of all, you probably will have most of the materials at home already.
Sensory bottles are great for helping babies eyes to focus on near objects. They will also enjoy:
- The movement as the glitter swirls around the bottles,
- Looking at the different colors, and
- Listening to the movement of the water.
Here’s how you make them – if you have older children they might like to join in helping:
Materials:
- Clean empty drink bottles,
- Tape/glue,
- Colored paint or food dye, and
- Glitter.
Method:
1. Make sure your drink bottles are clean and remove any labels from them
2. Fill them with water and add a few drops of either colored paint or food dye and shake them up to mix the color
3. Add in some glitter-for these ones I’ve used the same color as the paint plus some silver glitter for added sparkle but you can use any colors or even a variety to make it multicolored
4. Use the tape or glue to secure the lid back onto the bottle
5. You are now ready to play! Just make sure you supervise your baby while they play.
They are perfect for the newborn stage, right up to toddlers. Newborns will love watching the glitter, move while older babies and toddlers can enjoy shaking the bottles themselves.
If you would like any other ideas for sensory play, then do pop along to our Pinterest board where we have some great ones for you, from babies to toddlers and beyond:
If you like these sensory bottles for babies, be sure to check out some of the other crafts that we have on the site as well, including:
- Paw Patrol activity sheets for toddler fun,
- Some Norm of the North colouring and activities to download, and
- All the other crafts that we have on the site, from a snorkel mask to a homemade monopoly game!
There are plenty of other great sensory play resources on the internet, why not check out these from fellow bloggers:
- 15 sensory play ideas from I Heart Arts N Craft,
- 10 fantastic handprint craft ideas from Hodge Podge Craft, and
- Make your own cloud dough fun! A fab idea from Happy Hooligans.
Why not check out some freebies like our amazing free printables, including coloring in sheets and reward charts. Like what you see, then please sign up for the KiddyCharts newsletter.
Enjoy!
14 Comments on "Sensory bottles for babies and toddlers"
Kara Guppy
May 2, 2016These look like great fun - mine aren't babies anymore but would still like to play with them
NInjacat
April 29, 2016Brilliant sensory ideas and cheap to make as well
Nichola - Globalmouse
April 28, 2016I love these! Really colourful and interesting for kids, such a great, cheap way to capture their attention!
Nayna Kanabat
April 26, 2016Lovely idea for playtime. I love the sparkle in the bottles.
Emma Raphael
April 25, 2016Love these. And now I have a six month old who would be fascinated! :) Thank you!
Sonya Cisco
April 25, 2016Love this - simple and effective and a great way to recycle those empty plastic bottles!
oana79
April 25, 2016I saw something similar this morning on an autism awareness site, they were promoted as calming activities for grown ups suffering from the disease. Very simple yet rewarding activity.
Jen Walshaw
April 24, 2016Sensory bottles are great. I used them a lot when my boys were younger.
Gemma
April 24, 2016Love this! So simple to do yet so effective
anthea
April 24, 2016Sensory bottles are great for all including adults! My top tip is to use PVC glitter as you can play with it's density
cass bailey
April 24, 2016These sound brilliant and I know my two would have loved them when they were younger x
nessjibberjabberuk
April 22, 2016What a great sensory toy. So many shop bought items are expensive and the kids get bored of them so quickly.
Niki - Play & Learn Every Day
April 22, 2016We love making sensory bottles too, they're so easy to make and keep kids busy watching them for ages!
Charlotte
April 22, 2016Love these bottles, we used to make them out of the voss bottles as I loved the look! So many different ways of making them and kids love them too :)