The Chaos and the Clutter

sensory bottles

Harvest Sensory Bottle

A very close-up picture of the harvest sensory bottle with one of the sunflowers at the front.

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Do you have toddlers to teens at home and find yourself needing a handy way to calm someone down, keep a little someone occupied in a quiet setting, or fight boredom on a long trip? You are not alone! Our Harvest Sensory Bottle is the perfect tool to have on hand this Fall when the need for distraction arises. Your children will be enthralled. 

A plastic bottle filled with various items including mixed dry beans and sunflowers to represent the harvest or fall.

If you haven’t read about sensory strewing before, be sure to check out that article to learn how valuable it is to just leave things like sensory bottles laying around, waiting to be discovered. Implementing this concept in your home can be life changing! That’s why I do what I do.

How to Make a Harvest Sensory Bottle

Supplies

  • Sticks. Gather these from outside.
  • Acorns. Gather these from outside as well. 
  • Resin Pumpkins and Leaves. Found in the Halloween section at Dollar Tree or other dollar store
  • Sunflowers. Found in the fall section
  • Mini Fall Florals. Look for the tan spiky pieces.
  • Multi-Colored Beans. 
  • Plastic Bottle. I get mine from Amazon.

Supplies for Harvest Sensory Bottle: flowers, beans, bottle, stems.

Steps to Make Sensory Bottles

  1. Wash the jar with hot soapy water and dry it.
  2. Layer the beans with the other supplies on the list. 
  3. Depending on the child, you may want to super glue the lid in place. On the other hand you might want to re-use the bottle so it is up to you.

Large image of the harvest sensory bottle with smaller close-ups of different sections of the jar.

Tips to Make Your Harvest Sensory Bottle the Best It Can Be

Do not overfill the bottle. Ideally you want the items in the sensory jar or sensory bottle to be able to move around, make noise, disappear and reappear, etc.

Even young children can enjoy sensory bottles with small objects as long as the bottles are glued shut and the activity is supervised. But the cool thing is, big kids and adults enjoy them as well! 

Can’t find everything on our list? Other small items found at the Dollar store while you are there can be equally delightful. Small erasers, beads, flowers, or toys that fit with the harvest theme can be substituted! 

Clean it off first. As you gather sticks, acorns, or other small items from the outdoors, be sure to tap the sticks on the ground to shake off any loose bark or dirt that might make a mess in the bottle and rinse any dirt off of the acorns. Give everything time to dry before you make the bottle so you don’t invite moisture to the party either.

You will probably have enough supplies to make two bottles. Sharing the expense with another mom is a great idea!

How to Use a Sensory Bottle

This calming activity can quiet an over stimulated child, help someone regain focus and concentration, end tantrums or boredom, and inspire hours of quiet exploration. Here are just some of the ways one of these bottles can provide a valuable experience for your child.

Visual Perception Skill Building.

This refers to the ability to make visual connections between to options and develop an understanding of depth, spatial relationships, and positional concepts like above, below, under, and behind. 

Problem Solving

“I’m sure I just found a purple bean. I want to find it again. Let me see how to make that reappear.” These are the kinds of thoughts that come out of sensory bottle play. 

Auditory Sensory Feedback

The sound of the beans in the bottle can have a calming or stabilizing effect. It also helps exercise those auditory discrimination skills. 

Large Muscle Movement

The smaller the child, the more of a large muscle workout a sensory bottle will be, and as they shake it, move it, turn it and bang it around they will be getting all kinds of kinesthetic feedback to the central nervous system. Just remember you cannot allow free play with a sensory bottle unless you are present to supervise. Even a glued on lid can come undone. Ask me how I know! 

Harvest Sensory Bottle Expansion Activities

  • Read books about Fall. Some suggestions include Leaf Man by Louis Ehlert and Fall Mixed Up.
  • Rake and jump in leaves together. 
  • Go on a hike in the woods to look for items in the sensory bottle. 
  • Find and draw or name each different kind of item in the sensory bottle. 
  • Visit a field of sunflowers.
  • Talk about the four seasons.

A very close-up picture of the harvest sensory bottle with one of the sunflowers at the front.

More Fantastic Sensory Bottles to Make

We love this Thanksgiving Sensory Bottle and its the perfect time of year to buy the supplies for both this and the Harvest one at the same time. For some extra fun, make this I Spy Birds Sensory Bottle. The I Spy bottles are perfect for taking on long car rides or events that will get tedious for little ones. We have so many different sensory bottle ideas, but one more I want to specifically call out that I think you will love is the Van Gogh Inspired Starry Night Sensory bottle.  

