I have seen so many sensory bottles on Pinterest and always wondered what they actually were. What do sensory bottles do? What are sensory bottles? I had to dig a bit deeper to find out.
Sensory bottles are simply often referred to as ‘calm bottles.’ They are supposed to help calm a child (or adult) down simply by looking at them. They help to calm you down when you watch and focus on the items inside the sensory bottle, such as glitter. Sensory bottles have been known to help calm a child down when they are having a meltdown or anxiety attack. They totally work for adults too!
What do you put in sensory bottles?
There are so many things you can put inside of your sensory bottle! Below are just a few ideas:
- Glitter
- Beads
- Confetti
- Food coloring
- Charms
- Small seashells
- Sand
- Legos or small toys
- Small rubber bands
- Small pieces of foam
- Plastic spiders (for Halloween!)
- Different colored buttons
- Paper clips
And so much more! See, you can practically put anything inside of your sensory bottles!
What liquid do you put inside a sensory bottle?
You can use any of the following liquids for your sensory bottles:
- Baby oil
- Water
- Cooking oil
- Glue
- Liquid soap
- Corn syrup
- Clear shampoo
- Clear hair gel
So, there are a lot of liquids that will work in your sensory bottle! So many fun choices!
Today, I have a fun and EASY craft for you to make with your child/ren. It is themed towards the 4th of July but is awesome for any time of the year. Below, you will find the instructions on how to make a patriotic sensory bottle.
Supplies:
- Plastic sensory bottle (I use an 8oz. VOSS water bottle, but you can find great sensory bottle sets at Amazon)
- 1 bottle (5oz.) Elmer’s Clear Glue
- Red, silver, and blue star-shaped confetti
- Water
That is it!
Directions:
- Pour all of the glue into the bottle.
- Add the desired amount of star confetti. (For this project, I used about 2tbsp.)
- Fill the remainder of the bottle with warm water.
- Close the bottle well.
- Shake up the contents well until the stars move around slowly and freely.
And, there you have it! A sensory bottle to help calm you down!
For photos of each step, click here.