Have you heard of ‘calm down bottles’ ? They are a great sensory activity for your child to play with when they need a break, a quiet time or to….calm down! We’ve been using them for a while with the girls – I would say optimal age would be 18 months – 4 years. I use it in lieu of timeout and most recently made one for Flora to use while potty training to help keep her on the pot longer!
What I love the most about these bottles is you can customize them ANY & EVERY way you’d like – specific to your child’s interests, the seasons etc. And most likely you already have everything you need on hand!
Supplies:
- Empty water bottle (I found the ones pictured here at Walmart for $1, but you can use a Mason Jar or I really like to get a bottle of Voss water at Target and clean off the label).
- Clear glue (This can be colored like this or just clear. You just don’t want white. Every craft store, Target, Amazon has this.)
- Mix ins: Glitter, sequins, small toys, beads. The lighter the item the better.
- Super glue
- Water
- Optional: Food coloring
Directions:
- Fill the bottom of your bottle with the glue, I’d estimate that I put about 1/4 – 1/2 a cup in.
- Next add your mix ins – this is where you can get creative and have fun!
- Top the rest with water.
- Place super glue around the lid and screw tight. Let dry completely before letting your child handle.
Most recently I made a Frozen themed bottle for Flora. I had a small Elsa doll I put in with glitter, blue sequins and snowflake sequins. She absolutely LOVED trying to ‘find Elsa’ in the snow. It’s been so fun and really distracts her! I also made one for Valentine’s Day!
I made two of these yesterday but I find my add ins sink really quickly— and I just used spangled and sequins! Any tips on how to get my items to float longer?? Thank you!
Hmm did you use enough glue?
where did you find the mini elsa?? and is the water bottle plastic or glass? :)
I used glow in the dark glue and it looks like everything clumped together : (