5 Little Ducks Activities for Preschool

sensory bottle laying on the book 5 Little Ducks

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Give your little one a chance to have some fun as they learn with these cute 5 Little Ducts activities. Make your own duck-filled sensory bottle for your kids to play with as they enjoy the book. They’ll have fun using their different senses to play along as you read a sweet nursery rhyme book.sensory bottle with a rubber duck and blue beads in it next to a children's book

5 Little Ducks Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

  • 16 ounce sensory bottle
  • 5 ounce bottle of Elmer’s Clear Glue
  • 5 small rubber duck toys
  • Blue glass stones/gems
  • Water

glue, two empty bottles, 5 small rubber duck toys, and blue beads

Instructions:

  1. Open the sensory bottle. Pour the whole bottle of glue into the bottle.
  2. Add the glass stones and gems to the bottom of the bottle, then place the ducks inside.
  3. Fill the bottle with water, leaving a little room at the top empty.
  4. Close the lid. Secure the lid with tape or glue, if desired, to ensure the bottle doesn’t leak.
  5. Shake the contents of the bottle until all the glue, gems, and ducks move around freely.

Note: You may have bubbles appear shaking the bottle for the first time. Allow the bubbles to settle and disappear after shaking.

glue, blue beads, small rubber duck toys, and clear bottles

5 Little Ducks Preschool Activities

This cute duck craft is the perfect way to have some fun as you read! That’s because this sensory bottle goes along with the story in the popular children’s book, 5 Little Ducks.sensory bottle laying on the book 5 Little Ducks

In the book, a mother duck patiently awaits Spring, when her five baby ducks – all grown up – return with their new families. Throughout the story, your preschooler will have the chance to practice counting and color recognition, making it a great way to reinforce the concepts they’re learning in school.

Read the book aloud to your kids or watch this YouTube read-along. 

And after you finish reading the story, you can continue the learning process as your little ones make and play with their own sensory bottle. Once the bottle is put together, they can:

  • Count the ducks in the bottle as they are reading, moving the bottle around.
  • Match the colors in the bottle to the colors in the book.
  • Watch the gems sink to the bottom while the ducks float to the top.

small hand holding a sensory bottle with blue water and rubber ducks in it

Other Activities to Correspond with the 5 Little Ducks Book and Song:

You may be interested in these other book related kids activities:

Easter Sensory Bottle

blue plush mini chick and pastel sequins in a bottle with clear liquid and glitter

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One of the simplest forms of sensory play for young children is a sensory bottle. And when you add holiday elements to your bottles, you have the perfect way to celebrate an occasion. This simple Easter sensory bottle features classic holiday elements, allowing your child to celebrate Easter and have a little bit of educational fun at the same time. clear bottle with sequins and glitter and eggs and chicks. Text reads "Easter sensory bottle"

Easter Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

Instructions:

  1. Pour the clear soap into the sensory bottle until it’s around 2/3 of the way full.
  2. Add the glitter, baby chicks, foam eggs, and pastel sequins to the bottle.
  3. Fill the rest of the container with water.
  4. If you plan on gluing the lid to keep the bottle from reopening, add hot or Superglue glue to the inside of the lid, then replace the lid on the bottle. Otherwise, you can simply put the lid back on.

Easter Sensory Bottle Play and Learning Activities

This sensory bottle is perfect for encouraging interactive play with young children. But keep in mind that your child should always be supervised by an adult as they play. Even if the lid is glued to the top of the bottle, it could come off. And since the pieces inside could be a choking hazard, it’s important to keep an eye on your child as they’re playing with their bottle.

Try these play activities to give your kids a chance to use their visual, tactile, and proprioceptive sensory systems as they learn:

  • Seek and find. Shake up the Easter sensory bottle and let your child search through the items as they float to find different elements inside. Ask your child what they see and let them point out the different pieces inside the bottle.
  • Count the eggs and chicks. As the eggs and chicks float around the bottle, let your child count each item to see how many eggs and chicks are inside.
  • Calm a busy mind. The Easter holiday can often cause sensory overload for young kids. Creating this Easter sensory bottle is the perfect way to calm your child when they’re feeling overwhelmed. Simply shake the bottle to mix up the elements inside, then let your child watch the pieces as they float around inside.

Some other Easter sensory activities:

Easter Oobleckdrips of pastel colours of goo coming down into a sensory bin of oobleckEaster Fluffy Slime

Nature Inspired Easter Sensory Binplush bunny sits by a sensory bin filled with moss, grass, and toy butterflies

Eggs and Carrots Sensory Bin

I Spy Birds Sensory Bottle

clear bottle on its side filled with dry rice and colourful bird buttons

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Kids can work on their visual perception while playing with this I Spy Birds Sensory Bottle. It is simple to create at home or for the classroom. clear plastic bottle filled with dry white rice and tiny toy birdsThis sensory bottle creates opportunity for kids to use their tactile, visual, and proprioceptive sensory systems. Sensory input is an important part of child development and emotional regulation. 

I Spy Birds Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

Directions:

  1. Using a funnel, add a small amount of rice to the bottom of the bottle.
  2. Place a bird button inside the bottle.
  3. Repeat the above steps until all the birds are placed inside the bottle. By layering the rice and birds, you can ensure they won’t all be in the same place. 
  4. Fill the remainder of the bottle with rice, but leave some space for the rice to move around. You can empty out rice if you feel the rice doesn’t move enough to allow the animals to be seen.
  5. Replace the lid on the bottle.
  6. If you want to secure the bottle, you can secure the lid with a hot glue gun.
  7. Give the sensory bottle to your child or students to explore.
  8. If you want, you can write a list of the birds for them to find.

collage of photos of making a sensory bottle with white rice and bird buttonsAllow the child to move and shake the rice around until they find all of the birds. They can even expand the activity by researching what type of birds they are.

This activity would go well with a unit study on birds.clear bottle on its side filled with dry rice and colourful bird buttons

Expanding your study on birds:

a collage of four photos of a clear bottle filled with white rice and colourful bird buttonsAs with all sensory play activities, adult supervision should be used at all times. Even if you have secured the lid with glue, it is still possible to get it open and the bottle contains small parts which are choking hazards for children.

Are you looking for more easy sensory play ideas to make for your child or students? Join us for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Check out some of our other sensory bottles:

Dinosaur Sensory Bottle

Bugs Sensory Bottle

Van Gogh Starry Night Inspired Sensory Bottle

I Spy Forest Animal Babies Sensory Bottle

clear bottle filled with dry rice and forest animal buttons

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Create an opportunity for kids to explore through play with this I Spy Forest Babies sensory bottle. It’s easy and inexpensive to make and can be used at home or in the classroom.

clear bottle with white rice and mini animals in it. Text reads "Forest Animal Babies sensory bottle"Kids will use their tactile, visual, and proprioceptive sensory systems. They can also practise counting skills, memory, visual recognition skills, and communication. 

I Spy Forest Animals Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

Directions:

  1. Using a funnel, add a small amount of rice to the bottom of the bottle.
  2. Place a forest baby animal button inside the bottle.
  3. Repeat the above steps until all the animals are placed inside the bottle. By layering the rice and animals, they won’t all be in the same place. We included two foxes, a porcupine/hedgehog (hard to tell what it is!), squirrel, owl, and skunk.
  4. Fill the remainder of the bottle with rice, but leave some space for the rice to move around. You can empty out rice if you feel the rice doesn’t move enough to allow the animals to be seen.
  5. Replace the lid on the bottle.
  6. If you want to secure the bottle, you can secure the lid with a hot glue gun.
  7. Give the sensory bottle to a child to explore.

four photos of the process of putting rice and small animal buttons in a sensory bottleKids can move and shake the rice around to find all of the forest babies in the bottle. You can also give them a cheat sheet so they know what they are looking for.clear bottle filled with dry rice and forest animal buttons

Ways to expand this activity:

  • Have kids draw the animals as they find them.
  • Set out books on forest animals.
  • Watch a movie like Bambi about animals in the forest. 

As with all sensory play activities, adult supervision should be used at all times. Even if you have secured the lid with glue, it is still possible to get it open and the bottle contains small parts which are choking hazards. 

Are you looking for more easy sensory play ideas to try? Join us for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Check out some of our other sensory bottles:

Astronaut Sensory BottleColour Mixing Sensory Bottle

Alphabet I Spy Sensory BottleA closeup picture of a sensory bottle filled with bright colours of alphabet beads and bright coloured tinsel.

Halloween Sensory Bottle

close up of a sensory bottle with orange pumpkins and purple hues

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When we think of Halloween, we may think of dark, black, or scary, but the October holiday can also be celebrated with cheerful colours like purple and orange. That’s what I like about this Halloween sensory bottle. bottle filled with liquid and floating orange and purple items. Text reads "Easy Halloween Sensory Bottle"This is a simple activity to do in a preschool class or at home. Because the glitter and confetti travel slowly through the glue and water, it makes a great calm down bottle for kids to observe when their emotions get too big.

Halloween Sensory Bottle:

Supplies needed:

close up of a sensory bottle with orange pumpkins and purple huesDirections:

  1. Empty one bottle of clear glue into the plastic bottle. 
  2. Fill the empty glue bottle about half full with warm water and seal with the lid. Shake well to combine the remaining glue with the water. Pour into jar with glue and shake to combine.
  3. Add some of the glitter, sequins, and aquarium rocks.
  4. Seal the jar and shake well. If the glitter or confetti do not move easily, add more warm water. If the glitter or confetti move too quickly, add additional glue. Continuing adding in layers of water and glue with the glitter, sequins, and orange and purple rocks until you achieve the desired effect.
  5. When the contents of the bottle move the way you want them to, seal the bottle with the lid.
  6. You can use a hot glue gun to secure the lid in place to avoid spills.
  7. If you want to make the sensory bottle more festive, you can cover the lid with Halloween themed washi tape or  glow in the dark duct tape.

collage of supplies and finished project of a Halloween sensory bottleAre you looking for more easy sensory play ideas? Join us for a five day email series on Sensory Activities and Solutions and get a free sample of our Sensory Play Recipes eBook.

Check out these other Halloween sensory ideas:

Black Glitter Slime perfect for Halloweenhands holding dripping black slime

Hallowe’en Sensory GameSpider Emotions Matching Game

Spider Web Slime